This chicken francese recipe gives you thin, golden chicken cutlets finished in a bright, silky lemon butter sauce — the kind of dish that looks like it took real effort but comes together in one skillet in under an hour. The chicken gets a light egg coating rather than a heavy breading, so the sauce is really the star here.

Chicken Francese Recipe

Pounding the chicken thin means it cooks through quickly and evenly, picking up a golden color without drying out. Once it’s cooked and set aside, the same skillet builds the sauce: white wine and chicken broth reduce with fresh lemon juice, and cold butter whisked in at the end turns it glossy and smooth rather than greasy.

The chicken only goes back into that sauce for a couple of minutes at the end, just long enough to warm through and pick up flavor. Keeping that return brief is what keeps the coating from turning soggy — simmer it too long in the sauce and you lose the texture that made it worth pan-frying in the first place.

What Is Chicken Francese?

Chicken francese is the chicken version of an older Italian dish, veal francese. When Italian immigrants brought their cooking to America, chicken was more affordable than veal, and it became the more common version of the dish over time while keeping the same basic technique: a light egg coating, a quick pan-fry, and a lemon-butter pan sauce built in the same skillet.

Why This Chicken Francese Recipe Works

The sauce depends on one technique more than anything else: whisking in cold butter, a piece at a time, over low heat rather than a simmer. Butter added cold and gradually emulsifies into the wine and broth, creating a sauce that’s smooth and glossy. Butter added all at once, or over heat that’s too high, is far more likely to separate into something greasy instead of silky.

The skillet itself matters too. Not wiping it out after frying the chicken means the browned bits left behind from that first step dissolve into the wine as it simmers, adding real depth to the sauce instead of starting from a clean, flavorless pan.

What You’ll Need

For the chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, about 1 1/2 pounds total
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

For the lemon butter sauce

1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
2 lemons
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Equipment: large cutting board, meat mallet, shallow dish for flour, wide shallow bowl for egg wash, large skillet, tongs, plate or wire rack, whisk, measuring cups and spoons, citrus juicer.

A few notes on ingredients:

Chicken breasts: If yours are unusually thick, cutting them in half horizontally before pounding makes it much easier to reach an even 1/4-inch thickness without overworking the meat.
Lemons: Fresh juice makes a real difference here over bottled — the sauce is built around bright, fresh lemon flavor, and bottled juice tends to taste flatter.
Butter for the sauce: Keep it cold and cut into pieces until the moment it goes into the pan. This isn’t just a prep note — the temperature is part of how the sauce comes together smoothly.

How to Make Chicken Francese

Step 1: Prepare the chicken

Place each chicken breast between sheets of plastic wrap or parchment and gently pound it to about 1/4-inch thickness. If the breasts are very large, cut them in half horizontally first. Season both sides with salt and pepper.

Step 2: Set up the coating

Place the flour in a shallow dish and season it with salt and pepper. In a separate shallow bowl, whisk the eggs with 2 tablespoons water until smooth.

Step 3: Coat the chicken

Dredge each chicken cutlet lightly in the seasoned flour, shaking off the excess. Dip it into the egg mixture and let the excess egg drip off.

Step 4: Cook the chicken

Heat the olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken in batches without crowding the pan, about 2 to 3 minutes per side, until golden and the thickest part reaches 165°F. Transfer the cooked chicken to a plate and repeat with the remaining cutlets.

Step 5: Start the lemon sauce

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the white wine to the same skillet, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom. Simmer for about 2 minutes, allowing the wine to reduce slightly.

Step 6: Add broth and lemon

Add the chicken broth and the juice of both lemons. Cut half of one lemon into thin rounds and add the slices to the skillet. Simmer for 4 to 5 minutes, until the sauce has reduced slightly.

Step 7: Finish the sauce and return the chicken

Reduce the heat to low. Whisk in the cold butter pieces one at a time until the sauce becomes smooth and lightly glossy. Stir in the parsley, salt, and pepper. Return the chicken to the skillet and spoon the sauce over the cutlets. Simmer gently for about 2 minutes to warm the chicken and coat it with the sauce.

Step 8: Serve

Transfer the chicken to serving plates and spoon the lemon butter sauce over the top. Garnish with additional parsley and the cooked lemon slices.

Tips for the Best Chicken Francese

Pound the chicken to an even thickness, not just thin in spots. Uneven cutlets cook unevenly, so some parts can dry out while others are still underdone.
Shake off excess flour before the egg dip. A heavy flour coating turns gummy once it hits the egg, which works against the light crust this dish is going for.
Let the excess egg drip off before the chicken hits the pan. Too much egg clinging to the cutlet can slide off in the hot oil instead of setting into a clean coating.
Don’t crowd the skillet. Cooking the cutlets in batches keeps the oil hot enough for real browning instead of steaming the chicken, which is the difference between golden and pale.

What to Serve with Chicken Francese

The lemon butter sauce is reason enough to serve this with something that can soak it up — mashed potatoes, buttered pasta, or simple rice all work well underneath or alongside the chicken. A green vegetable like asparagus or green beans, or a simple salad, rounds it out without competing with the lemon and butter flavors already on the plate.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can chicken francese be made ahead or frozen?

It’s really best made fresh and served right away. The lemon butter sauce is emulsified, meaning the butter is suspended in the liquid rather than fully dissolved, and that structure tends to break down with freezing and thawing, leaving the sauce separated and greasy instead of smooth.

What’s the difference between chicken francese and chicken piccata?

They’re closely related, both starting with thin, pan-fried chicken cutlets in a lemon-based sauce. Piccata typically includes capers as a defining ingredient, while francese usually doesn’t — the egg-dipped coating and the absence of capers are generally what sets francese apart.

Why did my sauce break or separate instead of staying smooth?

This usually comes down to heat or technique at the butter stage. Adding all the cold butter at once, or keeping the heat too high while whisking it in, can cause the sauce to separate instead of coming together smoothly. Low heat and gradually whisking in the butter piece by piece are what keep it emulsified.

Can I use chicken thighs instead of breasts?

Boneless, skinless thighs can work in place of breasts if you prefer, though they’re naturally thicker and fattier, so pounding them to an even thickness matters just as much, and the cook time may need slight adjusting to still reach 165°F.

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Chicken Francese Recipe – Crispy, Lemon Butter Chicken

This Chicken Francese recipe features thin chicken cutlets coated in seasoned flour and egg, pan-fried until golden, then finished in a bright lemon butter sauce with white wine and chicken broth.

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Prep Time 20

Cook Time 20

Total Time 40

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Italian

Servings 4

Calories 570 kcal

Ingredients

For the Chicken

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 1 1/2 pounds total
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

For the Lemon Butter Sauce

1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
2 lemons
4 tablespoons unsalted butter cold and cut into pieces
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Place each chicken breast between sheets of plastic wrap or parchment and gently pound to about 1/4-inch thickness. Cut very large breasts in half horizontally first if needed. Season both sides with salt and pepper.
Place the flour in a shallow dish and season with salt and pepper. In another shallow bowl, whisk the eggs with 2 tablespoons water.
Lightly dredge each chicken cutlet in the seasoned flour, shake off the excess, then dip it into the egg mixture. Let the excess egg drip off.
Heat the olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken in batches for about 2–3 minutes per side, until golden and the thickest part reaches 165°F. Transfer to a plate.
Reduce the heat to medium. Add the white wine to the same skillet and scrape up the browned bits. Simmer for about 2 minutes.
Add the chicken broth and juice of both lemons. Add thin rounds from half of one lemon and simmer for 4–5 minutes, until slightly reduced.
Reduce the heat to low. Whisk in the cold butter pieces one at a time until the sauce is smooth and lightly glossy. Stir in the parsley, salt, and pepper. Return the chicken to the skillet and spoon the sauce over the cutlets. Simmer gently for about 2 minutes.
Transfer the chicken to plates and spoon the lemon butter sauce over the top. Garnish with the cooked lemon slices and additional parsley.

Notes

Pounding the chicken evenly is important because the thin cutlets cook quickly and stay tender. Avoid leaving the chicken in the sauce for too long after it is cooked; a short finishing time lets it absorb the lemon-butter flavor without losing its delicate coating.