S&S GAME PLAN

Chicken Piccata

with Angel Hair Pasta & Garlic Roasted Broccolini

Golden pan-seared chicken, angel hair tossed with a bright lemon-caper pan sauce, and roasted garlic broccolini. It looks restaurant-level, but the moves are simple enough that you can still pay attention to the person you invited over.

Chicken Piccata with angel hair pasta and garlic roasted broccolini on a casual late-summer outdoor date-night table

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SERVES

2

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PREP

20 MIN

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COOK

30 MIN

★

DIFFICULTY

★★☆☆☆

WHAT YOU’RE MAKING

Chicken
Piccata

Angel Hair
Pasta

Garlic Roasted
Broccolini

THE DRINKS

Limoncello Gin Fizz

PER PERSON
1½ oz gin
1 oz limoncello
¾ oz fresh lemon juice
2–3 oz club soda
Ice
Lemon peel or thin lemon wheel

Fill a glass with ice. Add the gin, limoncello and fresh lemon juice. Stir, top with club soda and stir gently. Garnish with a lemon peel or thin lemon wheel. Taste before serving — if your limoncello runs sweet, add a little extra club soda.

Wine Move — Pinot Grigio Keep it chilled. It’s crisp, light and acidic enough to hang with the lemon and capers without bullying the chicken.

A solid $12–18 bottle is perfectly fine here. Save the expensive bottle for a night when dinner isn’t already doing this much work.

WHAT YOU NEED

Chicken Piccata

2 thin-cut boneless, skinless chicken breasts, about 5–6 oz each
½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp black pepper
¼ cup all-purpose flour, for dredging
1½ Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp butter for searing
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup chicken broth
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp capers, drained and rinsed
4 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
Lemon wedges or thin lemon slices for serving

Angel Hair Pasta

6 oz angel hair pasta
Salt for pasta water
About ½ cup pasta water reserved before draining

Garlic Roasted Broccolini

8 oz broccolini
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely minced
¼ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp black pepper

Gear

Large skillet
Large pot for pasta
Sheet pan
Tongs
Whisk or fork
Instant-read thermometer
Chef’s knife + cutting board
Measuring cups & spoons
Colander

BEFORE SHE GETS THERE

This is not the night to be pounding chicken flat while she’s standing in your kitchen wondering what the hell you’ve been doing for the last hour. Get the boring stuff handled early.

Prep the chicken. If you bought thin-cut breasts, beautiful — you’ve already made a good decision. Pat them dry, season with salt and pepper, and keep them covered in the fridge. Do not flour them yet. We’ll do that right before they hit the pan.
Get the broccolini ready. Trim the rough ends, toss it with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper, and have it waiting on the sheet pan.
Rinse the capers. Drain them, give them a quick rinse under cold water, and set them aside. Five seconds now saves you from an accidental salt bomb later.
Prep the sauce stuff. Juice the lemon, measure the chicken broth, mince the garlic and chop the parsley. Put everything where you can grab it.
Cut the butter and put it back in the fridge. We need it cold when we finish the sauce. This is one of the rare times I’m telling you not to leave the butter sitting on the counter.
Set the table. Plates, silverware, napkins, glasses. Get it done.
Get yourself ready. Shower. Clean shirt. Whatever amount of cologne suggests I made an effort without suggesting I fell into the bottle.

When she gets there, you should look like you’re making dinner —
not recovering from a kitchen explosion.

PLAY BY PLAY

GET THE BROCCOLINI MOVING
Heat the oven to 425°F. Roast 8 oz broccolini, already tossed with 1 Tbsp olive oil, 1 finely minced garlic clove, ¼ tsp kosher salt and ¼ tsp black pepper, for 15–18 minutes, turning once if needed, until the stalks are tender and the edges are a little crispy. Pull it and keep it warm.
GET YOUR PASTA WATER GOING
Bring a pot of water with salt for the pasta water to a boil. Do not add the angel hair yet. It cooks fast, and we don't need it sitting around waiting for the chicken.
FLOUR THE CHICKEN
Pull 2 thin-cut boneless, skinless chicken breasts, about 5–6 oz each from the fridge. They should already be seasoned with ½ tsp kosher salt and ¼ tsp black pepper. Put ¼ cup all-purpose flour on a plate and lightly dredge both sides, shaking off the excess. Thin dusting, not fried-chicken armor. The flour helps build that golden crust and gives the sauce something to cling to.
SEAR THE CHICKEN
Heat 1½ Tbsp olive oil and 1 Tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium-high. When the butter foams, add the chicken. Cook 3–4 minutes on the first side, flip, then cook another 2–3 minutes depending on thickness. Check for 165°F in the thickest part and move the chicken to a plate.
Do not clean the pan. Those browned bits become the sauce. That's flavor you already paid for.
BUILD THE PICCATA SAUCE
Lower the heat to medium. Add 2 minced garlic cloves and cook for about 30 seconds. Pour in ½ cup chicken broth and ¼ cup fresh lemon juice. Scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pan, add 2 Tbsp drained and rinsed capers, and simmer 3–4 minutes until the liquid reduces slightly.

LEARNING MOMENT — WHY RINSE THE CAPERS? Capers come packed in a pretty aggressive salty, briny liquid. Drain them and give them a quick rinse under cold water before they hit the pan. You're not trying to remove their flavor. You're knocking down the brine so you control the salt instead of the jar controlling dinner.

DROP THE ANGEL HAIR
Add 6 oz angel hair pasta to the boiling water and cook according to the package directions until al dente. Before draining, reserve about ½ cup pasta water.
THE COLD-BUTTER MOVE
Turn the skillet to low heat — or pull it off the heat — and add the 4 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces a few pieces at a time, swirling or whisking until the sauce turns smooth and glossy.
That's the move.

LEARNING MOMENT — WHY COLD BUTTER? This is one of those little restaurant moves worth knowing. Cold butter melts gradually and helps the fat blend into the lemon-caper liquid, giving you a smooth, glossy sauce with a little body instead of melted butter floating around on top. Dump warm butter into a screaming-hot pan and you lose the trick. Cold butter. Low heat. A few pieces at a time.