Chicken Francaise is one of my “Go To” recipes when people come to dinner because it is easy to prepare and everyone seems to like it. The lemon buttery sauce is light and flavorful and pairs well with multiple side dishes. When planning a party that my husband had last night I decided to serve it with Penne Alla Vodka Sauce.  Generally I make Chicken Francaise for our family of four, but now I had to make enough for 30!  I ended up making about 12 pounds of chicken and using 5 skillets at once to cook the chicken.

Ingredients:

• 4 skinless, boneless, thin ¼ inch thick chicken breasts (about 1 ½  pounds) You can pound your own with a flat mallet or purchase the thin cut chicken
• All-purpose flour, for dredging
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 
• 4 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 lemon sliced into thin rounds with the rind left on
• 1/2 cup Pinot Grigio wine ( you can use any dry white – but I like Pinot Grigio)
• 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

How to:

1. Put flour in a shallow pan and season flour to taste with salt and pepper.
2. Mix thoroughly.
3. In a bowl, beat the eggs and mix in 3 tablespoons of water.
4. Heat the oil over medium high in a large skillet.
5. Dredge (dip) both sides of the chicken cutlets in the flour mixture.
6. Dip chicken in to egg mixture,  coat completely but let the excess drip off.
7. Put chicken in skillet and cook for 2 minutes on each side until golden.
8. Remove chicken cutlets to a large platter in a single layer to keep warm.
9. Add lemon slices into the pan and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
10. Add the wine, broth, and lemon juice, stir.
11. Simmer for 5 minutes to reduce the sauce slightly.
12. Coat the 2 tablespoons of butter with some flour and add it to the skillet.
13. Stir butter until it melts and make sure the flour dissolves. Sauce will thicken.
14. Reduce the heat to medium-low.
15. Return the chicken to the pan.
16. Simmer for 2 minutes to heat the chicken through.
17. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
18. Garnish with chopped parsley before serving.