What's better than buttery, tender, chicken in a homemade white wine, butter, lemon sauce? The answer is nothing other than this classic chicken francese. My recipe for how to make the easiest chicken francese recipe is fool-proof, making this the the perfect meal for a family dinner, a Mother's Day entree, or as a meal prep for the week. You'll be thinking about it all day.
This is one of my favorite dishes to serve in the spring or summer as it's bright, light, and goes well with a simple arugula salad, or a shaved brussel sprout salad.
Chicken dishes are some of the best types of recipes to have in your back pocket like my creamy tuscan chicken or a baked chicken with fruit and rice. Simple, flavorful, and even better the next day.
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What is chicken francese?
There are quite a few different ways to make this recipe, but in the traditional sense, this is an egg-and-flour coated chicken cutlet pan seared in a lemony, buttery, white wine sauce. The origin of this dish is an Italian-American and comes from immigrants to New York.
What are the ingredients for chicken francese?
- Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast: Sliced thin, tenderized with a meat cleaver, and seasoned with a little salt and pepper.
- All-Purpose Flour: I swear by Bob's Red Mill Organic All-Purpose Flour, but if you're gluten free you can swap this for a gluten-free favorite or even almond flour.
- Eggs: traditional chicken francese calls for an egg and flour dredge (or breading)
- Butter: No one was ever unhappy with the use of butter in a recipe, am I right? We'll use the butter to make the lemon, butter, and white wine sauce.
- Olive oil: we need olive oil to sear the chicken
- Lemons: a classic francese includes fresh, lemony flavor!
- White Wine: The white wine gives the flavor a little more acidity, and also adds to the buttery, lemon sauce.
- Rosemary: just for a fun garnish!
See recipe card below for quantities and full instructions.
How do I make this chicken francese?
Step 1: Pat dry the chicken breasts and using a sharp slicing knife, fillet the breasts into thin pieces. Dip the chicken into the whisked egg and then into the flour. Coat well and set onto a plate. Repeat until all chicken is egg dipped and floured.
Step 2: Pan fry the chicken in a large frying pan coated with olive oil and 2 tablespoons of butter. Add more oil as desired. Lay the chicken into the pan, 3-4 pieces at a time, and let cook for 3-4 minutes per side.
Step 3: While the chicken is cooking, slice up two lemons.
Step 4: To the skillet, add the rest of the butter to the pan and pour in the white wine, then add the lemon slices. Turn the heat to a low flame and let simmer for 15-20 minutes, flipping each piece of chicken occasionally to coat all sides. Serve as is or garnish with fresh rosemary.
Hint: Be sure to let the chicken sit in the sauce with the lemon, white wine, and butter for at least 20 minutes so that the chicken picks up all of the flavor from the sauce.
Recipe Swaps and Substitutions
This recipe is very flexible, and if you have a dietary need or preference, here's something to consider:
- Swap the regular butter for some vegan butter. Lots of brands out there if you don't eat butter.
- Coat the chicken directly into the flour, or dip into vegan butter instead of the egg.
- For the flour, you can use almond flour instead of regular flour, or swap for gluten free flour.
Ways to pair this chicken francese recipe
- Easily pair this recipe with a side of potatoes or my creamy garlic and herb mashed potatoes.
- Serve with a side of pasta like my creamy spinach pasta or a simple buttered noodle with veggies.
- Keep it simple with side of sautéed veggies like spinach or broccoli.
- Make a big batch of bone broth rice to add to this dish. The lemony francese sauce will drench the rice making it taste absolutely delicious.
How do I store this? Can it be frozen?
To Store: This chicken francese recipe will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days after cooking.
To Freeze: If you want to freeze this, place in a tightly sealed tupperware and freeze up to one month, defrosting in the fridge overnight. To warm up, add all of the ingredients (sauce included) to a large skillet and heat on a low flame.
PRO TIP
If you want to prep this meal ahead of time and eat it at a later date, you can make the sauce separate from the chicken and store separately. Pan fry the chicken, and make the sauce in individual (or the same) pans, but don't combine until you're ready to serve the whole dish.
Hungry for More?
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
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Chicken Francese
Equipment
- 1 large pan
- tongs
- cutting boards two of them: one for the lemons, one for the chicken
- plates and bowls
Ingredients
- 3 large Chicken Breasts sliced thin, tenderized
- 1 cup All Purpose Flour
- 2 Eggs whisked
- 5 tablespoon Butter
- 3 tablespoon Olive Oil avocado oil works well too
- 2 large Lemons thinly sliced
- ½ cup Dry White Wine
- Rosemary Garnish, optional
Instructions
For the Chicken
- Pat dry the chicken breasts and using a sharp slicing knife, fillet the breasts into two (which means to butterfly and separate)
- Dip the chicken into the whisked egg and then into the flour. Coat well and set onto a plate.
- Repeat until all chicken is egg dipped and floured.
For the Dish
- Pan fry the chicken in a large frying pan coated with olive oil and 2 tablespoon of butter. Add more oil as desired.
- Lay the chicken into the pan, 3-4 pieces at a time, and let cook for 5 minutes per side.
- Cook the chicken and set aside onto a separate plate. Meanwhile, add the rest of the butter to the pan and pour in the white wine.
- Layer the chicken breasts back in, and add the lemon slices. Turn the heat to a low flame and let simmer for 15-20 minutes, flipping each piece of chicken occasionally to coat all sides.
- Serve as is or garnish with fresh rosemary.
Ellen
What a great recipe!! I love that the sauce was not super heavy either. The chicken was flavorful and the leftovers were even better.
Morgan Peaceman
Thank you for sharing!!
Agnes
I’ve had chicken Francese at restaurants but never made it until now. This was such a great and tasty recipe. The step by step helped me a lot. I’ll be making this again soon. We paired with potatoes and some vegetables.
Steven D.
A friend of mine sent this to me last week, and I had some time to make it yesterday night. It was delicious! I don't love a ton of lemon, but this one was balanced just right. I also really like the way the recipe is easy to follow. YUM!
Erica
My hubby loves chicken francese and this recipe is so simple and it’s not hard to make! Comes out delicious!