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Chicken Piccata Pasta

Name: Chicken Piccata Pasta
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: salt and black pepper; 12 oz bow tie (farfalle) or other short pasta; 1 ¼ to 1½ pounds boneless; ¼ cup all-purpose flour; 6 tbsp unsalted butter; 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil; 1 large shallot; 4 garlic cloves; 1 ½ cups chicken stock; ¼ cup lemon juice (from 1 to 2 lemons); 2 tbsp drained capers; roughly chopped parsley

made 2 times in The Stuart Household kitchen

via cooking.nytimes.com

Italianchickenlunch40 min 4

This quick and buttery pasta, with bright lemon and briny capers, capitalizes on the flavors of an Italian-American classic. It starts with browning chicken in bubbling butter, then deglazing the pan with chicken stock before adding more butter, lemon, garlic and capers to create a silky sauce. Bow tie pasta (farfalle), with its pinched centers and flared edges, soaks up the sauce especially well, but any noodle works. Tossing the chicken in flour before it hits the pan enhances browning, deepens flavor and thickens the sauce to that iconic velvety consistency. All you might want to complete the meal is a side of dressed peppery greens and a glass of something cold.

method

1
In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve ½ cup cooking water, then drain pasta.
2
Meanwhile, cut the chicken into ½-inch chunks and place in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper, then toss with the flour to coat, adding more flour if needed. (If pieces stick together, they can be separated while cooking.)
3
In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons butter and the olive oil over high. Once the butter is melted and bubbling, add the chicken, working in batches if necessary to avoid crowding and promote browning. Cook, stirring occasionally to help break apart any pieces that are stuck together, until cooked through with some golden spots and edges, using tongs or a slotted spoon to transfer cooked pieces to a plate as they finish.
4
Reduce heat to medium-high. Add the shallot and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the stock and simmer until reduced by half, 3 to 5 minutes. Adjust the heat to low and stir in the remaining 4 tablespoons butter, the lemon juice and the capers.
5
Season the sauce with salt and pepper to taste, and then return the chicken to the skillet. Add the pasta and toss very well to coat (if more sauce is desired, stir in small splashes of the reserved pasta water), then take the skillet off the heat. Serve topped with the parsley and more black pepper to taste.