Chicken Scallopini

Craving Italian-inspired comfort food? Dig in to this lighter twist on chicken scallopini served with a lemon-caper butter sauce and whole wheat spaghetti!

If you’ve never heard of chicken scallopini, it refers to an Italian dish made by dredging thinly-sliced chicken in flour, pan-frying it, then topping it with a lemon-caper butter sauce.

I mean, how delicious does that sound?

Traditional versions of this dish often use a thick coating of flour and tons of butter. Plus, the dish is served over high-carb refined pasta.

This is one of the more indulgent dishes you’ll find on my site, but by using a lighter dusting of flour and cutting back on the butter, this scallopini is at least a little healthier than what you’d find in a restaurant. Plus, swapping out the standard pasta for whole wheat spaghetti gives it an extra boost of fiber!

So the next time you’re craving some Italian-inspired comfort food, try this recipe for a simple, fresh, and delicious meal.

How to make chicken scallopini

In the time it takes to boil your pasta, you can have the rest of this recipe prepped and ready to go!

Step 1: Cook the pasta according to the package directions.

Step 2: While the pasta cooks, place the chicken breast on a cutting board. Hold your knife parallel to the cutting board and cut the chicken breast in half so you end up with very thin and wide pieces.

Step 3: Place each piece of chicken between two slices of wax paper and pound until it’s ¼-inch thick.

Step 4: Spread the flour out on a plate. Coat both sides of each piece of chicken with flour.

Step 5: In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of butter with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of sea salt over medium-high heat.

Step 6: Once the pan is hot, add the chicken and brown on both sides until it’s fully cooked through. Transfer the cooked chicken to a plate and keep it warm.

Step 7: Add the remaining tablespoon of butter and olive oil plus sea salt to the same skillet. Stir in the lemon juice and capers and heat until warmed through.

Step 8: To serve, divide the pasta, chicken, and sauce among four serving plates. Garnish with parsley and lemon slices.

All that’s left to do is dig in!

What to serve with this chicken dish

Because of the dredging process used to make scallopini, this dish is quite filling. The vibrant flavor of the lemon-caper sauce helps to keep it light, but especially with pasta, it’s a very satisfying meal!

I usually just make a little steamed broccoli to serve on the side. It adds some green to the plate without extra calories or carbs.

However, if you’re in the mood for an indulgent homemade meal, you could always serve it with whole wheat flax dinner rolls to soak up the sauce.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for a lighter variation, you could always omit the pasta and serve with extra veggies instead. Lemony romaine and avocado salad would be a great option.

Or you could stick with the pasta theme but make these zucchini noodles with lime pesto instead!

Storage

This recipe is for 4 servings of scallopini. It’s a great meal to serve your family, or you can enjoy some right away and save the rest for easy meals throughout the week!

Leftovers can be stored covered in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. For best results, store the sauce separately and only add it to the pasta and chicken right before serving.

Other healthy Italian-inspired recipes

When it comes to comfort food, so many of my favorite recipes are dishes I used to order at Italian restaurants. Thankfully, I’ve been able to recreate lighter versions of most of them!

Here are a few of my favorite Italian-inspired recipes with a lighter twist:

• Italian Sub Salad
• Low-Carb Chicken Cacciatore
• Crustless Quiche with Italian Turkey Sausage and Peppers

When you’ve tried this dish, please don’t forget to let me know how you liked it and rate the recipe in the comments below!