Easy Skillet Chicken Francese

Easy Skillet Chicken Francese is lightly breaded tender chicken pieces, pan fried and drizzled with a simple bright and lemony pan sauce.

We love a meal that tastes restaurant good and comes from our own kitchen. While there are much fancier ways to make this recipe, this is an easy version that brings all the flavors without the extra work. It’s a great way to turn a pound of chicken breast into a delicious family friendly dinner!

Pounding the chicken makes it light and the bread crumb coating fries up to create an awesome crust that soaks up the tangy lemon sauce. Seriously good stuff.

What You’ll Need to Make Easy Skillet Chicken Francese

• Chicken Breast – Boneless, skinless, cut in half and then pounded to 1/4 inch thick. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs may be also be used.

• Large Eggs – Two eggs, lightly beaten.

• Bread Crumbs – We use unseasoned regular bread crumbs and season with the pantry spices below. Panko bread crumbs may be used instead for a crispier textured chicken.

• Parmesan Cheese – fresh grated is best but “green shaker” Parm can be used if necessary. Shredded Parmesan should not be used for this recipe.

• Pantry Spices – Dried parsley, garlic powder, salt & ground black pepper and chicken bouillon powder.

• Olive Oil – We use extra virgin olive oil for frying the chicken.

• Lemon Juice – Bottled lemon juice is convenient to use in this recipe but a large ripe lemon (juiced) may be used instead if you happen to have one on hand!

How & Why to Pound A Chicken Breast

This recipe for Easy Skillet Chicken Francese calls for the chicken to be pounded to 1/4 inch thickness. You may be wondering why we would pound the chicken?

There’s a couple of reasons why we pound the chicken:

• Pounding the chicken makes the meat more tender and allows the seasonings and sauce to flavor the meat all the way through.
• Making the chicken the same thickness promotes even cooking. All of the chicken is done at the same time.
• Pounding the chicken makes it cook faster so it is less likely to dry out!

What we use to pound the chicken:

• Place the chicken on a meat safe cutting board.
• Double fold a piece of plastic wrap and lay over the chicken before pounding. You can also use plastic wrap, wax paper, or parchment paper instead.
• Use the flat side of a meat mallet or a rolling pin to pound the meat. Begin in one area then check thickness and move around until the meat is a consistent thickness.

How to Make Easy Skillet Francese

Making Chicken Francese can be a process of weird ingredients and a whole lot of steps. We wanted to recreate the flavors and offer a more down to earth version of this recipe.

Lightly breaded tender chicken in a bright, but not overpowering lemon sauce. A great way to turn a pound of chicken breast into a delicious family friendly dinner!

Place eggs into a shallow bowl and lightly beat with a whisk until frothy. Set aside.

To a second shallow bowl add bread crumbs, grated Parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Stir well to combine.

Cut each chicken breast in half. Working with one piece of chicken at a time, pound the chicken to 1/4 inch thick with a meat mallet. Slice the pounded chicken into strips about 1 1/2 inches wide.

Repeat with remaining chicken and set aside until ready.

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large deep skillet over medium-high heat. 

One at a time, dip each chicken strip into the beaten egg and then dredge in the bread crumb mixture. 

Once coated, place into the preheated skillet.

Cook the chicken in batches, adding oil 2 tablespoons at a time as needed, until the chicken is golden brown (2-3 minutes per side). 

Remove cooked chicken to a foil covered plate. Repeat until all chicken is cooked.

Returning to the deep skillet, add water, lemon juice and chicken bouillon. Stir, scraping up the brown bits from the pan. 

Turn heat to medium-high and allow to simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring often, until the liquid has been reduced by half. 

Drizzle the sauce over the cooked chicken and serve immediately. Enjoy!

Other Easy Family Meals You Might Like

Skillet BBQ Shrimp with Vegetables and Orzo – Glazed shrimp, tender pasta and crisp tender vegetables.

Slow Cooker Mississippi Pot Roast – Tangy, flavorful & tender shredded beef with just a hint of heat.

Spinach and Sausage Spaghetti Pie – packed with good stuff and super easy to make.

Simple Baked Salmon with Green Goddess Sauce – flaky, lightly seasoned baked salmon with a vibrant, tangy dipping sauce.

Creamy Garlic Spinach Chicken Thighs – tender baked chicken thighs in a delicious creamy garlic sauce.