I prepared this Chicken Piccata with Cauliflower Garlic Mash for dinner last night for my husband and younger boys before I flew off to NYC today to see my oldest son in college, and help my Mom and Stepdad move into their new place. So excited to see them!
When I’m away I need to plan and prepare food for the family back home. A couple of meals in the fridge and some in the freezer. This one is dinner tonight. I’m missing out tonight but I will be baaack.
The sauce has a bright citrus flavor with a briny element to it and thick enough to scoop tender chicken bites into and your favorite gluten and dairy free bread. Although mashed potatoes may be your first inclination, I encourage you to step outside the box and give cauliflower a try. It is SO good and lighter too – a great way to sneak some vegetable in. It has a sweetness to it that goes well with the acidity in the sauce.
The kids couldn’t get enough. Hubby said he’s so happy he married me. Of course he is when the belly is happy, ha! What’s nice about this meal is that you can make it ahead for entertaining and freezer-friendly. The sauce will thicken when refrigerated but thin out again when heated.
I do leave it out the garlic sometimes when I’m short on time and my kids say no to garlic but it’s just as delicious. If you love the flavor of roasted garlic, I encourage you to take the extra step and add it in. This is a meal I make again and again and am always surprised at how much it tastes like it contains wheat and butter; every time. After making it the first few times I realized I need to double up on the lemon piccata sauce since everyone fights over more sauce in our house. As you can see in the photos we love our sauce. 🙂
Hope you love it as much as we all do!
- 6 skinless, boneless, chicken breasts (*take out of fridge 30-60 minutes before cooking)
- ½ heaping cup tapioca flour (also known as starch, I use Bob’s Red Mill)
- ½ heaping cup white rice flour
- 2 whole eggs
- EGG FREE OPTION: 1 cup unflavored coconut creamer and 2 teaspoons psyllium husk or ground white chia seeds
- 1 tablespoons kosher salt plus a pinch more for flour
- 2 teaspoons crushed black pepper, or to taste
- 2 teaspoons ground garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- For the lemon caper sauce:
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch or tapioca starch
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1½ cups fresh lemon juice (about 8 lemons) or pure bottled lemon juice
- 1 cup capers, drained
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ a bottle of white wine (I use Frey's sulfite-free chardonnay)
- ½ cup avocado, canola or grapeseed oil plus 3 tablespoons
- For the Cauliflower Garlic Mash:
- 1 large cauliflower or 2 small ones (about 4 cups trimmed and cleaned)
- ½ cup unsweetened coconut milk or creamer
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil or non-dairy 'butter'
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- For roasted garlic:
- ¼ cup of peeled garlic, sliced or roughly chopped
- ¼ cup avocado, canola or grapeseed oil (not extra virgin)
- *Remove some of the
chill in the chicken by leaving it out at room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour. Chicken, straight out of the fridge, will cook unevenly, overcooking the outside and undercooking the inside. - Whisk eggs or egg-free mixture in a wide soup bowl. Set aside.
- Combine ½ cup tapioca starch and white rice flour in another wide soup bowl, with a pinch of kosher salt and blend with a fork. Set aside.
- Then combine 2 tablespoons of cornstarch or tapioca starch with water in a small bowl until well dissolved, set aside.
- Combine 1½ tablespoons kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder in a small bowl to season the chicken then make each chicken breast thinner by slicing the chicken breasts through the middle, lengthwise, and season.
- Put a few pieces of seasoned chicken into egg or egg-free mixture. Lift up to remove excess then transfer to flour bowl to coat all sides (pat flour on chicken to stick if needed). Note: I use one hand for dipping in egg and flour and keep the other hand clean to access cooking utensils and extra oil if needed. Removing excess egg before flouring helps make the chicken extra crispy as does a hot pan and not overcrowding the pan.
- Set a large heavy bottomed stainless steel saute pan (preferably not nonstick)
on medium-high heat. When hot, add oil (appears thin and glossy with a slight smoke appearing, about 350 degrees F) then carefully add a few pieces of chicken, spaced well to prevent steaming and soggy chicken. - Cook chicken in batches 3-5 minutes on each side. Transfer cooked chicken to a plate while you cook remaining chicken. Add more oil if needed. When done with last batch, remove. Be sure to keep an eye on the pan and rotate pieces as you cook to prevent from too much flour burning.
- Meanwhile, set a steamer on medium-high heat. When
steamer is ready and you just put in your last batch of chicken in the pan add cauliflower to the steamer. Steamer for 5-7 minutes. Turn off and let it sit in the steamer until ready to use. - If there is a lot of burned flour in your pan, carefully wipe with some bunched up paper towel and give it a quick wipe clean. Set pan back on medium-high heat, when hot add remaining 3 tablespoons oil.
- Immediately add capers, lemon juice, a teaspoon of kosher salt and wine. Stir to combine well and bring to a boil. Then add tapioca water mixture and bring it back up to a boil, stirring constantly. It will begin to thicken after a couple of minutes. When the sauce has thickened somewhat, reduce to medium heat.
- Add cooked chicken breasts back into the saute pan submerging pieces as much as possible, and continue to cook for 10 more minutes.
- During this time prepare cauliflower mash and roasted garlic.
- For the cauliflower mash:
- Drain cauliflower and add to the drained bottom half of the steamer for mashing. Using a hand-held immersion blender, or by hand. Add coconut milk, coconut oil or non-dairy butter, kosher salt, and mash again until lump-free. Add drained roasted garlic, if desired, and stir it in.
- For the garlic:
- Set small skillet on medium heat, when hot add oil. Add roughly chopped garlic to submerge in oil and cook, stirring once, for 10-15 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Drain garlic and add to cauliflower mash. Reserve garlic oil for salad dressings or for savory recipes.
- Serve chicken with sauce over cauliflower mash.
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