Today we serve up an Easy Chicken Romano recipe with a lemon butter sauce that can be on the table in under 30 minutes. This has quickly become a regular favorite in our family meal rotation! Gets even better served with a white wine from Sicily. Disclosure: The suggested wine pairing was provided as a complimentary sample.
Whether you came to this chicken romano recipe because you’ve enjoyed it at the Cheesecake Factory, or you are simply on lookout for more easy chicken recipes, you’ve come to the right place. (I’m in the latter category!)
You can easily have this Chicken Romano on the table in under 30 minutes, along with a simple lemon butter sauce. We enjoy it served with some pasta, green vegetable and a crisp Italian wine.
One quick note about our version of Chicken Romano. The dish is often made with eggs to help make the coating stick. But we make our Chicken Romano without eggs, using a combination of olive oil and a bit of mustard. This is a great option for those of us with a serious egg allergy in the family!
Table of contents
Ingredients
Let’s take a look at the ingredients you will need for our easy Chicken Romano recipe.
Chicken is of course the primary ingredient. You want to get thin sliced chicken breasts for this recipe. It might also come labeled as chicken cutlets.
I am able to fit four thinly sliced chicken breasts into my skillet. That typically leaves me with one extra chicken breast when I get the package from Wegman’s as shown above.
I prepare the extra piece with the breading, then cook that the next day in the air fryer. The four pieces is enough for our family of three, so that is easier. You could cook the whole package in two batches if you prefer.
Cheese: Pecorino Romano cheese is the preferred option, seeing as this is Chicken Romano. You could use Parmesan if you like or have it on hand.
Panko bread crumbs are the lead ingredient in the breading. We like to use whole wheat bread crumbs, which give the finished chicken a rich brown color. Using regular bread crumbs will give you more of a golden brown color.
Flour: a small amount of flour is used to balance the dry ingredients and help make things stick.
Garlic powder and dried basil add some flavor to the mixture.
Lemon, butter and parsley are the key ingredients for the lemon butter sauce. You will also need a bit of white wine.
Recipe tips and overview
Here’s a visual overview of the recipes steps. Head down to the recipe card for more details.
Preparing the chicken
Make the breading: Start by mixing the dry ingredients to make the breading for the Chicken Romano
Combine the panko bread crumbs, grated Romano cheese (or Parmesan), flour, garlic powder and basil. We use paper plates as we prep this dish, so that there are less items we need to wash that come into contact with the raw chicken. A precaution we take as we don’t have a dishwasher!
Prepare the liquid: Combine olive oil and mustard in a large shallow bowl. As noted earlier, we use this olive oil mixture instead of an egg wash.
Coat the chicken cutlets: Arrange the bowl with the olive oil so that it is close to the dry breading mixture, as well as a plate on which to put the breaded chicken.
After opening the package of chicken, pat the chicken dry with a paper towel. Then dip both sides of the chicken cutlet in the olive oil mixture. Hold the chicken over the olive oil bowl to let any excess liquid drip back into the bowl.
Then dredge one side of the chicken into the breadcrumb and cheese mixture, followed by the other side. Placed the breaded chicken on a plate, and repeat with the remaining pieces of chicken.
If you have extra of the breading mixture on the plate after prepping all the chicken, you can sprinkle the extra on the breaded chicken if they look like they could use a little more coating.
Cooking Chicken Romano
Once the chicken is breaded, you are just about ready to start cooking the chicken. But first, have the sauce ingredients ready! You will want to make the sauce as soon as the chicken is done, and the thin chicken cooks quickly.
Start cooking the chicken by heating the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil on medium heat in a large skillet. Note – you could use canola oil here if you want, I gravitate toward evoo except for high heat cooking.
When the skillet is hot, arrange the chicken cutlets in the skillet so that there is no overlap. i.e. you want each piece of chicken to directly cook on the hot skillet.
Cook the chicken for 4 minutes on one side, then use tongs or a spatula to turn the chicken over. The chicken should cook another 4 to 6 minutes, until it is cooked through.
Ours tends to come out just right with about 9 minutes total cooking time. But timing will vary a bit based on your stove and skillet. The chicken should be at 165 degrees internal temperature when done.
When done, the chicken has a nice crispy coating.
Remove the cooked chicken to a platter, and get ready to make the sauce.
Make the sauce
Deglaze the skillet: After removing the cooked chicken to a platter to rest, put the skillet back on the stove, on medium low heat.
Pour in the cooking wine, and use a spatula or spoon to scrape up the various bits of breading and chicken, to incorporate into the sauce.
Add the butter to the skillet, and let it melt. Next, add the chicken broth and simmer for a few minutes so that it gets reduced.
Finish the sauce by removing the skillet from the heat. Stir the lemon juice, parsley and olives, if using. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour the sauce into a bowl.
Serving the Chicken Romano
We like to serve Chicken Romano with long pasta such as spaghetti, bucatini, or angel hair pasta. Toss the cooked pasta with a bit of salt and olive oil, or garlic evoo if you have it.
Plate a bit of the pasta, then place a piece of the Chicken Romano alongside it. Scoop a bit of the lemon butter sauce over the chicken and pasta, and offer additional sauce and shredded cheese at the table. Enjoy!
To me, the lemon butter sauce really makes the dish! But our son tends to like things plainer, and enjoys the Chicken Romano without the sauce. So you might let kids or others that aren’t as keen on sauces start with the plain chicken and add the sauce if they want to try it.
A side salad can round out the meal nicely. Or we have also served it with broccoli, steamed or roasted. Our sautéed arugula with red bell peppers is another great side dish for this Italian meal.
Chicken Romano FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions
Chicken Romano is a delicious Italian-American dish featuring breaded and pan-fried chicken breasts, finished with a tasty sauce.
Chicken Romano is typically made with Pecorino Romano cheese. But we have also used Parmesan cheese, and you could also try a Italian cheese blend.
Chicken Romano is often made with an egg wash to help the breading stick to the chicken. The Cooking Chat recipe uses olive oil for this purpose, to the recipe does not contain eggs.
Serve Chicken Romano with some cooked pasta such as spaghetti or angel hair. Alternatively, you could serve it with rice. Round the meal out with a green salad or cooked veggies such as steamed broccoli or sautéed spinach.
Store leftover chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. I recommend reheating briefly in the microwave. We often have leftover pasta when making this, which is a great reason to make this Kimchi Spaghetti.
Wine Pairing
Well, it’s certainly natural to choose an Italian wine to serve with this Chicken Romano recipe!
Our featured pairing for this recipe is the 2022 Anthilia Sicilia DOC Bianco ($19, 12.5% ABV) from Donnafugata, sent to me as a complimentary sample. Yellow straw color in the glass. On the nose, chalky seashells and a bit of citrus. On the palate, peach fruit and floral notes, and a bit of acidity. This is a light bodied wine, making for pleasant sipping.
The primary grape in the Anthilia is Lucido (dialect for Catarratto), and the blend is complemented by other indigenous Sicilian and international varieties. The grapes come from the Contessa Entellina estate and nearby properties.
This Sicilia Bianco was a good pairing for the Chicken Romano. It is also a good pairing for shellfish and other light seafood, and would pair nicely with a Caesar salad as well.
About Donnafugata
Donnafugata was founded in 1983 by Giacomo Rallo along with his wife Gabriella. The estate is located on a family property in rural Sicily that has a winemaking history going back to the late 19th century. Today their children, Jose and Antonio, lead the company.
Donnafugata vineyards have terroir that varies from seaside locations to hilly and mountainous areas. The company has a strong commitment to sustainability, and in 2021 joined SOStain Sicilia. They follow 9 sustainable development goals aligned with the UN 20230 agenda. Visit the Donnafugata website for more information.
Pietro Russo, Donnafugata’s Winemaker, was recently named the Third Italian Master of Wine.
Visit our article on Sicilian Wine Grapes to learn more about wine from the region.
Other wine pairing options
We have also paired this Chicken Romano with Pinot Grigio and other light to medium bodied white wines. Those are good options if you don’t have the Donnafugata Etna Bianco available.
Recipe Card
PrintRecipe card
Easy Chicken Romano with Lemon Butter Sauce
An easy crusted Chicken Romano recipe with a delicious lemon butter pan sauce.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Total Time: 25 mins
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
For the breading:
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs – we used whole wheat
- 2 tablespoons flour
- ¼ cup Pecorino Romano cheese
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- pinch of salt
Additional ingredient for the chicken:
- ⅓ cup olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons, divided
- dash of mustard
- 4 thin chicken cutlets – a little over 1 pound total (see note)
For the sauce:
- ¼ cup white wine
- 3 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped olives (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prepare the breading: on a plate, combine the ingredients for coating the chicken — ½ cup panko bread crumbs, 2 tablespoons flour, ¼ cup cheese, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, pinch of salt and ½ teaspoon dried basil. In a large bowl, combine the ⅓ cup olive oil and mustard.
- Coat the chicken: Place the olive oil mixture and breading close to each other, and have an extra plate ready close to the breading. Take one of the chicken cutlets, dip both sides in the olive oil mixture. Then hold the chicken over the bowl, letting any excess oil drip off. Then move the cutlet over to the breading, place one side, then the other in the breading to get it well coated. Place the breaded chicken on the plate, so that it is ready to cook. Repeat the process with each of the chicken cutlets.
- Cook the chicken: Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil on medium heat in a large skillet. When the skillet is hot, add the chicken, taking care not to put any of the chicken on top of the other so that each chicken cutlet is in contact with the skillet surface. Cook the chicken for 4 minutes, then use a spatula to turn the cutlets over and cook for another 4 to 6 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Cooked chicken should be 165 degrees with no visible pink flesh. When the chicken is done, use the spatula to move the chicken to a serving platter and let it rest while you make the sauce.
- Make the sauce: right after cooking the chicken, return the skillet to the stove, on medium low heat. Pour the cooking wine into the skillet, and stir to deglaze the pan, scraping up bits of chicken and coating. Add the butter, and let it melt. Then stir in the chicken broth, simmering for 3 to 4 minutes to reduce. Remove from heat, and stir in the parsley, lemon juice and optional olives. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour the lemon butter sauce into a serving bowl.
- Serve: Plate the chicken alongside some cooked pasta, and pour a bit of sauce over the chicken. You can pass extra sauce at the table. Enjoy!
Notes
- Amount of chicken: We get a pack of thin chicken cutlets to make this Chicken Romano recipe. The package typically about 1.4 pounds and has 5 chicken cutlets. Our skillet fits 4 cutlets at once…so we save the extra one to cook the next day so that we can turn to making the sauce in the skillet once the batch of chicken is done. You could cook two batches of chicken if you can’t fit all your chicken in one skillet, or save it for the next day like we do.
Amy Liu Dong
This looks good the chicken romano is crisp on the outside and tender on the inside while the lemon sauce just sits over the top and provides a unique flavor profile that goes well with the chicken romano!
Cooking Chat
Thanks Amy! It is a tasty combo.
Savita
This Easy Chicken Romano with Lemon Butter Sauce is a weeknight dinner game-changer! The crispy chicken paired with the tangy lemon butter sauce is simply irresistible. It’s restaurant-quality flavor made right at home in no time.
Cooking Chat
Thanks Savita for the feedback!