The BEST Lemon Chicken With Lemon Butter Sauce (Made In 20 Minutes)

This lemon chicken recipe is oh-so crispy and so dang juicy. It combines thinly sliced chicken breasts with a parmesan crusted breading and a lemon butter sauce to create a meal that's to die for. It's not just super delicious though, it's super easy to make too. In fact, from start to finish this lemon chicken recipe should take you less than 20 minutes to whip up.

The Best Lemon Chicken

This lemon chicken might be one of the easiest chicken recipes out there to make, but the result is a restaurant-worthy meal everyone will love.

The grated parmesan cheese crust gives the chicken a flavorful breading that is crisped up to perfection. Then, the already delicious breaded chicken gets elevated with freshly squeezed lemon juice and a garlic butter sauce that'll have your tastebuds singing. It really is so simple, but the flavor is out of this world good.

What's even better though is that it's a cinch to make. You literally just bread the chicken, cook it in the pan, then make the sauce in the same pan. And, since everything cooks together, the clean-up is a breeze too - and you know I'm a fan of that.

By the way, if you're looking for some equally impressive side dishes to go with this chicken, you can't go wrong making these cheesy mashed potatoes, this artichoke casserole, these fried oyster mushrooms, or these candied carrots.

Ingredients

Another reason I love this recipe is that it's made with really basic ingredients, and I almost always have them on hand. I'm even willing to bet that you'll have everything you need to make this recipe already too!

Anyway, here's what you'll need to make this lemon chicken recipe:

• 2 chicken breasts, sliced in 4-6 filets
• 2 eggs
• ¾ cup parmesan cheese, shredded
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 4 tbsp. butter
• 3 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 lemon cut into slices
• Fresh herbs

Pretty simple, eh?

By the way, you might want to grab a few extra chicken breasts at the grocery store because you can use them to make this ranch chicken or this blackened chicken next! They're a couple of really, really tasty chicken recipes that I think you'll love just as much as this one.

Ingredient Substitutions & Suggestions

I always make this lemon chicken recipe as it's written above, but that said, there are a few changes that you can make to the recipe, and it'll turn out just as delicious!

Use Chicken Thighs

These lemon chicken cutlets are best when made with chicken breast because you can cut the meat into thin slices. However, boneless skinless chicken thighs can be used instead of the chicken breasts - you may need to cook them a little longer.

Use Bottled Lemon Juice

I love using freshly squeezed lemon juice for the brightest, freshest flavor, but you can also use bottled lemon juice instead if that's all you have on hand.

By the way, if you really want to enhance the lemon flavor in this dish, you can also add in some lemon zest too.

Make Extra Sauce

If you want some extra lemon sauce for your lemon chicken, you can just add a little chicken broth, vegetable broth, or chicken stock with the ingredients. A little white wine will also do the trick to make more sauce.

All you have to do is add about a ¼ cup of chicken broth - or white wine - when you add the lemon juice into the pan. Then, after you've done that you can continue to cook the chicken exactly as written in the recipe.

Make Chinese Lemon Chicken

If you love Chinese lemon chicken, you can use this recipe as the base to make a take-out favorite.

All you need to do is chop up the chicken breasts into smaller bite-sized pieces before you toss them in the breading. However, instead of using ¾ of a cup of parmesan cheese, you'll want to use ½ a cup of cornstarch and an extra ¼ cup of flour in its place.

I also recommend making some substitutions with the sauce as well. Doing this will give the sauce the classic Chinese lemon chicken taste. So, what you'll want to do is you'll want to replace the butter with water, and you'll also want to add a few tablespoons of sugar to the sauce ingredients when you make it as well. Chinese lemon chicken has a subtle sweetness to it, and adding sugar to the sauce is the perfect way to achieve this.

Anyway, once the chopped lemon chicken breasts are cooked, you can sprinkle some sesame seeds over the top to add a little bit more flavor. Chinese lemon chicken has never been easier to make!

How to Make Lemon Chicken

Now, I know I've said it already, but I cannot express enough how easy this lemon chicken is to make!

The only thing you have to do is bread the chicken, cook it in a pan, and then make the sauce. That's really all there is to it.

Anyway, let's not waste another second and get cooking.

Step 1: Bread The Chicken Breasts

The first thing you'll need to do is coat the chicken breasts in the parmesan cheese breading.

So, to start that process, you'll want to whisk the eggs together in a shallow bowl. Then, in a second bowl, you'll want to add the parmesan cheese, flour, salt, and pepper and mix them until they combine.

Now, after you've got those ingredients prepped, you'll want to dip each chicken breast into the egg mixture and then in the parmesan cheese mixture - just make sure it's fully coated on both sides. Then, when the chicken is well coated, you can set it on a plate and repeat this process with the rest of your chicken.

Step 2: Cook The Chicken

Now that the chicken breasts are all breaded, you can take out a large non-stick skillet, put it over medium-high heat, and add some olive oil - or any frying oil you want - to it.

Then, once the oil is hot, you can add the breaded chicken to it and cook for about 4-5 minutes on both sides until it's nice and golden brown and the internal temperature reaches 165°F. By the way, if you notice that the chicken is browning too quickly, just reduce the heat to medium or medium-low.

Step 3: Make the Lemon Garlic Sauce

Now it's time to make the lemon garlic sauce. So, in the same skillet you just cooked the chicken, you'll want to add the butter, minced garlic, and lemon juice. Then, cook everything for about a minute or so until the garlic is fragrant and the butter is melted. 

Once the butter melts, give it a stir and add the lemon slices to the skillet, followed by the cooked chicken breasts. Allow everything to cook for a minute or so until the sauce and fried chicken are warm.

Finally, serve the lemon chicken breasts with the sauce poured on top along with some fresh herbs and lemons for squeezing. Enjoy!

How to Store Lemon Chicken

This recipe for lemon chicken makes about 4 servings, so it's the perfect amount for a family dinner. Honestly, every time I make this, even if it's just for me and my wife, there are never any leftovers. It's just that good.

However, if you do end up with some leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. I like to add all of the lemon sauce to the airtight container as well and let the chicken soak in it.

Now, if you want to keep the lemon chicken for even longer, you can freeze it in an airtight container - or freezer-safe bag - for about 4 months.

How to Reheat Lemon Chicken

Now, once you're ready to enjoy this lemon chicken again, you can either eat it cold or heat it back up. To reheat your lemon chicken, just put it back in a skillet along with the sauce and heat over medium heat for a few minutes on each side until the chicken is warmed through. You can also put the chicken in a baking dish and warm it in the oven at 350°F for about 10 minutes.

Alternatively, to reheat the lemon chicken even faster, you can use a microwave. Just cook it in 45-second intervals until hot. Usually, around 2 minutes does the trick for me when I heat it back up this way.

Wrapping it Up

Well, that's how to make lemon chicken!

This lemon chicken really is like something you'd get from a restaurant. From the crispy parmesan crusted breading to the fresh and flavorful lemon garlic sauce, it's just so, so good!

Anyway, I hope you like this lemon chicken recipe as much as I do. If you give it a try, be sure to leave a comment below and let us know your thoughts.

More Chicken Recipes

If you loved this lemon chicken recipe and are looking for more delicious easy chicken breast recipes to try next, we have quite a few on the blog.

Here are a few of our reader favorites:

• Marry me chicken
• Buffalo chicken casserole
• French onion chicken casserole
• Chicken pesto pasta
• Oven baked chicken leg quarters

Oh, and for even more irresistible recipes, be sure to follow us on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. We post new tasty recipes on them every single day!

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