Chicken Francese
Italian-American chicken cutlets in lemon-butter and wine sauce.
via Wikipedia: Chicken Francese · see source
Chicken Francese, also called Chicken Française, Chicken Francois, or Chicken French, is an Italian-American dish of flour-dredged, egg-dipped, sautéed chicken cutlets with a lemon-butter and sherry or white wine sauce. The dish is especially popular in the region surrounding Rochester, New York, where it's known as Chicken French — so much so that some have suggested it be called Chicken Rochester.
Quick Facts
- Course
- Main course
- Region
- New York State
- Associated cuisine
- Italian-American cuisine
- Main ingredients
- Chicken
Facts from the source article.
Background
The origin of Chicken Francese is murky. Despite being a well-known dish in Italian-American culture, francese is not a classical dish or sauce, and there are no written recipes marking its start. Veal piccata is the closest match among Italian dishes. John Mitzewich claims the dish originated with first-generation Italian immigrants, who substituted chicken for the more expensive veal in their recipe for veal francese (vitello francese).
The Rochester newspaper Democrat and Chronicle instead claims it's a recent invention, stating that a vitello francese appeared in New York City after World War II. Chefs Tony Mammano and Joe Cairo brought the dish to the Rochester region in the 1950s under the name 'Veal French', where it became popular. When consumers boycotted veal in the 1970s, area chefs like James Cianciola of the Brown Derby Restaurant successfully substituted chicken. Cianciola later published a cookbook on these 'French' dishes.
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