What to Eat with Chicken Piccata – Pasta, Sides and Salads

How it works

What to eat with chicken piccata? In the United States it usually comes with a vegetable or a starch such as pasta, polenta or rice. All of those are among these 35 sides, with potatoes, bread, salads and drinks.

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A second course in Italy

Piccata is thin, floured meat fried in a pan and served in a sauce of lemon juice, butter and parsley, often with capers. In Italy the meat is veal, and the dish is a second course that follows the first, usually pasta. Chicken is more common in American cooking.

One for the sauce, one green

The sauce is thin, sharp and buttery, so one side should soak it up: pasta, polenta, risotto, potatoes or bread. The second should be green and simply cooked, so the lemon and capers stay the loudest thing on the plate.

Keep the pasta plain: butter, olive oil or a spoonful of pesto. A tomato or cream sauce fights the lemon and capers.
For the Italian order, serve a small bowl of pasta or minestrone first and the chicken with a vegetable after.

Questions and answers

What sides go with chicken piccata?

One starch and one vegetable. Angel hair pasta, creamy polenta, parmesan risotto or mashed potatoes take the sauce; roasted asparagus, sautéed spinach with garlic or green beans with almonds add the green.

Do you serve chicken piccata over pasta?

You can: pasta is one of the usual starches beside it in the United States. In Italy the pasta usually comes first, as a course of its own.

What vegetable goes with chicken piccata?

A green one, cooked simply: roasted asparagus, roasted broccolini, steamed artichokes or Swiss chard with garlic. Bitter greens such as broccoli rabe and escarole stand up well to the butter.

What salad goes with chicken piccata?

Arugula salad with parmesan is the quickest. Caesar salad, caprese salad, panzanella, white bean salad and radicchio salad are on the list too, and each can be served first or beside the chicken.

All 35 sides

Pasta, polenta and rice 9

Angel hair pasta Thin strands tossed in butter, to catch the lemon sauce.
Creamy polenta Soft and buttery. Spoon it on first and lay the chicken over it.
Farro with herbs A chewy grain, tossed with parsley and olive oil.
Gnocchi with butter and sage Soft and pillowy, browned a little in the pan.
Linguine with garlic and olive oil Plain enough to let the sauce on the chicken lead.
Orzo with lemon Small pasta that soaks up what runs off the chicken.
Parmesan risotto Creamy rice that takes a spoonful of pan sauce well.
Pasta with basil pesto Green and fragrant. Keep the portion small beside a rich sauce.
Wild rice Nutty and chewy against a soft, buttery sauce.

Potatoes and bread 5

Focaccia Soft, oily and salty. Tear it, do not slice it.
Garlic bread For wiping the plate once the chicken is gone.
Lemon roasted potatoes Crisp edges, and the lemon ties them to the sauce.
Mashed potatoes A soft bed for the chicken. Pour the pan sauce over both.
Warm ciabatta An open crumb that drinks up lemon butter.

Vegetables 8

Green beans with almonds Crisp beans, toasted almonds, a little butter.
Roasted asparagus Roast it plain. The plate has lemon enough.
Roasted broccolini Charred tips and tender stems, with a pinch of chili flakes.
Sautéed broccoli rabe Its bitter edge stands up to butter and lemon.
Sautéed escarole A soft, slightly bitter green cooked with garlic.
Sautéed spinach with garlic It wilts fast and can sit under the chicken.
Steamed artichokes Pull the leaves and dip them in the sauce left on the plate.
Swiss chard with garlic Wilted in olive oil, stems and all.

Salads and starters 9

Arugula salad with parmesan Peppery leaves, olive oil and shaved cheese.
Bruschetta with tomato Toasted bread piled with chopped tomato, to start.
Caesar salad Crisp romaine and a garlicky dressing, served first or beside.
Caprese salad Soft and mild, with olive oil and nothing sharp.
Minestrone A small bowl first, in place of pasta.
Panzanella A summer side, for when the tomatoes are ripe.
Pickled vegetables Sharp and crunchy, a spoonful at the side of the plate.
Radicchio salad Bitter red leaves with something sweet, such as orange or pear.
White bean salad Soft beans, red onion, parsley and olive oil.

Drinks 4

Blood orange soda Sweet, a little bitter, and poured over ice.
Lemon iced tea Unsweetened or nearly, with plenty of ice.
Peach nectar with sparkling water Half and half, in a tall glass.
Sparkling water with lemon Cold and plain, so the sauce stays the sharpest thing on the table.