This parmesan-crusted Lemon Chicken Recipe is so EASY to make and completely ready in 30 minutes! The quick garlic and lemon butter sauce enhances the flavor of the chicken and adds so much flavor to the dish!
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I’m convinced you’ll love my Lemon Chicken with the best Lemon Butter Sauce.
Lemon Chicken Recipe:
This dish is going to become a favorite chicken dinner recipe for BUSY evenings. The chicken breast is generously coated in parmesan and pan-fried to give it a crispy crust. The chicken is then smothered in a lemon butter sauce with garlic that adds so much flavor to the chicken.
We love easy 30-minute chicken recipes for busy weeknights and some of our go-to’s include Chicken Marsala, classic Chicken Parmesan and of course this easy lemon garlic chicken. With these recipes in your arsenal, you can make restaurant-quality meals for a fraction of the price of eating out.
How to Make Lemon Chicken:
With just a few simple ingredients a few minutes of prep time, you can have yourself the most DELICIOUS crispy chicken breast in a buttery garlic lemon sauce!
- Cut chicken in half lengthwise and beat with a meat mallet to an even thickness.
- Prepare Egg Mixture – whisk together eggs, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Prepare Parmesan Mixture – in a separate bowl, mix together the parmesan cheese and flour.
- Dredge the Chicken – coat in the egg mixture, then generously coat in parmesan mixture, shaking off excess.
- Cook Chicken. Add oil to a hot skillet then add breaded chicken and cook 4-5 minutes per side, until golden brown and the internal temperature reads 165˚F with an Instant Read Thermometer.
Cook’s Tip – If the chicken crust begins to brown too quickly, reduce heat allowing the chicken to fully cook through.
How to Make Lemon Butter Sauce:
This 5-minute EASY lemon butter sauce will become a staple in your home. The sauce is tangy from the fresh lemon and butter and the garlic just brings all the flavors together – SO GOOD!
For a quicker dinner, prepare the lemon sauce in a separate saucepan or skillet while the chicken is cooking. Then just pour the sauce over the chicken once it is cooked. Or, you can just cook the chicken, remove it from the skillet (cover to keep warm) and prepare the sauce in the same skillet, then add the chicken back.
- Saute the garlic and butter until fragrant.
- Whisk in the lemon juice, chicken broth, Italian seasoning, and pepper. Allow the sauce to cook over med heat for about 2 minutes.
NOTE: We love the fresh and tangy lemon flavor in this recipe. If you prefer a less lemony flavor, reduce the lemon juice.
Can I make this Ahead?
If you like to prep dinner in advance, slice the chicken and add it to the egg mixture, cover and refrigerate until you are ready for dinner. Allowing the chicken to marinate will result in a juicier and more tender chicken breast. Then, just continue with the remaining recipe instructions.
Can I make the Lemon Chicken without Parmesan Crust?
Yes! For a healthier option, completely omit the egg mixture and parmesan mixture. Slice the chicken breast and season with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Then, continue with the preparation of the sauce.
Substituting for Chicken Thighs?
This lemon chicken will work with chicken breast, chicken thighs, and even chicken tenderloins. You will want to prepare the recipe according to the instructions, the only difference will be in the cooking time. The cook time will depend on the size of the thighs, you want the internal temperature to reach 165F on an instant-read thermometer.
Adding Vegetables to the Chicken in Skillet:
Yes, you may definitely add vegetables to complete the dish. Asparagus, green beans, and zucchini will all go great with the lemon sauce and compliment the chicken
I can’t wait for you to give this simple chicken dinner recipe a try!
What to Serve with Lemon Chicken?
The EASY chicken dish is completely ready in just 30 minutes and can be served with our Mashed Potatoes or your favorite pasta and it pairs well with Caesar Salad.
More Chicken Recipes to Try:
- Chicken Cobb Salad – so easy with rotisserie chicken
- Spatchcock Chicken – one-pan baked chicken dinner
- Chicken Fried Rice – a great way to use leftovers
- Chicken Carbonara- Olive Garden copycat recipe.
- Tender Chicken Thighs- Easiest and juiciest baked tender thighs.
Lemon Chicken with BEST Lemon Butter Sauce
Ingredients
Ingredients for Parmesan Crusted Chicken:
- 1 1/2 lb chicken breast, (2 large), patted dry with paper towels
- 1 Tbsp olive oil, to sautee
- 1 Tbsp parsley, to garnish (optional)
- 1/2 lemon, sliced for garnish (optional)
For the Egg Mixture:
- 2 large eggs
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
For the Parmesan Breading Mixture:
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
Ingredients for Lemon Butter Sauce:
- 8 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts in half lengthwise. Lightly beat with a meat mallet until even in thickness.
- In a bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the egg mixture. In another bowl, combine the ingredients for the parmesan mixture. Dip chicken into the egg mixture, then dredge chicken in the parmesan mixture. Allow any excess ingredients to fall off from each bowl.
- In a large non-stick skillet, heat enough oil to cover the bottom of a skillet. Once hot, add the chicken and cook 4-5 minutes per side, or until crispy, golden and cooked through to 165˚F on an Instant Read Thermometer. Reduce the heat if chicken browns too quickly.
- Meanwhile, in a separate saucepan, melt butter and garlic, cook until fragrant. Add the chicken broth, lemon juice and pepper. Allow the sauce to cook for about 2 minutes. Pour the sauce over the cooked chicken, turning to coat. Garnish with lemon slices and finely chopped parsley if desired.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
Hi! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, food photographer, and writer. Here you’ll find delicious, reliable recipes made with simple ingredients, plus easy step-by-step photos and videos to help you cook confidently at home. 
Once again another fab meal ! This was soooo good and pretty! I removed the chicken from pan and did the sauce and added the chicken back so I did not have to dirty another pan. Added some angel hair pasta around to soak up that yummy lemon butter sauce. Had left overs for lunch! Keeper ! My husband loved it (now his new fav…until next time)
Is the Parmesan cheese real cheese or the Kraft grated parm you buy in a container and shake out?
Hi Roiann! I like to grate parmesan fresh for recipes, so I use a block that I grate, but you can also purchase parmesan cheese in the fridge section that has already been grated. I hope that helps!
Amazing flavor. Cut the butter in half after reading other reviews.
I have been cooking for 50 years, and this chicken, right here, is one of the best receipes I’ve made. You can never go bad with a Natasha recipe, and it did not disappoint.
Hi Barbara! I’m so happy to hear that. Thank you so much for the wonderful review.
Super delicious, quick and simple recipe. Made everything from scratch under 1 hour. My fussy eater son cleaned his plate and rates this recipe 10/10
My husband thought this was one of the best ever dinners. So delicious and so quick. Exactly what we need!
Absolutely delicious! I will definitely be making this again. I did add the zest of one lemon to the parm mix and lemon sauce. I served it over a bed of pasta with the lemon sauce.
My family loves lemon chicken and I will make this dish again. The flavor of the Parmesan coating for the chicken was delicious. We had the leftovers the next day and the chicken was even more tender from soaking in the sauce. Next time, I will reduce the amount of butter in the sauce as it left a slight greasy aftertaste. Thank you for another delicious and easy recipe.
I made this and took it on our trip to visit our daughter. I poured the sauce over the fried chicken tenders. Then took it with us. My daughter put the chicken tenders in her air frier. Then warmed the sauce to add as we wanted. We really liked the chicken crispy. It was delicious!
The method for making the sauce is excellent but I found it had WAY too much butter. Will try recipe again using half of what is stated. In fact, I had leftover chicken that didn’t get served so I will make another pot of sauce with half butter and use a cornstarch slurry to thicken it a bit. I already have lemon and garlic prepped😁
Hi there, feel free to adjust the amount of butter next time according to your personal preference.
I have a question , can you freeze this ?
I am making it tomorrow. Looks amazing !
This recipe was absolutely delicious there was literally no left overs. I kinda tweaked it by adding herbamare to the Parm mix, thickening the butter mixture with cornstarch mix and adding pepper to it as well. It was honestly what I was craving and will definitely be making it again.
That’s a good addiiton to the recipe. Thanks a lot for sharing and for your review!
Best I have ever tasted. the hubs went back for seconds. and the sauce there are no words to describe it. “EXCEPT “FABULOUS”.
Thank you for the aewsome feedback and review!
Loved the Parmesan coating on this dish! The next time I make this, I will be making a thicker, more lemon forward sauce, (perhaps to dip the chicken in?), as I found that the coating lost it’s crispiness
Great recipe, delicious meal. I thickened the sauce a little with a roux before adding the broth/lemon juice.
Thank you for sharing, Steve! Great to hear that you enjoyed it!
Can I make this Ahead?
You said slice the chicken ? How? Likely completely or just slits in the chicken and just let it sit in the egg mixture in the fridge until I am ready to cook it correct? Please advise thanks
Hi Alejandra. See step 1 in the recipe card for instructions on how to slice and prepare the chicken breast. Then proceed as instructed in the make-ahead note once you’ve sliced your chicken.
I enjoyed the lemony flavor. Best breading recipe I have experienced, crispy, beautiful golden color, and it doesn’t separate from the meat while cooking.
Made the Chicken Piccata last night. So easy and so delicious. My husband is a big fan. Definitely going in the rotation.
Love Love
Great to hear that, Linda! Thanks to you both and hope your fam will love all of the recipes that you will try!
This was so good I love lemon chicken it’s the best. I swear I must have been Greek in my last life because that’s actually where this recipe came from the Greeks.
Extremely enjoyable. I served pith with broccoli, carrots, and wild rice.
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Sara!
I am wondering if it will turn out OK if I substitute Almond flour for all purpose flour. It’s the only item that keeps this from being a Keto recipe but I would love to try.
Hi Brenda, I haven’t tried that to advise. Although one of my readers mentioned this: “I’ve made this with oat flour instead of AP and it came out perfectly. I imagine you could also sub almond or gluten free flour without it affecting the outcome.” I hope this helps.
Will def be making this again! It was very easy and very delicious. Even with a couple of picky eaters, everyone was a fan and left nothing behind. This will be put in our rotation of favorites.
That is the best when kids love what we moms make, especially the picky eaters. That’s so great!