Chicken Piccata with Asparagus

1. Prep Ingredients

Begin by slicing your chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces to ensure they cook quickly and evenly. Trim the tough ends from your asparagus and cut the spears into 1-inch segments; they'll cook faster this way and be easier to eat. Thinly slice the garlic cloves so they'll release their flavor more readily in the pan.

2. Sear Chicken

Warm a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and let it shimmer, which means it's hot enough to start cooking. Place the chicken pieces in the pan in a single layer, ensuring they're not overcrowded. This allows each piece to sear properly, developing a golden-brown crust that's packed with flavor. When the chicken is halfway done (look for a light golden color), flip the pieces to cook the other side.

3. Cook Vegetables

Once the chicken is mostly cooked but still has a couple of minutes left, add the asparagus pieces. They'll cook in the rendered juices of the chicken, absorbing the flavors and becoming tender-crisp.

4. Sweat Aromatics

Add the sliced garlic and capers to the pan. Stir them with the chicken and asparagus until the garlic just starts to take on a pale golden color. This ensures the garlic is fragrant but not burnt, which would give a bitter taste.

5. Deglaze

Pour in the dry white wine to deglaze the pan. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom, as these add a depth of flavor to the sauce. Allow the wine to reduce by half, which concentrates the flavors and burns off the alcohol.

6. Finishing Ingredients

Reduce the heat to low and stir in the diced butter one cube at a time. This process, called emulsification, gives the sauce a luxurious, velvety texture and mellows out the flavors. Sprinkle in the chopped parsley, which adds a fresh, herbaceous note to the dish and a pop of color. Finish the dish with a squeeze of lemon juice, adding it just a bit at a time and tasting as you go. The acidity brightens the dish and balances the richness of the butter.