Fish, Chicken or Veal Francese Recipe

Every Christmas Eve its a tradition to make 7 kinds of fish and we usually have more varieties than that. Since Chicken Francese is a favorite in our house or Veal, I decided to make both, just make sure you fry the chicken first! Otherwise the oil will taste like fish and so will the Chicken. We were not disappointed with the fish, it was wonderful. So, this year I will be adding Fish Francese to the menu of seafood dishes. I made 4 pretty large pieces and two of us ate it all. The best results are with fresh ingredients.

1 pound white fish (flounder, perch, haddock, sea bass, mahi or other you like



For Chicken or Veal you must pound the slices for tenderness first Using one pound of either on

3 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup corn starch
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 to 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, as needed
Vegetable oil for frying the herbs
1/2 cup mixed fresh parsley leaves, rosemary leaves, and small thyme sprigs ...(a wonderful flavored butter will be created.)
Additional kosher salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
4 tablespoons white wine
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, or to taste
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
Additional freshly ground black pepper

By adding the below, these are other Regions Styles of making this dish:
Canned Artichokes optional (Roman Style Dish )
Chopped Fresh Tomatoes optional (Roman Style Dish)
Capers (by pounding chicken or veal thinly becomes a Picatta) optional ( Bari Style Dish )
Lemon slices for garnish optional
Suggestion to serve with: 1/2 pound boiled pasta linguine or bow ties

Pat Fish dry if frozen with paper towels


Beat the eggs with the cheese in a large bowl to blend. Mix the flour with the salt and pepper in a shallow pie plate. Place the fish in the flour, cornstarch and turn to coat on all sides. Dip into the egg mixture and lift to let the excess drip off. Return to the flour and turn again to coat on all sides.Note: (When dipping the chicken, I dip in egg again and back into the flour, so it's double dipped)

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in large skillet on medium heat. Cook until gold brown 5 minutes per side. Transfer to large platter. Cover with foil.
Heat about 2 inches of oil in deep saucepan over medium heat.
Working in batches, add the herbs, until crisp about 10 seconds each side.
Sprinkle with salt.


Add the butter, wine, lemon juice, parsley to skillet and heat till bubbling. Season with salt, pepper. Add capers if using. Spoon a small amount of sauce over each piece of fish top with fried herbs. A great side dish is pasta with extra sauce.