The 25-Minute Italian Chicken I Make All the Time

I grew up in a semi-traditional Italian American family. Not that we were eating huge pots of Sunday gravy every weekend, but classic Italian meals were heavily featured: spaghetti and meatballs, lasagna, etc. As I’ve grown up, though, I’ve really enjoyed branching out into some of the lesser-known Italian dishes like this chicken saltimbocca.

While this dish is traditionally made with veal, I prefer the chicken variation because it’s easier to find and makes for a semi-fancy weeknight meal. I make this for date night for my wife since it looks impressive but is really very easy. I’ve also introduced the dish to my kids, and they absolutely love it. Maybe that’s because it's served on a mound of spaghetti, but I tell myself that they love it because of the perfectly tender chicken and crispy prosciutto.

What Saltimbocca Means

The word saltimbocca is kind of a mashup of the Italian verb meaning “to jump” and the word for mouth (bocca), so it literally means something like “to jump in your mouth,” referring to how delicious it is.

As a dish, the phrase refers to a specific preparation. Generally, a saltimbocca dish will be wrapped or coated in prosciutto and pan-fried so the prosciutto forms a crispy layer on top of the protein. It looks fancy, but it isn’t hard! 

The Basics of Chicken Saltimbocca

Start with similarly-sized chicken cutlets and season them well with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Then lightly coat them in flour, shaking off the excess. Press a sage leaf onto each cutlet and then top with a piece of prosciutto.

The prosciutto should overhang the edges of the chicken because it will shrink a lot as it cooks. It’s okay if the prosciutto doesn’t stick to the chicken immediately. It will adhere to it as it cooks in the skillet. 

Chicken saltimbocca tastes great over any kind of pasta—for example, sauced or buttered spaghetti. It also goes great with a hearty chopped salad, simple green side salad, or steamed broccoli. Garlic bread is a must as well!

The Best Cut of Chicken for Saltimbocca

If you can find chicken cutlets in your store, they work great, but I always prefer to make my own out of a chicken breast. Use a sharp knife to slice the chicken breast in half horizontally, making two chicken cutlets that are about four to five ounces in weight and an even thickness. Do not use chicken thighs for this recipe as they are too fatty. 

Tips for Making Chicken Saltimbocca

• Try to use cutlets of the same thickness so they cook evenly. If your cutlets are uneven, place some plastic wrap over them and pound them out lightly to even them out. 
• When you cook the chicken saltimbocca, make sure to start with the prosciutto facing down so it sticks to the chicken. 
• When you add white wine or chicken stock to the skillet to make the pan sauce, do so after you flip the chicken so the prosciutto stays crispy.