This dairy free piccata pasta is identical to the classic recipe. Vegan chicken piccata has bright buttery lemon caper sauce served over pasta.
recipe originally published November 10, 2010
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Why you'll love this piccata recipe
Brightly flavored and quick enough for a weeknight dinner, this dairy free piccata is a precise plant based remake of the classic recipe.
In this vegan chicken piccata recipe, the chicken is replaced with soy curls or jackfruit. Rehydrated soy curls or shredded jackfruit is lightly dredged and pan fried, then finished in the buttery lemon caper sauce and served over pasta or mashed potatoes.
This is such an easy and approachable recipe, and the bright flavors will have you craving it often. I make this as a quick weeknight dinner when I am craving light, lemony flavors.
If you love vibrant piccata flavors, you will love piccata potato salad, a lemony twist on the classic. These lemon piccata enchiladas are another unusually tasty take on an easy casserole dish.
What do you eat with piccata?
One of my favorite ways to serve this vegan chicken piccata is over pasta noodles, as this recipe does. Another favorite, more comfort food version is to make the chicken and sauce and serve it over mashed potatoes or buttery smooth mashed cauliflower.
I have also just made the chicken piccata portion and served it over leftover rice, making it even easier. I just add the rice into the finished sauce to warm up before plating.
For some greens, this creamed spinach (also made with cauliflower!) has mild enough flavors to complement the piccata, not compete with it. Simple sautéed spinach, roasted asparagus or broccoli are also great pairings.
A chiffonade salad is another option for a fresh side.
How long does vegan chicken piccata last?
My rule for maximum flavor and freshness is to enjoy this quick and easy recipe within three days.
Cool completely, and refrigerate in a glass container with a tightly fitting lid.
Did you make this piccata pasta?
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Vegan Chicken Piccata Pasta
Brightly flavored and quick enough for a weeknight dinner, this piccata is a precise plant based remake of the classic recipe.
Ingredients
"Chicken" Piccata
- 3 cups soy curls (see notes for other options)
- 2 tablespoons super fine almond flour
- ½ teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
- 1 yellow onion, peeled and diced
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
Pasta
- 4 servings pasta *see notes for alternatives
Lemon piccata sauce
- 2 tablespoons dairy free butter
- 2 tablespoons gluten free all purpose flour
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- ½ cup dairy free, unsweetened milk
- 2 fresh lemons, scrubbed, zested, and juiced
- 3 cups fresh spinach
- ¼ cup capers
Instructions
Sauté soy curls
- Choose a skillet that is large enough to make sauce.
- Before rehydrating the soy curls, break them into smaller pieces (see video). Soak them in warm water to rehydrate, about 10 minutes. Once rehydrated, drain soy curls. Squeeze soy curls to remove excess water.
- Return squeezed soy curls to bowl. Sprinkle almond flour and black pepper over soy curls, and toss to coat completely.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is soft and translucent.
- Add floured soy curls to sautéed onion mixture. Continue to sauté for several minutes, until soy curls are golden brown and slightly crisp on edges.
- Transfer cooked soy curls to a plate and set aside.
- Do not wash skillet. You will make the sauce in this skillet; deglazing the soy curl bits adds another layer of flavor.
Cook noodles
- In a large pasta pot, bring water to a boil.
- When boiling, add pasta and cook according to package directions.
Make Lemon Piccata Sauce
- Add butter to skillet over medium low heat.
- Once butter is melted, add flour and stir to combine. Cook over medium low heat until mixture begins to deepen to a golden tan color.
- Add the vegetable broth and whisk to deglaze and make a sauce with the roux / butter flour mixture.
- To this sauce, add the milk, lemon zest and juice. Whisk to combine.
- Remove sauce from heat.
Finish Pasta
- To the skillet with the piccata sauce, fold in spinach, capers, cooked soy curls, and cooked pasta. Use tongs to combine and wilt spinach.
Notes
Alternatives to serving with pasta
Instead of pasta, my favorite comfort food piccata is to make the chicken and sauce, and serve it over mashed potatoes or buttery smooth mashed cauliflower.
I have also just made the chicken piccata portion and served it over leftover rice, making it even easier. I just add the rice into the finished sauce to warm up before plating.
For some greens, this creamed spinach (also made with cauliflower!) has mild enough flavors to complement the piccata, not compete with it. Simple sautéed spinach, roasted asparagus or broccoli are also great pairings.
A chiffonade salad is another option for a fresh side.
Soy curls substitutionsÂ
In place of soy curls, use shredded jackfruit or cannellini beans.
If using jackfruit
- Drain jackfruit, place in large bowl. Using two forks, shred jack fruit into smaller pieces (or chop with knife).Â
- Sprinkle almond flour and black pepper over shredded jackfruit and toss to coat completely.
- Add to skillet with sautéed onion and continue with recipe instructions.
If using beans
- Drain beans but do not rinse.
- Add to skillet with sautéed onion and continue with recipe instructions.
How long does this recipe last?
My rule for maximum flavor and freshness is to enjoy this quick and easy recipe within three days.
Cool completely and refrigerate in a glass container with a tightly fitting lid.Â
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 154Total Fat: 3gSodium: 242mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 4gSugar: 3gProtein: 10g
nutrition calculations results vary by calculator, are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to replace medical advice or treatment.
about Kristina:
Kristina is spabettie! She found cooking at an early age, and created spabettie in 2010 to share vegan recipes. Kristina turned her culinary training into sharing vibrant vegan food! Read more...
spabettie / Kristina Sloggett is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Beth says
Soy curls are new to me - but I looooooove piccata and I bet that was delicious! And deglazing DEFINITELY makes you chef worthy!
spabettie says
soy curls are great - they are dehydrated whole soybean strips - they take on the flavor of whatever you cook them with.
Erin @ A Girl & Her Mutt says
Having the support from parents is just lovely. They always think you are the best at everything. I love it!
Looks delish!
spabettie says
yep - my mom is the best. your parents always sound great too. 😀
couchpotatoathlete says
I have never heard of soy curls!
The pasta looks great but the best part of this meal are the kalamata olives on the salad. Those are my favorite 🙂
spabettie says
soy curls are a dehydrated whole soybean in a strip - vegan & gluten free and can be flavored with anything - here are some of the recipes I've used them in !!
Evan Thomas says
Yum! This is one thing I never would have thought to make vegan. Love it!
spabettie says
Thanks! It was SO yum... I am very happy with how it turned out, like the real thing! (better for me - no chicken!) 🙂
Jill says
Says the meat eater - What are soy curls?! I'm totally willing to try them because this looks smashing. I LOVE LOVE LOVE lemon anything and you've made this look like a zesty springtime treat!
And I love how proud you are of deglazing the pan. 😀
spabettie says
Hi Jill ! soy curls are awesome - they are dehydrated whole soybean - you rehydrate and flavor with anything - very versatile - here are some recipes I've made with them !!
S @ extremebalance.net/blog says
Oh, lemon caper sauce is to *die* for! I would lick it off my hands as a delivery system, if only it weren't cold and flu season... 😉
spabettie says
ha!! yep - the pasta was really just an afterthought - I could eat this by itself! 🙂
Heather (Where's the Beach) says
Jason makes a pretty good picatta sauce for faux chicken as well. I mean, how can you go wrong with lemon and capers??? Delish.
spabettie says
you cannot go wrong - I love it - some of the best flavors...
lindsay says
I didn't know ancient harvest had spaghetti, I thought it was just macaroni and other noodles. YEA!! Looks fabulous of course!
spabettie says
YES !! we are not really big pasta eaters, but I discovered the Ancient Harvest spaghetti last week and we've had pasta twice in that time!! Uh oh...
JL goes Vegan says
Oh, my, this dish looks so delicious! It's beautiful, looks like and looks hearty! YUM
spabettie says
Thank you!! It was hearty and filling, but light, if that makes sense? So yummy!
Di @ http://thetreadmilldiaries.com/ says
This is a recipe that both my hubby and i could sink our teeth into - he loves piccata and I like pretty much any pasta dish.
If entering a contest, I would go with making up one of our traditional Italian dishes - maybe pasta alla bolognese or pasta al forno.
spabettie says
you should make this for him - it was VERY easy and so SO good ! 😀