Frenching” in the Italian American culinary tradition means to dip a piece of food in flour and beaten egg; shallow-fry it; and sauce it with a lemony, beurre blanc–like reduction that saturates the plush, golden-brown coating. This retro technique, originally devised for veal but popularized with chicken cutlets, found fame at the Brown Derby restaurant just outside Rochester, New York. Chef James Cianciola’s “Chicken French” (or “Francese” in Italian) drew such crowds that the restaurant reportedly switched off its lit sign to discourage the arrival of more patrons. In fact, the dish sold so well that Cianciola started “Frenching” artichokes, eggplant, and seafood, too. Restaurants all over the region, and eventually the country, mimicked the preparation, elevating it to what would become one of Red Sauce America’s all-time favorite takes on the sautéed cutlet tradition known as scaloppine.
Francese is timeless with home cooks, too. (In 2018, the food reporter Julia Moskin’s version ranked as the paper’s most
