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Stuffed Chicken Breast
Stuffed chicken breast features juicy tender chicken breasts stuffed with veggies and cheese, seared in a skillet, and then baked to perfection.
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Flavorful stuffed chicken breast is a perfect meal, easy enough for a weeknight dinner but still fancy enough for guests. Fast and delicious, tender chicken breasts are stuffed with a scrumptious cheesy vegetable filling.
MORE RECIPES: Sun Dried Tomato Stuffed Chicken Breast | French Onion Chicken | Creamy Garlic Parmesan Chicken
Juicy and tasty, this chicken recipe boasts juicy chicken breasts stuffed with cheesy goodness. Ready to eat in less than an hour, this stuffed chicken breast recipe is fast, easy, and only requires a handful of simple ingredients.
Serve your baked stuffed chicken entree with mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, or a fresh green salad. A great way to sneak in plenty of veggies, even your picky eaters will love this chicken dinner.
Tender chicken breasts are stuffed with veggies and cheese, seared in a skillet, and then baked to perfection. Searing the chicken first ensures the finished dish is moist, full of creamy melted cheese and flavorful vegetables.
Stuffed Chicken Breast Ingredients
- Chicken breasts - skinless and boneless chicken breasts
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Paprika
- Salt
- Pepper
- Broccoli - broccoli florets
- Bell Pepper - small red bell pepper
- Cheese - shredded cheddar cheese
- Sour cream
- Butter - unsalted butter
- Oil - olive oil
When you are chopping the broccoli, make sure that you cut it nice and small. This will ensure that you can fit it into the chicken breast and that everything cooks evenly. If you’re not a fan of broccoli, you can use an equal amount of finely chopped cauliflower.
Sharp cheddar cheese tastes delicious in this stuffed chicken recipe, but you can substitute any hard or semi-soft cheese that you like. A sprinkle of parmesan cheese or feta cheese in addition to the cheddar cheese adds a tangy twist while mozzarella cheese could make this extra ooey-gooey.
In addition to the vegetables listed in the ingredients, you could also add other veggies to your stuffing. Finely chopped mushrooms or fresh spinach would both be tasty additions. Cooked bacon or prosciutto would be delicious additions to the filling as well.
How to Make Stuffed Chicken Breast
FIRST STEP: Preheat the oven to 400°F.
SECOND STEP: Cut a horizontal slice in each of the chicken breasts to form a pocket for the filling. Take care to cut evenly and not all the way through. You can use your fingers to gently open up the pocket.
THIRD STEP: In a small bowl whisk together the garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Use this mixture to season the chicken on both sides as well as into the pocket you just cut.
FOURTH STEP: In a medium bowl mix together the broccoli florets, red pepper, cheddar cheese, and sour cream.
FIFTH STEP: Divide the filling mixture evenly between the 4 chicken breasts. Spoon the filling mixture into the pockets of the chicken breasts. If the chicken breast is really full then you can secure the chicken breasts with a couple of toothpicks. This assures that all your filling stays inside the chicken while cooking.
SIXTH STEP: In an oven-safe skillet, heat the butter and olive oil on the stovetop over medium heat.
SEVENTH STEP: Add the chicken breasts to the skillet and sear on each side for about 4 minutes or until golden brown.
EIGHTH STEP: Remove the skillet from the stovetop, cover with a lid or aluminum foil, and place it in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and a meat thermometer reads 165°F.
NINTH STEP: Plate the chicken and pour the drippings from the pan over the top of the chicken. Be sure to remove the toothpicks prior to serving.
Can I use chicken thighs?
Since chicken thighs are smaller, they would be more difficult to stuff, but you could stuff chicken thighs if you want. Make sure to watch the cooking time and adjust for the smaller size of the thighs.
How do I keep the stuffing in the chicken?
If you pack it in tight, the filling should stay in the chicken breasts. If you’re worried about it falling out, you can use toothpicks to secure the opening. Just be sure to remove the toothpicks before serving. Toothpicks are perfectly safe to put in the oven to hold your chicken together.
What if I don’t have an oven-safe skillet?
If you don’t have an oven-safe skillet, simply sear each stuffed breast in the skillet you have, then transfer them to a baking dish to put them in the oven. Make sure that if you transfer to a baking dish that you pour all of your pan drippings into the casserole dish prior to finishing baking in the oven. A cast Iron skillet works great for this recipe!
How to Store Stuffed Chicken Breast
IN THE FRIDGE: Store leftover stuffed chicken breast in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
IN THE FREEZER: Allow leftover chicken breasts to cool completely in the refrigerator before placing them in a freezer-safe container or large plastic freezer storage bag and storing them in the freezer. Stuffed chicken breast can be stored frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
Stuffed Chicken Breast
Stuffed chicken breast features juicy tender chicken breasts stuffed with veggies and cheese, seared in a skillet, and then baked to perfection.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts , skinless and boneless
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 ½ cups broccoli florets, steamed, and cooled (about ½ head of fresh broccoli) finely chopped
- 1 small red bell pepper , finely diced
- 1 ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
- ½ cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Cut a horizontal slice in each of the chicken breasts to form a pocket for the filling. Take care to cut evenly and not all the way through. You can use your fingers to gently open up the pocket.
- In a small bowl whisk together the garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Use this mixture to season the chicken on both sides as well as into the pocket you just cut.
- In a medium bowl mix together the broccoli florets, red pepper, cheddar cheese, and sour cream.
- Divide the filling mixture evenly between the 4 chicken breasts. Spoon the filling mixture into the pockets of the chicken breasts. If the chicken breast is really full then you can secure the chicken breasts with a couple of toothpicks. This assures that all your filling stays inside the chicken while cooking.
- In an oven-safe skillet, heat the butter and olive oil on the stovetop over medium heat.
- Add the chicken breasts to the skillet and sear on each side for about 4 minutes or until golden brown.
- Remove the skillet from the stovetop, cover with a lid or aluminum foil, and place it in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and a meat thermometer reads 165°F.
- Plate the chicken and pour the drippings from the pan over the top of the chicken. Be sure to remove the toothpicks prior to serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 458kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 132mg | Sodium: 753mg | Potassium: 675mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1871IU | Vitamin C: 71mg | Calcium: 363mg | Iron: 1mg
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