An epic baked stuffed chicken breast! Slathered in tasty Italian flavours, then stuffed with sun dried tomatoes, spinach and cheese, this chicken breast is juicy and oozing with flavour. Five minutes is all it takes to prepare this with no marinating time required.
This is one of those recipes that’s so easy and versatile, you don’t even need a recipe for it. The variation possibilities are endless in case you don’t have the exact ingredients called for, and I’ve provided a handful of ideas. So you can make this tonight with whatever you have!
One of the pleasures / tortures of working in the food industry is constantly being surrounded by food. Whether on social media, research, creating and testing recipes, jobs for clients, for my monthly feature in Super Food Ideas magazine, and even when I’m with friends and family, I live and breath (and eat) food for most of my waking hours.
In fact, I see so much food that it takes something seriously good to grab my attention. And when this Sun Dried Tomato, Spinach and Cheese Stuffed Chicken from Yammie’s Noshery came across my radar, I jumped on it straight away.
It was just meant to be. I had everything to make it, and I made it that very night. Well, a variation of it. Because – you know. That’s just what I do. I rarely stick to the script. 😉
This is one of those secret weapon recipes that tastes so ridiculously good and yet you barely need a recipe for it. In fact, these photos are all you need:
The beauty of this baked stuffed chicken breast recipe is that it’s a base that you can adapt to your own taste using whatever ingredients you have. Assuming that you have chicken breast. And cheese. Because….well, you know. The end result just wouldn’t be the same if you didn’t have both of those……
So I’ve added a bunch of suggestions in the recipe notes. Basil, ricotta, feta, other pickled / marinated vegetables, frozen spinach, olives, to name a few.
I love making this with sun dried tomato because for a relatively unattractive looking shrivelled up vegetable, it packs a lot of flavour punch which is right up my alley. So I always have a jar lurking in my fridge. Just a bit of sun dried tomato can make anything so much more interesting. Think – omelettes/frittas, pastas, salads.
The one thing I did differently from the original recipe was swapping out the bottled Italian dressing for a simple homemade Italian dressing that is thicker than what I use for salads. It’s more like a thin paste. By making it thicker than usual salad dressings, the flavour sticks to the chicken breast better which eliminates the need for marinating time.
Speed and no advance preparation is what this recipe is all about!
I am quite particular about how I cook with chicken breast. It’s so lean, I find it either has to be marinated, or pounded thin so it cooks quickly and stays nice and juicy. I honestly have no memory of my mother cooking with chicken breast when I was growing up. Asian food is all about “dark meat” which is fattier and has more flavour – thigh fillets, wings, drumsticks. (No feet and other questionable parts for me!)
However, this method of cooking chicken breast works really well to keep it beautifully juicy. It cooks faster than a whole chicken breast even though it is stuffed because the stuffing is not as dense as chicken flesh.
And as it roasts, the juices from the sun dried tomato and cheese bastes the chicken which is already slathered in the Italian dressing, so when you take it out of the oven, you will find plenty of sauce in the skillet to pour over the chicken when you serve it.
I know I’m talking this up as a fast midweek meal, but I swear, I would happily serve this up for company too. It’s one of those crowd pleaser meals, don’t you think?? – Nagi x
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Sun Dried Tomato, Spinach & Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breast
Ingredients
- 6oz/180g small chicken breasts (2 pieces), boneless and skinless
- 1/2 cup sun dried tomato (oil packed. Use enough to cover the chicken, cut into strips)
- 4 slices mozzarella cheese (or other melting cheese of choice)
- leaves Handful of spinach
- 2 tsp olive oil
Italian Dressing
- 1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar or lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp sugar, any
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp EACH Italian mixed herbs and red pepper flakes (Note 1)
- Salt & pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Whisk together the Italian Dressing ingredients in a bowl. It will be thicker than salad dressing.
- Cut a pocket into each chicken breast, taking care not to cut all the way though.
- Coat the chicken (inside and out) with the Italian Dressing.
- Place chicken on work surface. Stuff with sun dried tomato, top with cheese then finish with spinach leaves. Just stuff in as much as you can.
- Seal with toothpicks (just stick them in on the diagonal – see photo in post).
- Heat oil in an ovenproof skillet over high heat. Add chicken and cook for 1 1/2 minutes on each side, or until golden.
- Transfer to oven and cook for 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly and chicken is cooked through. Rest for 3 minutes before serving, drizzled with the juices in the skillet.
Recipe Notes:
Small 6oz/180g – 15 minutes
Medium 7 oz / 210g – 18 minutes
Large 8oz/250g – 20 minutes 3. Other ideas for stuffing: Spinach (thawed frozen spinach, excess water squeezed out), ricotta, feta, olives, other pickled / marinated vegetables, fresh herbs, bacon (of course). 4. Slightly adapted from this Sun Dried Tomato, Spinach and Cheese Chicken by Yammie’s Noshery. 5. Nutrition is per serving, for a whole 6oz/180g chicken breast per person. If you use chicken breast much larger than this, each chicken breast can serve 2 people.
Nutrition Information:
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Baked Stuffed Chicken Breast recipe video!
LIFE OF DOZER
Turns out he loves sun dried tomatoes and asparagus as much as his Mama. 😉 (OK OK….he got some chicken too…..)
PS Yes I am using chopsticks feed him. Soooooo Asian, I know…..!!!
GENIUS!! I think this tastes better every time I make it. We’ve had it 3 times so far – all 3 were weeknights – and each time it has felt like we were having a special holiday meal. Yum yum yum. Thank you for the inspiration.
FANTASTIC to hear Liz! Thank you so much for letting me know. Hope you have a great weekend! – N xx
I was wondering if someone could tell me what I am doing wrong every time I make something like this everything comes out of the chicken
Hi Brenda! Are you sealing the chicken with toothpicks?? Some does burst out, like you see in the photos. 🙂
Some of it will always come out. Try a glass baking dish instead. Spray with cooking spray first, 350 for 25 minutes will turn out just as good.???
The ‘print’ function isn’t working so well:(
I’m sorry to hear that! 🙁 I will convert it over now, I’m migrating to a new recipe card (it’s taking sooo long! 🙁 ) N xx
My wife made this for us and it was delicious. It was easy but at our altitude took a little bit longer to cook. We’re going to share it on Facebook so the family around the country can try it we are sure they will all love it.
I’m so pleased you enjoyed it Ronald, thank you for letting me know! N xx
This recipe was SO easy and so delicious… it was perfect for a quick work night meal. Nagi, what side dish or veggie do you suggest pairing with this?
I’m so pleased to hear that Lauren, thank you for letting me know! For a quick meal, my standard is a handful of lettuce leaves and one of my standby dressings (https://discountspot.info/salad-dressing-recipes/%3C/a%3E%29 Or steamed veggies again with dressing poured over them while hot (love how they kind of suck up the flavour!) N xx
Tried this recipe tonight, and it was AH-mazing!!!! The whole family loved it. Perfectly savory with a little bit of spiciness. The dish was so flavorful. Very easy to prep and cook. Followed the directions exactly, and now it will be saved as a family favorite.
I’m so glad you enjoyed this Rebecca, thanks for letting me know! N x
Thank you for sharing your recipe and technique. Because of my way of eating I can not use breading, so it is often a challenge to come up with ways to cook chicken that are flavorful and keep it juicy and tender. I changed my filling (as you recommended) because I did not have spinach in the house. I filled my pocket with slices of hard salami, mozzarella cheese, sun dried tomato pesto and fresh basil. Before bringing it to the table I warmed up a small bowl of marinara sauce to be added as needed. Honestly, the chicken was so juicy it didn’t need the extra help. I need more practice on making those pockets in the chicken, but the salami acted as a damn to hold in all the other ingredients. Hubby told me to add this to the rotation. I will be working on other fillings to keep things interesting
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Jackie! Thanks for letting me know! N x
Definitely! 🙂 Or sub with basil or sliced green onions, or other green leafy thing that is suitable for cooking! 🙂
Gorgeous! I’m sure it tasted heavenly. I like the combination of the ingredients and how juicy the chicken stayed after cooking.
It really does help keep the chicken lovely and juicy!! 🙂
Oh my goodness…this chicken recipe looks amazing.
THANK YOU MISSY!!! Hope you try it! N x
These look so good! I wonder about putting them on the grill?
Hi Andrea! If you have a hood you can brown them on the grill then move them to indirect heat and put the lid down to finish cooking them 🙂
Hi Nagi,
We just finished your stuffed chicken for dinner. So yummy!
I usually steer clear of stuffed chicken breast because I always seem to fail at making it. I imagine the marinade is what sets yours apart!
I only had whole grain mustard, regular tasty cheese and instead of two small chicken breasts, I used a single gigantic one cooked in the oven for the recommended 20mins.
Thanks for another go-to recipe – you’ve certainly made my meal planning easier…and more successful!! 😉
YEE HA! So glad to hear you enjoyed it Emma, thanks for letting me know!! N x
Hi Nagi, this was good. I had the ingredients mostly on hand, just picked up fresh Mozzarella. We are in Summer months and I carved this into pretty spirals and served it as sort of an appetiser as each piece was elegant and very, tasty and good on a hot day.
Thank you.
Elizabeth
I’m so glad to hear that Elizabeth! Thank you for letting me know! N x
Looks SO good! Any idea how long to cook with a baking sheet rather than a cast iron pan?
Hi Christine! If you don’t sear it, you won’t get that browning on the surface like you see in the photo 🙂 If you just bake it, it will take around 25 minutes at the same temperature instead of 15 minutes. 🙂
Just consumed this for dinner. Beautiful, thank you.
THANK YOU ANN!!!! N xxxxx
How delicious! And it looks so fancy, just like a restaurant!
Doesn’t it?? I would be so happy being served this at a bistro! 🙂 N x
Delicious and easy dish Nagi! We really enjoyed it.
Thank you Shash! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! N x
Made this last night for dinner and it was delicious!! Need to find a way to get more stuffing in the breasts without it spilling out!
Absolutely love your reciepes Nagi! This is now my go-to site for dinner ideas. Thanks! 🙂
Awww THANK YOU JO! I’m so happy to hear you enjoy my site! N x
Hi Nagi
What a tasty chicken dish. One I will do again. Sadly mine looked nothing like your picture! Think I stuffed too much filling in. Is there anything Dozer doesn’t like?
Hi Pauline! So glad you enjoyed it!!! And if it was over flowing even more with the stuffing, that means you have a higher ratio of tasty goodness to chicken so yours would have been even YUMMIER than mine!!! 🙂 Yes, Dozer does not like salad leaves without dressing. A bit like his mama! N x
Oh, Nagi I made this tonight and loved it. I didn’t change anything and will definitely make it again. I took pictures wish I could share them with you. You have such lovely pictures though mine is not any where as pretty. Tell Dozer sorry I am not sharing. Always love your recipes. Thanks.
I would love to see them Beth!! Are you on Instagram? I am @recipe_tin, if you follow me you can tag me so I can see them! Don’t worry about what the photos look like, it just matters how it tasted! N x