Ham and Cheese Stuffed Chicken
Ham and Cheese Stuffed Chicken is chicken breasts stuffed with ham, fresh spinach, and Swiss cheese, then pan-fried to perfection for a delicious meal any night of the week. It will be a new family favorite for all ages, for sure!
Servings: 4 stuffed chicken breasts
Calories: 804kcal
Ingredients
Filling
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup (245 g) whole milk, room temperature, divided
- 2 cups (60 g) fresh spinach
- 2 cups (270 g) diced deli ham
- 1 ½ cups (169.5 g) Swiss cheese, shredded
Chicken
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 2 pounds
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
Instructions
Filling
- To a medium saucepan over medium heat, add butter. Once melted, add flour, salt, and pepper. Cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
- Pour in ½ cup of milk, whisking constantly. Then, pour in the remaining ½ cup milk, continuing to whisk constantly until smooth and boiling.
- Reduce heat to low, bringing the mixture to a simmer. Continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce starts to thicken (1-2 minutes).
- Add spinach. Cook for a minute, or until the spinach is wilted.
- Add ham and shredded cheese. Stir well. Remove from heat and set aside.
Chicken
- Pat chicken dry with a paper towel and butterfly each chicken breast. To butterfly, place a chicken breast on a cutting board. With your hand flat on top of it, use a sharp knife to slice into one side of the breast, starting at the thicker end and ending at the thin point. Be careful not to cut all the way through. Repeat with the remaining chicken breasts.
- Season butterflied chicken on both sides with garlic powder, paprika, salt, and pepper.
- Add a heaping ½ cup of filling into the center of each butterflied chicken. (Depending on the size of each chicken breast, there may be leftover filling. Serve that on the side as extra filling.)
- Fold the chicken closed and use a toothpick (or more as needed) to secure the two sides together.
- To a large skillet over medium heat, add oil and butter. Once the oil is hot and the butter is melted, add stuffed chicken. (Depending on the size of your chicken breasts and skillet, you may have to work in batches.) Cook for 7-8 minutes per side, or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.
- Let the stuffed chicken rest for about 5 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Serving: 1stuffed chicken breast | Calories: 804kcal