Fresh Ricotta and Spinach Stuffed Chicken

4.87 from 45 votes

Fresh Ricotta and Spinach Stuffed Chicken

Fresh Ricotta and Spinach Stuffed Chicken is a dinner that will taste like you slaved in the kitchen all day but is easy enough for a weeknight.

Course chicken, Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings people

Calories 904kcal

Author Tracy

Equipment

Tongs
Oven safe sauté pan

Ingredients

Stuffed Chicken:

2 large chicken breasts
3/4 cup ricotta cheese
1/3 - 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese grated
1 tablespoon fresh parsley minced
2 cups fresh spinach packed
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
3 cloves garlic minced
1/2 white onion minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt + more for seasoning
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper + more for seasoning
1 tablespoon salted butter

Gravy:

2 cups Chicken stock slightly warmed or at least room temp
2 tablespoons salted butter
1/8 cup all purpose flour
Pinch salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large saute pan, heat olive oil to medium and add onion and garlic and sauté for a 3-4 minutes until onions are translucent.
Add spinach and cook until spinach is wilted, approximately 2-3 minutes, stirring often. Remove from pan and set aside to cool.
In a medium-sized bowl, add ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, parsley, salt and pepper, set aside.
Butterfly chicken by holding one hand on breasts and use a very sharp knife, starting at thickest part of the chicken and slowly slice the chicken through, until about 1/2 inch from the other end, being sure to keep the breast intact.
Add cooked spinach and onion to the bowl of cheeses and mix well.
Open the butterflied chicken breasts and season each side with salt and pepper. Spoon cheese and spinach mixture onto half of the butterflied breast. Gently fold the other half of the chicken breast down over the cheese mixture and gently press to close. If needed, use toothpicks or spaghetti to secure them closed.
Add butter to saute pan and heat over medium to melt, then turnthe heat up to medium-high. Use tongs to gently transfer the stuffed chicken breasts to the pan, being care to not let the stuffing spill out.
Sear on one side for 3 minutes, then gently flip the stuffed breasts with tongs to sear the other side for another 3 minutes.
Place the pan into the oven and finish cooking the chicken for 35-40 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165° F.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, add butter and flour and whisk constantly to form a roux. Slowly add the stock, continuously whisking.
Once all of the stock is added to the gravy, add salt and continue cooking to reduce the gravy to desired thickness.
When chicken is finished cooking, remove from oven, plate and serve with hot gravy.
Serve with your favorite mashed potatoes, stuffing, or veggies.

Notes

How to Butterfly Chicken

With a sharp knife hold the top of the breast with your hand, then slice with your sharp knife horizontally, starting at the thickest end, cutting the chicken breast in half, ensuring that you don't slice all of the way through, and leave at least a half an inch from the other side to keep the breasts intact. If done well, you should be able to open up the chicken like a book, and both sides should be relatively even in thickness. If they are not even, then you can cover each side with some plastic wrap and use a meat mallet to flatten them to an even thickness.

Tip to Keeping Chicken Stuffed

If your butterflied chicken breasts are not staying closed enough to be able to transfer, you can use toothpicks or even a piece of spaghetti to secure them together.

Substitutions

Cheese: Ricotta and Parm together are our favorites, but you can use another hard cheese like asiago or romano in place of Parm and also add some mozzarella.

Onion: Yellow onion is also great for this.

Spinach: You can use frozen spinach too. Thaw and drain before adding to the pan to saute.

Nutrition