Mushroom-stuffed chicken with lemon thyme risotto

Mushroom-stuffed chicken with lemon thyme risotto

By Ursula Ferrigno
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(13 ratings)
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Prep: 20 mins Cook: 40 mins Plus 30 mins soaking

Easy

Serves 4
Ever tried risotto as a side dish? It's perfect with these chicken breasts with a rich porcini stuffing

Nutrition and extra info

  • The uncooked stuffed chicken can be frozen
  • Gluten-free

Nutrition: per serving

  • kcal501
  • fat18g
  • saturates6g
  • carbs36g
  • sugars6g
  • fibre3g
  • protein47g
  • salt1.67g
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Ingredients

    For the chicken & stuffing

    • 25g dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in 250ml water for 30 mins, soaking liquid reserved
    • 1 tbsp olive oil
      olive oil

      Olive oil

      ol-iv oyl

      Probably the most widely-used oil in cooking, olive oil is pressed from fresh olives. It's…

    • 1 onion, finely chopped
      Onion

      Onion

      un-yun

      Onions are endlessly versatile and an essential ingredient in countless recipes. Native to Asia…

    • 150g pack baby button mushroom, finely chopped
    • 2 thyme sprigs or lemon thyme sprigs, leaves removed and chopped

      Thyme

      This popular herb grows in Europe, especially the Mediterranean, and is a member of the mint…

    • 175ml white wine
    • 4 skin-on chicken breasts

    For the lemon thyme risotto

    • 1 tbsp butter
      Butter

      Butter

      butt-err

      Butter is made when lactic-acid producing bacteria are added to cream and churned to make an…

    • 1 tbsp olive oil
      olive oil

      Olive oil

      ol-iv oyl

      Probably the most widely-used oil in cooking, olive oil is pressed from fresh olives. It's…

    • 2 celery sticks, finely chopped
      Celery

      Celery

      sell-er-ee

      A collection of long, thick, juicy stalks around a central, tender heart, celery ranges in…

    • 1 small onion, finely chopped
      Onion

      Onion

      un-yun

      Onions are endlessly versatile and an essential ingredient in countless recipes. Native to Asia…

    • 140g risotto rice
      Risotto rice

      Risotto rice

      To create an authentic creamy Italian risotto, the use of specialist rice is imperative. It…

    • 600ml hot chicken stock
    • 2 thyme sprigs or lemon thyme sprigs, leaves removed and chopped

      Thyme

      This popular herb grows in Europe, especially the Mediterranean, and is a member of the mint…

    • juice and zest ½ lemon
      Lemon

      Lemon

      le-mon

      Oval in shape, with a pronouced bulge on one end, lemons are one of the most versatile fruits…

    • 50g parmesan, grated, plus 1 tbsp extra to serve
      Parmesan

      Parmesan

      parm-ee-zan

      Parmesan is a straw-coloured hard cheese with a natural yellow rind and rich, fruity flavour. It…

    Method

    1. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. First, make the stuffing. Finely chop the soaked porcini and set aside. Heat the oil in a shallow pan, then gently cook the onion for 5 mins, stirring occasionally. Add the porcini, button mushrooms and thyme leaves, season, turn the heat up, then cook for another 5 mins until the mushrooms have softened.

    2. Add the wine to the pan, then reduce fiercely until nearly dry. Add 50ml of the porcini soaking liquid, then continue to reduce for a couple of mins until you have a syrupy sauce. Allow to cool for a couple of mins, then carefully spoon between the skin and the flesh of the chicken breasts. Can be made a day ahead and chilled, or frozen for 1 month. Defrost in fridge before cooking. Season, place on a baking tray, skin-side up, then cook in the oven for 20 mins, until the chicken is cooked through and golden.

    3. While the chicken is cooking, make the risotto. Heat the butter and olive oil in a saucepan. Add the celery and onion, then cook over a medium heat for 5 mins until softened. Add the rice, coat it well in the oil, then cook for 1 min. Gradually add the stock a ladleful at a time, stirring with each addition until absorbed. Continue adding the stock and stirring until the risotto is oozing and thick – about 20 mins. Stir in the thyme, lemon juice, zest and Parmesan.

    4. When the chicken is cooked through and golden, remove from the oven. Spoon the risotto onto serving plates, sprinkle with the extra Parmesan and top with a chicken breast. Spoon over the juices from the chicken pan, then serve immediately.

    • Recipe Tip

      Porcini stuffing

      The porcini stuffing has a robust flavour that would also be wonderful in a whole roast chicken. For a meat-free alternative, simply stir the stuffing mix through the rice instead of the lemon thyme and swap the chicken stock for vegetable to make a rich mushroom risotto.

    • Recipe Tip

      Tip

      If you can’t get hold of porcini mushrooms, cook 1 finely chopped bacon rasher and add it to the stuffing to give it a real depth of flavour.

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    Comments, questions and tips

    Sign in or create your My Good Food account to join the discussion.
    archangelrich
    4th Jun, 2015
    3.8
    I liked this - was fairly easy albeit a bit labour intensive. The mushroom stuffing was nice, but not mind - blowing. I also couldn't get hold of any chicken breasts with skin so made a pocket - worked quite well. It does make quite a lot of stuffing - I ended up having to tie the chicken together to keep everything in! I did like the risotto - as the chicken and mushrooms were quite rich and earthy, the sharpness of the lemon worked well.
    kelvinder
    26th Apr, 2014
    3.8
    Really tasty, easy to prepare. Little disappointed with the amount of Risotto when I prepared this for two of us (halved all quantities).
    morethan66
    15th Mar, 2013
    3.05
    I would cook the chicken differently as I found it to be quite tough, but the risotto really was something else, absolutely delicious.
    gunner510
    20th Nov, 2011
    Really tasty used left over stock from porcini mushroom in risotto and stuffed skinless chicken
    zoesherratt
    4th Jul, 2011
    4.05
    Really liked this recipe, it is simple enough to make but takes a bit of time. I really liked the chicken, the stuffing recipe was great, I added 3 gloves of garlic and some pancette which was yummy. The risotto was also fab although a bit too lemony for me. Will definitely make it again but with just a bit less lemon.
    chrisbing
    30th Dec, 2010
    4.05
    Very tasty, but good luck finding chicken breasts with enough skin to hold that much stuffing! Had to slit the breasts and stuff them too.
    louisemary
    30th Nov, 2010
    4.05
    Love this recipe is a firm family favourite, if can't get chicken with skin on i just put the mushroom mix on top & wrap in a couple of slices of pancetta. Will try adding some garlic to the mushroom mix as making again tonight .
    elle01527
    18th Jul, 2010
    5.05
    Lovely meal. The risotto was really tasty as was the mushroom stuffing. No skin on chicken so made a pocket to stuff mushroom mixture and cooked for 30 minutes instead. Will be making again.
    meghancarroll
    27th Jun, 2010
    brilliant and light for summer
    nikki72
    28th Apr, 2010
    5.05
    Tasty, went down well. I would add pancetta and garlic to the mushroom stuffing next time.

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