As we went for a little early evening walk today to walk off our slightly-too-large meal, Mr. Scrummy and I were talking about how our appetites have changed as we’ve got a bit older. We reminisced about how, up to the age of about 25 or so, we seemed to be able to stuff our faces, stuff our faces some more and then happily eat a large dessert (or two) on top of it all. These days, not so much – no doubt due to all the sitting at computers we do.
This has got me thinking about the Sunday lunches I used to have growing up. Almost every British family used to sit down to a family ‘roast’ every Sunday lunchtime. For most that meant one of three combinations: roast chicken with stuffing and possibly cranberry sauce, roast beef with Yorkshire puddings (a sort of big, airy, crispy risen ball of pancake batter – it might sound weird but trust me, it’s delicious), pork and apple sauce or lamb and mint sauce. Dessert might be a traditional British ‘pudding’ (different to the Yorkshire pudding!) such as apple pie or rhubarb crumble and custard. Afterwards, we would usually all collapse in front of a TV film, just about ready to burst.
These days, few families seem to cook these traditional meals. They still eat them sometimes, but it’s much more common to go to a local pub that has a Sunday ‘carvery’; in other words, a sort of buffet full of roasted meats, different kinds of potatoes, veggies, gravy and sauces. It’s cheap, relatively, and you can pile your plate up with as much food as you like, which many people make jolly sure they take advantage of! We occasionally used to go to a carvery when I was a child and took delight as a family in pointing out and, OK, I admit, sniggering a little at those people walking by with the highest mountains of food on their plate, more than likely with a Yorkshire pudding teetering dangerously on the top. It was a sort of morbid fascination, I suppose!
I’ve had this same fascination at times with those competitive eating shows like Man vs. Food. How could someone eat 15 hot dogs in 45 minutes, a 12-egg omelette, a 15-scoop ice cream sundae or a 12-patty burger? Well, I have no idea, but it makes for compelling viewing, that’s for sure.
OK, well I think the time has come for me to admit that what really got me thinking this way today was the ‘rather large’ size of the dinner I cooked today for myself and Mr. Scrummy, which you may or may not be able to see from my photos. Don’t panic – it’s not that this feta & sundried tomato stuffed chicken makes for a particularly large meal ordinarily, it’s just that the chicken breasts I used happened to be huuuuge, and I also may have piled on just a little too much mashed potato. Just may have, you understand.
Now the great thing (or one of the great things, anyhow) about these stuffed chicken breasts is that you can serve them in several ways. The way I served them, with mashed potatoes, baby broccoli and the lovely lemony buttery gravy drizzled all over the top, would make a wonderful easy-peasy ‘cheat’s’ Sunday lunch, I reckon. But they could be served equally as successfully with some roast potatoes and your choice of veggies or simply with some fresh crusty bread and green salad for a simple mid-week treat of a meal.
I chose to stuff my chicken with feta, oregano, sundried tomatoes, spinach and toasted pine nuts, but you could sub in spring onions, a different herb, ordinary tomatoes, olives and a different type of cheese, even, like gruyere or goat’s cheese.
The key to success, in my opinion, is just making sure that you cut a deep pocket in the side of your chicken breast so that you can cram as much stuffing inside as possible. Don’t be worried about it spilling out in the pan – you cook the chicken for about 5 minutes on each side without moving it, which not only nicely browns the chicken but also makes sure that the filling is somewhat ‘sealed’ inside.
The other big ‘selling point’ of this recipe is the tasty gravy which you make by simply whisking a little stock, butter and lemon into the pan juices and sticky bits in the pan. Mmmm ….
So before I go, I’m curious about a couple of things. What did you use to eat on Sundays when you were child? And … do you have anything similar to carveries in your country, and do you stare in fascination if you see someone with their plate piled high? (or maybe you’re the one with the mountain on your plate!)
Feta & sundried tomato stuffed chicken with lemon butter gravy
Ingredients (UK/Australia? Click below for grams/ml)
- 1 tablespoon pine nuts
- 1.5 ounces feta cheese crumbled
- a few chopped sundried tomatoes
- a handful or two of fresh spinach
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (medium-sized)
- salt and black pepper
- olive oil
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 a lemon worth of juice
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- a handful of basil leaves to serve (optional)
Instructions
- Toast the pine nuts in a dry pan for a few minutes until lightly browned, then tip into a small bowl.
- Add the feta, tomatoes, spinach & oregano to the bowl and mix well.
- Slice a deep pocket into the slightly thicker edge of each chicken breast (be careful not to cut all the way through). Then stuff each with as much of the feta mixture as you can (push it right in so you can fit more in). Sprinkle each side of the chicken generously with salt and black pepper.
- Heat up a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a pan, then when it’s hot put the chicken in. Let it cook without moving it for about 5 minutes, then turn it over and cook for about another 5 minutes on the other side. Put a lid on the pan and cook for a few minutes longer until the chicken is cooked through (try not to overcook).
- Transfer the chicken to a dish and keep warm, leaving any juices in the pan. Then add the chicken stock to the pan, scraping any sticky bits from the pan into it. Then squeeze in the lemon juice and add the butter, swirling it around until you have a silky gravy-like sauce. Continue to cook the sauce for a couple of minutes until it has thickened slightly.
- To serve, cut each piece of chicken in half at an angle, or if you prefer slice it into three or four even slices. Serve with the sauce poured over the top and, if you like, a few leaves of basil scattered over.
Notes
Nutrition
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Judit + Corina @ Glamorous Bite says
Helen, your stuffed chicken is just the perfect FEAST for a Sunday Family dinner! Love the pesto + sundried tomato stuffing. You are right, people seem to cook less, even for a Special occasions. It is sad because we have so many delicious memories which we could not live without. Gorgeous photos 🙂
Cheers,
J+C
Helen says
Yes, we’ve got too used to going out to eat, haven’t we? So glad you like this and thanks so much for the compliment on the photos. I take that as a huge compliment coming from you! 🙂
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
wow this stuffed chicken looks amazing helen! definitely drooling over these images.. pinned!
Helen says
Thanks so much, Thalia. Glad to have made you drool!
Bri | Bites of Bri says
I love stuffed chicken and all the ingredients in this are my faves! Pinning!
Helen says
Thank you so much, Bri! And thanks for pinning, too!
Chrissy says
I JUST went to a talk about the decline of the family dinner. I hope (and like to think) that it’s on the way back…and this would definitely be a good one to have on the menu!
Helen says
Sounds interesting, Chrissy! Glad to be so topical! 🙂
Lea Ann (Cooking On The Ranch) says
The stuffed chicken alone sounds delicious, but I really must try the lemon butter gravy. omg and yes, then a good long walk is in order. 🙂
Helen says
Haha … yes, definitely don’t skip the long walk! Thanks so much for passing by, lea Ann!
Isadora says
I have the same obsession with shows like Man vs. Food. Part of me is fascinated while the other part of me wants to throw up! How could someone possibly fit that much food in their stomach?! And don’t even get me started on the spicy food challenges! I’ve only made stuffed chicken breasts once before, but they were so good and oozing with cheese! I love all the flavors you chose for this chicken! It sounds amazing, Helen!
Helen says
I don’t know how that guy on Man vs. Food isn’t absolutely huuuge! I guess the rest of the time when he isn’t on the show he eats salads … haha!
I’ve had a few types of these stuffed chicken breasts and have always enjoyed them … looking forward to dreaming up some other combos. So glad you like them, Issy!
Meggan | Culinary Hill says
Helen, this looks soooo divine! It reminds me of one of my favorite entrees at a popular Italian restaurant chain in the US, but your version looks so much better! I have loads of sundried tomatoes on hand too and I’m always looking for things to do with them. Pinned and I’ll be sharing it!
Helen says
Thanks so much, Meggan! It’s an old ‘trick’, I guess, stuffing chicken breasts, but always seems to turn out well. Hope I’ve given you some inspiration!
Sherri @ The Well Floured Kitchen says
I am definitely the one with the mounded plate – I can eat an insane amount of mashed potatoes in one sitting 🙂 I grew up eating pasta on Sundays – Italian family! This looks so amazing, pinned!
Helen says
Well, mashed potatoes can be pretty irresistible, especially with gravy! I think I’ve got to do some research about these special Sunday Italian pasta dishes I keep hearing about in the comments on this post. Sounds amazing!
Thanks so much for passing by and for pinning. 🙂
Laura @ Raise Your Garden says
As always Helen, your recipe is to die for. That stuffed chicken looks so over the top good. Wish I was eating it right now instead of leftovers! Anything with sundried tomatoes wins my heart every time- you posted this recipe on my 9th anniversary, so wish I was eating it instead of the subpar quickie meal we got! Although might have to get hubby to stuff the chicken for me, I’m such a wuss with doing that part. Butter lemon gravy?!? oh my! I want to drink that down.
Helen says
It sounds as if sundried tomatoes win nearly everyone’s heart – good news! Happy anniversary, Laura! I think you should make sure you go out for a nice meal to celebrate to make up for your subpar leftovers meal! Well, it is the weekend, as well…
So glad you like this meal – I’m with you on the raw chicken thing, actually! I hate handling it so much! 😉
[email protected] says
This looks like such a hearty delicious meal!! Love the addition of feta in stuffing!
Helen says
Hearty it is!! Thanks so much, Ami! 🙂
Allison says
Helen, every time I come to your blog, I learn something about the world. I’m not even joking! You’re like the Rick Steves of food blogging (or the cooler equivalent of Rick Steves -not sure who that is!). I hear about the Sunday lunches on British cooking shows and television programmes. I love the tradition! Sounds like a gut-bursting good time. On Sundays, we didn’t do lunch, but dinner. It was always a kind of dry roast (my mom wasn’t the greatest cook), veggies, and potatoes. It was okay, but honestly, for the amount of work it involved, I never enjoyed it that much. I much prefer bold, international flavours now 🙂 Also, I bought feta yesterday for the first time in about a year(!) and now I want to put feta on all my food! Salty goodness. Love the spinach addition, too.
Helen says
Allison, you sure know how to make a girl blush! I have heard of Rick Steves and am super honoured to be compared to him … hahaha!
Such a shame about your bad experience with Sunday lunches. I agree though that they are so so easy to get wrong. It’s definitely something I’d like to get some practice at, because when they’re good they’re REALLY good, and when they’re bad, well … you know all about that!
Have fun with your feta, Allison! It really does add a super punch of flavour, doesn’t it?
Bintu @ Recipes From A Pantry says
Sunday lunches were sooooo different in Sierra Leone. You have got me thinking about maybe posting something along those lines. I tend to find chicken very dry but I think the addition of feta and sundried tomatoes would be really great.
Helen says
Well, don’t forget that you’ve got the sauce here, too … that makes a big difference. If you’re careful not to overcook it, it’s nice and juicy, too!
Bintu, I’d really love to read a post from you about this … yes, please!
whatjessicabakednext says
This looks amazing, Helen! Love feta and sun-dried tomatoes- so delicious! Definitely going to be trying this for dinner!
Helen says
Oh, please do, Jessica! It’s super easy and tasty, especially with the light gravy. So glad you like it!
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella says
We had a Sunday roast for the first time in ages last weekend. But I didn’t grow up having one so it’s not really a family tradition. It was more for convenience! 😛 This looks fantastic and I love the combo of flavours-we always have sun dried tomatoes 😀
Helen says
For me, sundried tomatoes just give things a lovely ‘flavour hit’.
It surprises me that you don’t have roasts very often, because you’ve posted a couple of ‘roasty’ type posts that I always think are really impressive. I’m a little bit ‘afraid’ of roasting meat, which is why something simpler like this is more up my street. 😉