Claire Thomson’s One Pan Chicken Braciole

Claire is a cookery writer I hugely admire for her simple but incredibly delicious recipes which you can see her making on her daily reels on Instagram where she posts as 5oclockapron. This recipe is from her latest - and immensely useful - book One Pan Chicken.

Claire writes: "Braciole is Italian-American in origin, and if you have watched and enjoyed the runaway success that was The Bear on TV (a programme about a young chef running a restaurant in Chicago), you might want to have a go at making it. It’s usually made with beef or veal, but I’m using chicken breast, which suits the dish very well."

Serves 4

4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, sliced in half horizontally

8 slices of prosciutto

200g (7oz) cherry tomatoes, halved

salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the filing

50g (1¾oz) fresh breadcrumbs

2 tbsp toasted pine nuts, plus more to scatter

2 tbsp raisins, soaked in warm water for 5 minutes then drained

50g (1¾oz) parmesan, finely grated

50g (1¾oz) pecorino, finely grated (or provolone – the traditional choice)

1 egg, beaten

¼ small bunch of flat-leaf parsley, leaves finely chopped

¼ small bunch of basil, leaves finely chopped

1 tbsp chopped rosemary or thyme leaves

zest of 1 unwaxed lemon, then that same lemon quartered, to serve

1 garlic clove, very finely chopped or crushed

You will also need cocktail sticks, small skewers or kitchen string

1. Using a rolling pin, gently flatten the chicken pieces between two sheets of baking paper until each is approximately 1.5–2cm (5/8–¾in) thick. Season well all over with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

2. Preheat the oven to 230°C/210°C fan/450°F/Gas 8.

3. Mix all the filling ingredients together and divide the mixture into 8 equal portions.

4. Lay out a slice of prosciutto, top with a piece of chicken, then spoon one portion of the filling on top of the chicken. Roll it up tight, securing it with 2 cocktail sticks or small skewers or string. Repeat with the rest of the chicken.

5. Arrange the tomatoes and chicken on a baking tray and roast for around 35–40 minutes, until the chicken is crisp and golden brown and is cooked through. Roughly 3 minutes before the end of the cooking time, scatter the extra pine nuts in the tray to toast.

6. Allow to rest for 5 minutes then serve whole or sliced, spooning some of the tomatoes and their juices on to each plate, with a lemon wedge on the side for squeezing over.

What to drink: Claire and I made a reel about what wine to drink with this dish. Given its origin we both felt Italian wine would be most appropriate but that you could either go for red or white. We tried a Manzani Bianco and a Montepulciano d’Abruzzo with it of which went well though we marginally preferred the red .

See also Which wine goes best with chicken - red or white?

Extracted from One Pan Chicken by Claire Thomson (Quadrille, £20) Photography: Sam Folan

 

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