Baked Stuffed Chicken Breasts Roma
One of my most requested chicken breast recipes is this my mozzarella filled, Baked Stuffed Chicken Breasts Roma. This easy dish makes it into our weeknight dinner rotation at least a few times each month because it’s so simple to assemble and the flavors are on point. It’s a fairly healthy, low carb baked chicken recipe with only 15 minutes of prep. You can even get the kids to help make the ham and cheese filling.
Baked stuffed chicken breasts might sound like something you’d make for a fancy dinner party, but this recipe is so quick and easy, you can make it on a busy weeknight.
Plus, the flavorful filling of ooey gooey mozzarella, fresh basil, ripe tomatoes and buttery, salty prosciutto (Italian ham) is lip-smacking good.
Use my secret ingredient (mozzarella cheese sticks) and this easy hack to assemble this chicken breast recipe and have it in the oven within 15 minutes. Pinky promise.
Get my latest recipes, helpful kitchen tips and more good things each week in your inbox.
Table of Contents
Ingredients for baked stuffed chicken breasts
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
- Thinly Sliced Prosciutto
- Fresh Basil Leaves
- Ripe Tomatoes
- Part Skim Mozzarella Sticks
- Seasoned Breadcrumbs* (recipe given)
Many stuffed chicken breast recipes call for cutting the breast in half for filling, but I prefer the “pocket method”. Slicing a shallow pocket across the center of the chicken. The pocket encloses the stuffed chicken breasts on 3 sides, which will keep the mozzarella and parma ham filling mostly intact.
How to slice a pocket into boneless skinless chicken breasts:
- Lay the chicken breast flat on a cutting board.
- Rest one hand flat on top of the chicken breast.
- Use a sharp paring knife to make a slit (slightly angled upwards) into the flesh, without poking any holes through the other side.
- Saw the knife back and forth to enlarge the pocket. (See video).
Challenges to stuffing baked chicken
One of the challenges of stuffing chicken with mozzarella or other cheeses, is that the cheese melts and leaks — leaving most of that gooey filling spread across the baking sheet.
Part of that problem is solved with the “pocket method”, because there’s only one opening in the chicken (and it’s why you cut the pocket on a slightly upward angle, so that when the cheese melts, it can settle back into the cavity.
To further reinforce the filling, I like to wrap the mozzarella sticks and other ingredients with prosciutto or parma ham. It’s not 100% impenetrable, because prosciutto is a very thin and delicate wrapper, but it does help to stem the tidal wave of melted cheese and the flavors meld perfectly with the other ingredients.
How to assemble mozzarella stuffing for baked chicken breasts:
- Lay one or two slices of prosciutto on a work surface.
- Top the ham with fresh basil and thin slices of tomato.
- Place the cheese stick at one end and carefully start to roll the ham and other ingredients over the cheese stick.
- Continue rolling until the mozzarella is completely covered (it will kind of resemble a spring roll.)
- Stuff the pocket of chicken with the Roma mozzarella filling.
Note: you can also trim the cheese sticks to fit the pocket and accommodate smaller chicken breasts, which is what I did for the photo above.
Breading stuffed chicken breasts
I like to toss together my own seasoning blend for coating the chicken. It’s a flavorful combo that creates a nice golden crust on the stuffed chicken.
- Plain Dry Breadcrumbs
- Grated Parmesan Cheese
- Dried Oregano
- Crushed Red Pepper Flakes.
This light breading adds so much flavor to the stuffed chicken, I really recommend it, however, you can also substitute dry seasoned Italian breadcrumbs in a pinch.
How to coat stuffed chicken for baking:
- Brush the stuffed chicken breasts with olive oil.
- Lightly season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Carefully press the stuffed chicken into the seasoned breadcrumbs, patting the crumbs and seasoning all over the chicken.
- Transfer the chicken to a rimmed baking sheet and give them a light spray of canola oil or vegetable spray (this will help the breadcrumbs turn golden in the oven).
Bake the stuffed chicken in your preheated oven for 20-25 minutes (depends on the size of your chicken breasts, if they’re larger, you may want to cook the full 25 minutes, but if they’re more petite, scale it back a few minutes.
For a golden crust, in the last few minutes of cooking, turn the broiler element on and brown the chicken for 2-3 minutes to give it more color. Just be sure to stay close by, so it doesn’t burn.
Like I said before the parma ham and chicken pocket — help to hold back the flood of melty mozzarella cheese from the baked chicken — but it’s not 100%. That said, it does a pretty good job.
Any melted cheese that does happen to escape the confines of the chicken pocket won’t go to waste. In fact, that’s the part my family fights over.
PRO-TIP: Let the chicken rest on the baking sheet for a minute or two before serving to allow it to set.
Baked Stuffed Chicken FAQ’s
Yes. You can use other snack sized varieties of cheese (like cheddar) or just cut planks of other types of cheese from a larger block, wrap and stuff.
Once you’ve tried Prosciutto Di Parma, you’ll understand that there’s no real substitute for that flavor, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use a thin sliced country ham, Virginia ham or good quality, thin sliced deli ham. Bonus: these varieties won’t be as paper thin or delicate as prosciutto and will likely hold the melty cheese in place.
Take the chicken out of the refrigerator for 15 -20 minutes before reheating to take some of the chill off of it. Preheat the oven to 325° and cover the chicken lightly with tin foil. Reheat the chicken for 10-12 minutes, covered, then remove the foil and continue to heat for another 3-5 minutes.
I wouldn’t because it’s got fresh basil and tomatoes in the filling, which will degrade when freezing and defrosting.
Yes. Wrap the Roma stuffed chicken breasts in plastic wrap, then wrap again in freezer paper. Chicken will keep for up to 3 months in the freezer.
It’s not unhealthy. Because it calls for low-fat, part skim mozzarella cheese sticks and only 1-2 slices of ham, this recipe has plenty of protein and relatively low fat and saturated fat. It’s not gluten free (breadcrumbs, remember), but it’s fairly low in carbs, overall.
More stuffed chicken breast recipes you might like:
More baked chicken recipes:
- Italian Cacciatore Baked Chicken Thighs
- Tangy Sriracha Honey Wings
- Juicy Asian Chicken Thighs
- Rosemary Garlic Chicken Wings
Tried this recipe? Leave a rating and review.
Your comments and shares are invaluable to me and the thousands of readers who use this site daily. If you've made the recipe, leave a star rating and review. We want to hear how you liked it.
We'd love it if you shared the recipe with your friends on social media!
Baked Stuffed Chicken Breasts Roma
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 4-8 slices prosciutto sliced VERY thin
- 4 low moisture, part skim mozzarella cheese sticks
- 12-16 fresh basil leaves plus extra for garnish
- thin slices of tomato can use any type of fresh tomatoes
FOR BREADING:
- ½ cup plain dry breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- scant ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- spritz of vegetable spray
DIRECTIONS:
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
ASSEMBLE THE BREADCRUMB COATING:
- In a small bowl, combine the bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, dried oregano and red pepper flakes. Stir until well blended and set saide.
ASSEMBLE THE STUFFED CHICKEN BREASTS
- Place a chicken breast flat on a work surface and use a sharp knife to cut a pocket into the side of the breast without cutting through to the other side. (Pocket should be long and deep enough to stuff with the cheese stick filling). If you have a smaller chicken breast, you can cut the cheese stick to fit.
- Lay one or two slices of the prosciutto onto a work surface. Top with several fresh basil leaves and slices of tomato. Place a cheese stick on top and roll it up so that the prosciutto wraps all of fillings. (Note: prosciutto is delicate, so work carefully).
- Stuff the pocket of the chicken with the mozzarella wrap. Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil and lightly season with kosher salt and black pepper.
- Transfer the stuffed chicken breasts to the breadcrumb mixture and gently pat the crumbs over the top, bottom and sides of the chicken. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet.
- Lightly spritz the chicken with vegetable or canola spray and transfer to the oven for 22-25 minutes (Depending on how large the chicken breasts are).
- Turn on the broiler and cook under the heating element for 2-3 minutes to lightly brown. Serve.
NUTRITION:
Pin “Baked Stuffed Chicken Roma” for later!
Such a great recipe! I made it as written with the exception of adding minced garlic to stuffing mix. My husband and two adult children took one bite and said please make this part of the regular meal rotation. No left-overs! Thank you so much for sharing 🙂
Looks wonderful