Easy Chicken Roulade

with John Mitzewich

Transcript: Easy Chicken Roulade

Hi, I'm Chef John Mitzewich for About.com. Today I'm going to show you the technique for chicken roulade, which is simply a stuffed, rolled chicken breast.

Prep the Chicken

We're going to use boneless skinless chicken breasts. This is an 8-oz breast. I'm going to remove that little fillet - the chicken finger. Now, here's a little trick. If you spray some water on the cutting board it helps the plastic stick and will make it easier to pound.

So put one piece of plastic down, then the chicken breast, and another piece of plastic on top. Then we're going to pound this - you can use a meat pounder or a heavy pan. Flatten it to about 1/4-inch thick. Go slowly and be careful not to tear the meat. Once it's pounded, remove the plastic; you want the irregular side towards you.

Roulade Stuffing Ingredients

For the stuffing, combine:

• 2 tbsp breadcrumbs
• 1 minced garlic clove
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp chopped Italian parsley

That's going to be part of our filling. Stir that up, and let's go back to the breast. Lightly season with salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste. Since I'm going to use a slice of proscuitto, which is salty, be careful not to over-salt. Then a spoon of the breadcrumb mixture, which is going soak up all the nice juices as it cooks. We're going to put in a few strips provolone cheese, about 1/2-oz.

Roll the Chicken Roulade

Then we're going to roll it up with the irregular end towards the good end. Use the plastic to help you roll. And that is a roulade - so easy. Make sure it's nice and tight, and then roll it on to the board.

Then we're going to tie it. Sorry chefs, no fancy knots. Just use a simple square knot every two inches is fine for this. No need for toothpicks or skewers, just tie it up like that. Okay, the hard part is done.

Cook the Chicken Roulade

Take an oven-proof skillet and with a little olive oil, brown the chicken on all sides over medium-high heat. That goes in a 350 degrees F oven for 20 minutes. We're going to go for 165-170 degrees F internal temp, which is safe and still juicy.

Take the chicken out of the pan and let it rest covered for 10 minutes. While that is resting, we're going to deglaze the pan which has all those great cooked-on chicken drippings and cheese. That's going to make a great sauce.

We're going to deglaze with some tomato paste (1 tbsp) and 1/2 cup white wine, and scrape off all the goodness off the bottom. Then 1/2 cup chicken stock. Just let that boil and reduce until it thickens. Taste and adjust the seasoning. That makes a really easy and nice pan sauce. I'm going to strain it, but you don't have to.

Serve the Chicken Roulade

The sauce is ready, the chicken is rested, bring it to the board and remove the strings. I like to cut these in half and then again to get 4 pieces from each one. I trim the bottom end a little so they sit straight.

You can use so many things in theses - different hams, cheeses, herbs, etc. It's fun to try and come up with your own personalized versions. For presentation, just put some sauce on the plate and the four pieces down, and a little fresh parsley.

It's a really, really attractive plate - it's one of those "gourmet," "fancy," recipes that's not hard to make and it really impresses people. I hope you give it a try. Enjoy!

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