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Oven-Baked Stuffed Chicken

17/11/2023

Oven-baked stuffed chicken is a classic, hearty and flavorful main dish. Here’s a recipe to prepare Italian-style oven-baked stuffed chicken:

Ingredients

  • 1 whole chicken of about 1.5-2 kg, gutted and ready to be stuffed
  • 200 g of ground meat (pork or a meat mix)
  • 100 g of stale bread
  • Milk, as needed (to soften the bread)
  • 1 egg
  • 50 g of grated Parmesan cheese
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • Chopped parsley, as needed
  • Salt and pepper, as needed
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Aromatic herbs: rosemary, bay leaf, sage (to taste)

Preparation

  1. Begin by preheating the oven to 190 °C.
  2. Soak the stale bread in milk until it becomes soft, then squeeze it well.
  3. In a bowl, mix the ground meat with the squeezed bread, egg, Parmesan, finely chopped garlic, parsley, salt and pepper. This will be the filling for the chicken.
  4. Stuff the inside of the chicken with the meat mixture, being careful not to overfill it to prevent the filling from coming out during cooking. If necessary, you can sew the opening or close it with toothpicks.
  5. Massage the external skin of the chicken with extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, and, if desired, with chopped aromatic herbs.
  6. Tie the legs of the chicken together and place it in a baking dish. If you like, you can add vegetables (such as potatoes, carrots, and onions) cut into pieces to the dish and a bit of water or white wine to keep the bottom moist.
  7. Bake the chicken and let it cook for about 1 hour and a half or until the skin is golden and the juices that come out of the meat are clear and not pink.
  8. During cooking, occasionally baste the chicken with its own cooking juices to keep it moist and flavorful.

Once cooked, let the chicken rest for a few minutes before cutting it so that the internal juices are evenly distributed.

Curiosity

The tradition of stuffed chicken runs deep in Italian Sunday dinners and festive occasions. Every family has their version, with small variations on the filling that can include, for example, sausage, chestnuts, dried fruits, or other ingredients to taste.