Delia Smith Stuffed Chicken Breast Recipe

Rolled round a dark paste of porcini and crisp pancetta, Delia Smith’s stuffed chicken breast is baked in foil parcels for just 20 minutes. First each breast is opened out like a book, then spread, rolled up like a Swiss roll and chilled to firm up. A Marsala sauce made in the stuffing pan goes over the slices, enough for 4.

Her Winter Collection (1995) presents it as an easy answer to a pack of four boneless chicken breasts. The wild porcini and the Marsala are what make it special, and the dried porcini do double duty, since their soaking water goes into the sauce.

Most of the work happens well before dinner. The stuffing has to cool completely and the parcels need at least an hour in the fridge, which to my mind makes it a calm dish for a dinner party, with only the oven and the sauce left for the last half hour.

Slicing is part of the show. She cuts each breast into 4 pieces at an angle, so every slice shows the swirl of stuffing, rather like her stuffed pork fillet with its own mushroom filling.

Delia Smith’s Chicken Breasts with Wild Mushroom and Bacon Stuffing and Marsala Sauce

Recipe by Anne Morgan

0.0 from 0 votes

Course: Main CourseCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Medium

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

1

hour 

30

minutes

Cooking time

1

hour 

Calories

360

kcal

Juicy chicken spiralled with an earthy, savoury mushroom stuffing, in a glossy, gently sweet Marsala sauce.

Ingredients

• For the chicken:

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, about 150g (5oz) each

• 10g (½oz) pack dried porcini mushrooms

• 175g (6oz) open cap mushrooms, finely chopped

• 70g (3oz) pack pancetta (or streaky bacon)

• 25g (1oz) butter, plus a little for the foil

• 1 medium onion, finely chopped

• 1 fat garlic clove, crushed

• 1 heaped teaspoon chopped fresh sage leaves

• a grating of nutmeg

• salt and freshly milled black pepper

• For the sauce:

• 150ml (5fl oz) dry Marsala

• 1 teaspoon oil

• the reserved pancetta

• 1 shallot, chopped

• 3 small mushrooms, finely sliced

• 1 teaspoon chopped sage leaves

• ¾ level dessertspoon plain flour

• the porcini soaking liquid

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Directions

• Soak: Cover the porcini with 150ml of boiling water in a jug and leave for 20 minutes. Strain them over a bowl and squeeze out every drop, keeping the liquid for the sauce.
• Pancetta: Chop the pancetta. Melt the butter in a solid frying pan and fry half the pancetta until crisp and golden, then lift it out. Keep the other half for the sauce.
• Stuffing: Soften the onion gently in the same pan for about 5 minutes. Chop the porcini finely and add them with the garlic, sage, open cap mushrooms, a grating of nutmeg and the crisp pancetta. Once the mushrooms release their juices, turn the heat right down and cook uncovered until the liquid has gone and you have a thick paste, about 30 minutes in all. Season well and leave to go completely cold.
• Roll: Pull the silvery sinew off the back of each breast. Fold out the small fillet, cutting a little deeper if needed so the breast opens like a book. Season, spread with a quarter of the stuffing, fold the flap back and roll it up lengthways.
• Wrap and chill: Lay each roll on a lightly buttered square of foil about 25cm across, wrap it and twist the ends to seal. Chill for at least an hour.
• Bake: Heat the oven to 230°C, fan 210°C, gas mark 8. Bake the parcels on a baking sheet for 20 minutes, then rest them, still wrapped, for 10 minutes.
• Sauce: While they bake, add the oil to the stuffing pan and gently fry the reserved pancetta with the shallot for about 5 minutes. Add the sliced mushrooms and sage for a minute, stir in the flour, then gradually add the porcini liquid and the Marsala. Season and stir until it bubbles and thickens, then simmer very gently for about 20 minutes, loosening it with a spoonful more Marsala if it’s too thick.
• Serve: Unwrap each parcel, cut it at an angle into 4 slices and spoon the sauce over.

Notes

• Dried porcini come in small packs in most supermarkets, usually near the dried herbs or the risotto rice.
• Make sure the stuffing is fully cold before it goes into raw chicken, which is the safe way to handle it.

FAQs

Can I use streaky bacon instead of pancetta?

Yes, her Winter Collection lists streaky bacon as the alternative, and the version in The Delia Collection: Chicken (2003) puts streaky bacon first. Chop it finely so it crisps in the butter like pancetta.

What can I use instead of Marsala?

A dry Madeira or a medium sherry works, which is my own swap. Both have the same nutty, slightly sweet depth, though Marsala gives the sauce its particular richness.

Can I make the parcels in the morning?

Yes. Her method already chills them for a good 60 minutes, and I’d happily make and wrap them in the morning, then keep them chilled until it’s time to bake, which is my own timing.

Also my own tip, take them out of the fridge 20 minutes before they go in, so the centre cooks through in the 20 minutes.

How do I know the chicken is cooked?

After 20 minutes at that high heat and 10 minutes resting in the foil, it should be done. I’d check one slice in the middle, where the juices should run clear, or use a probe for 75°C, my own check.

What goes with it?

Her page doesn’t say, so this is my own pairing. Creamy mashed potato soaks up the Marsala sauce, with some buttered green beans or Savoy cabbage on the side.