Hello, my friends, and welcome. Let me introduce you to a weeknight dinner recipe that can double as a totally impressive entree to serve to friends and family at your next dinner party.
The best part is, this chicken is also pretty darn healthy.
I know that at this time of year, trying to be healthy can be a little difficult. The weather gets cooler, and all of a sudden we’re all scrambling for endless amounts of comfort food that’s typically about as far from healthy as you can get, even with leaner proteins (hello, thick and creamy mushroom sauce).
That’s why I like to have recipes like this one to make on a busy weeknight, a dish that is filling and healthy as well.
If you’ve never stuffed and baked your chicken breasts, I’m here to tell you that you’ve been missing out.
Normally, the breasts are kinda boring. I mean, there’s only so much you can do with them… right?
Wrong!
Stuffing poultry is such an easy thing to do, I honestly don’t know why I don’t do it more. And it’s such a simple way to add so much delicious flavor, creating a stellar dish that everyone is going to rave about.
To start, all you have to do is carefully butterfly the breasts.
What does butterflying a chicken breast entail?
All this means is that you are going to cut each breast in half almost all the way through.
The easiest way to do this is to place your hand flat on top of the breast. Use a knife to slice the meat horizontally into two equal halves, cutting almost all the way through, but not quite.
Make sure that you only leave a thin border to create the hinge, because you want to have enough space to really pack in the filling.
Open it like a book, and it’s ready to stuff.
See? It’s not that hard, I promise.
Next, all you have to do is mix together all of the ingredients for the delicious filling. The filling in this recipe is tangy and addictive. There’s feta, olives, fresh herbs, lemon, olive oil, and green onion, which provide fantastic depth and variety to pair with the more mild meat.
My mom actually used to make something similar, but she used heavy cream cheese and classic pizza fillings. This recipe lightens things up with Mediterranean flavors instead, including feta cheese.
This meal provides a new way to shake things up on a weeknight, because it only takes 10 minutes to prepare. Then you let the oven do the rest of the work to bake it all up.
The end result is gorgeous and it really stands out on the dinner table, so you can feel confident not only serving it in the middle of the week, but also when you are hosting friends or family for a dinner party.
If you’re wondering what to serve with this incredible entree, keep reading through to the end of the article for my suggestions. It also pairs wonderfully with either white or red wine.
I highly recommend chopping some extra oregano so you can throw some on as garnish once everything is finished cooking. You’ll get an extra hit of herbaceousness, as well as a touch of green to brighten up the dish.
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Greek Stuffed Chicken
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Greek stuffed chicken is filled with a mix of feta, olives, herbs, lemon, and green onion. Easy to make, it’s fancy enough to serve at a dinner party.
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied (about 4 pounds)
- 3 ounces crumbled feta cheese
- 1/4 cup packed chopped fresh oregano, plus more for garnish
- 4 ounces chopped Kalamata olives
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 green onions, green parts only, thinly sliced
- 3 teaspoons lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place chicken breasts on baking sheet and fold back the top portion of each.
- Stir together feta, oregano, olives, garlic, green onions, lemon juice, and olive oil in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Spoon onto chicken breasts, then fold top over. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Bake for 20 minutes, or until cooked through no longer pink in the middle. An internal thermometer should read 165˚F when done.
Notes
Recipe adapted from: Eclectic Recipes.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Poultry
Keywords: Greek, chicken, feta, olive, oregano
Cooking By the Numbers…
Step 1 – Prep and Measure Ingredients
Butterfly each of the breasts by slicing each in half horizontally, with a hinge on one side that keeps both halves intact. Set aside.
Chop enough oregano leaves until you have 1/4 cup packed.
Roughly chop four ounces of Kalamata olives. If yours aren’t pitted already, an olive pitter can make the job a breeze.
Peel and mince two cloves of garlic, or use a garlic press.
Thinly slice two green onions, green parts only. Reserve the white bulbs for use in another recipe.
Juice a lemon, discard any seeds, and measure out what you need.
Measure out all of the remaining ingredients as listed on the ingredients list.
Preheat your oven to 425˚F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step 2 – Make Filling
Add the crumbled feta, oregano, olives, garlic, green onion, lemon juice, and olive oil to a medium bowl. Stir until thoroughly combined.
Step 3 – Stuff Chicken
Place the breasts on the lined baking sheet and fold the top half of each open completely.
Spoon the filling onto the breasts. Fold the top of the chicken over to cover the filling.
Sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper. Freshly cracked is best!
Step 4 – Bake
Bake for 20 minutes. The chicken should be cooked through, and reach 165˚F on a meat thermometer when inserted into the center.
Garnish with a sprinkling of fresh chopped oregano and serve.
What Should I Serve Alongside This Entree?
There are lots of options to work with here. The most popular and one of my favorites is to serve it with rice and your choice of green vegetables, however you could always use potatoes instead of rice for the starch.
If you want to keep it really healthy, then you can slice up the chicken and serve it over a bed of mixed greens that have been lightly dressed in olive oil and lemon juice.
If you like this Greek-inspired dishes, try more flavors of the Mediterranean, like our Beef and Potato Moussaka and our Creamy Greek Pasta with Shrimp!
For more chicken recipes, check out these Foodal favorites next:
- Chicken and Mushroom Fricassee
- Sunflower Seed Spinach Pesto Grilled Chicken
- Weeknight Chicken Marsala
What will you pair with this flavorful entree? Tell us in the comments below. And come back to rate the recipe once you try it!
Photos by Meghan Yager, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published on March 4, 2012. Last updated on January 21, 2020.
Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.
About Meghan Yager
Meghan Yager is a food addict turned food and travel writer with a love for creating uncomplicated, gourmet recipes and devouring anything the world serves up. As the author of the food and travel blog Cake 'n Knife, Meghan focuses on unique foodie experiences from around the world to right at home in your own kitchen.
