Prepare the chicken: Cut chicken breasts in half horizontally to create two evenly sized cutlets. Place cutlets between two pieces of parchment paper and pound to an even thickness using the flat end of a meat mallet or rolling pin. Transfer cutlets to cutting board, sprinkle with salt and pepper, then swipe the top with ½ a teaspoon of Dijon mustard. Sprinkle some cheese onto the centre of each breast, followed by a slice or two of ham. Add a bit more cheese. Roll the long edge to create a roulade, remembering to fold in the short edges of the chicken breast to keep the filling secure. Transfer the rolled breasts to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place uncovered in freezer to chill for 15 minutes.
Bread chicken: Place the flour and breadcrumbs into separate shallow plates or pie plates. Whisk water and eggs together in a medium bowl. Remove the chicken from the freezer. Roll a cutlet in the flour to dredge it, then dip into the egg mixture. Then roll in the breadcrumbs, pressing down gently to coat evenly. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat until all of the rolls are breaded.
Preheat oven to 425°F.
Bake: Transfer baking sheet to oven, baking the chicken until golden and bubbling on the tray, about 20-25 minutes or until an internal temperature of 160°F is reached.
Remove from oven and leave to rest for 5 minutes. Serve topped with Mornay sauce and paired with a fresh salad and a favourite vegetable side dish.
Chicken Cordon Bleu
Ingredients
For the chicken:
2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
sprinkle kosher salt
sprinkle black pepper
1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
¼ pound ham, thinly sliced
For the breading:
½ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 eggs room temperature
¼ cup water
2 cups breadcrumbs
To serve:
Fresh chopped parsley
Mornay sauce
Directions
Prepare the chicken: Cut chicken breasts in half horizontally to create two evenly sized cutlets. Place cutlets between two pieces of parchment paper and pound to an even thickness using the flat end of a meat mallet or rolling pin. Transfer cutlets to cutting board, sprinkle with salt and pepper, then swipe the top with ½ a teaspoon of Dijon mustard. Sprinkle some cheese onto the centre of each breast, followed by a slice or two of ham. Add a bit more cheese. Roll the long edge to create a roulade, remembering to fold in the short edges of the chicken breast to keep the filling secure. Transfer the rolled breasts to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place uncovered in freezer to chill for 15 minutes.
Bread chicken: Place the flour and breadcrumbs into separate shallow plates or pie plates. Whisk water and eggs together in a medium bowl. Remove the chicken from the freezer. Roll a cutlet in the flour to dredge it, then dip into the egg mixture. Then roll in the breadcrumbs, pressing down gently to coat evenly. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat until all of the rolls are breaded.
Preheat oven to 425°F.
Bake: Transfer baking sheet to oven, baking the chicken until golden and bubbling on the tray, about 20-25 minutes or until an internal temperature of 160°F is reached.
Remove from oven and leave to rest for 5 minutes. Serve topped with Mornay sauce and paired with a fresh salad and a favourite vegetable side dish.
Chicken Cordon Bleu
5 / 5. 2
Tender chicken breasts rolled with grated Gruyère and sliced ham, then breaded and oven baked…
This is the essential main course recipe from France, CHICKEN CORDON BLEU.
We wanted to add this classic French recipe for CHICKEN CORDON BLEU to our collection of offerings for a couple of reasons. First, it’s all about the memorable flavours of tender, juicy chicken paired with smoky oven-baked ham and nutty Gruyère cheese. Second, this version gets top marks for ease of preparation: just fill the chicken breast, bread it and bake it. Lastly, it’s a perfect weeknight or weekend meal idea that’s easy to serve, paired with a simple fresh salad, a side of veggies and a dollop of Dijon or a creamy MORNAY SAUCE.
Now, if tender, juicy chicken is your goal, this recipe will surely deliver. But why stop there? After enjoying CHICKEN CORDON BLEU, check out our other tasty chicken recipes, like our EASY ROAST CHICKEN, our hugely popular CHICKEN PARMIGIANA, these tasty GRILLED CHICKEN WINGS, or our amazing CRISPY KOREAN CHICKEN. We know you’ll love them all!
Now, back to the main feature. Here are a few tips on making CHICKEN CORDON BLEU:
INGREDIENTS
This easy-to-find list of ingredients adds to the appeal of making this recipe for a quick weeknight meal. Beyond a visit to the butcher or meat department in the grocery store for the chicken, you only need a few other essentials. Pop over to the deli section to pick up ham and cheese, swing over to dairy for the eggs, then head to the pantry aisles for flour and either plain breadcrumbs or panko. Lastly, grab some Dijon mustard, which we’re hoping everyone has at-the-ready. Dijon mustard always pairs well with chicken.
CHICKEN
Traditionally, a cordon bleu or schnitzel cordon bleu is a dish of meat wrapped around a cheese filling. We followed this classic approach because, hey, why mess with perfection? Although you can make this dish using chicken thighs, we found skinless, boneless chicken breasts work best. When purchasing look for organic, free-range chicken; we find it simply tastes better.
Preparing the chicken for the recipe does require some work, dividing each breast lengthwise to create two cutlets. The cutlets are then placed between sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap before being pounded with a meat mallet. This step tenderizes the meat and creates an even layer to ensure the chicken cooks evenly.
HAM, CHEESE AND MUSTARD
In a perfect world (or at least in ours, anyway) you’ll make this delicious chicken recipe using leftover OVEN-BAKED HAM. That said, if you’re in a jam for homemade ham, make the recipe using thinly sliced honey ham, rosemary ham or grandmother ham. They’re all available from the deli section at your local grocer.
You’ll also need a big flavoured cheese, the kind that melts when baked. We suggest you follow our lead and make this cordon bleu using Gruyére. Failing that, try blue cheese, muenster, provolone or Swiss cheese. Last thing to note in the above photo is the Dijon mustard. Although not traditional, adding a swipe of Dijon onto each cutlet with the ham and cheese takes the flavour of CHICKEN CORDON BLEU from simple to amazing. Give it a try!
ASSEMBLE
If you’ve never made chicken this way before, cut yourself a little slack when making the first roll-up, also called a roulade. There’s nothing difficult about the process, but you’ll be learning a new skill: how to roll sticky boneless skinless chicken breasts with a slice of ham and cheese into a tight log. Watch this VIDEO of us making the recipe from scratch. Just take your time, remembering to tuck in the ends so that all of the filling stays within. Good news! Practice makes perfect and the last roll with be pic-worthy, guaranteed!
Once the cutlets have been rolled, don’t forget the important step of placing them into the freezer for 15 minutes to firm up. Chilling the roulades helps in breading the cutlets, otherwise known as crumbing. While the chicken rolls are chilling, grab a few pie plates, a baking dish or some shallow plates and set up a breading station.
BREADING CORDON BLEU
You’ll need the usual suspects to bread the chicken for this recipe: unbleached all-purpose flour, eggs and water, plus the breadcrumbs. The flour goes in one plate or dish, breadcrumbs in another, and the eggs and water can be whisked together in a medium bowl.
The first step in the process is to dredge each cutlet in flour. Then, dip the rolls in the egg and water mixture, then finally roll in the breadcrumbs, pressing down gently to coat evenly. If you’d like, you can also use panko breadcrumbs seasoned with garlic powder. Once breaded, place the CHICKEN CORDON BLEU on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Now it’s time to oven-bake them.
PAN FRY, DEEP FRY OR OVEN-BAKE
Here’s the moment in this recipe where we invite you to make it your own. Yes, you can pan-fry the chicken by warming a cup of vegetable oil in a 12-inch skillet over moderate-high heat, about 350°F. Once the oil is hot, add the chicken in batches, cooking on each side for about 7 minutes until it reaches an internal temperature of 160°F. Deep frying the chicken is another option where 3 cups of oil are heated in a deeper saucepan. The chicken cooks submerged, bobbing in the hot oil. This method takes about 14 minutes, with an internal temperature of 160°F. We suggest the final method, oven baking, which is what we’ve done for this story. Simply transfer the CHICKEN CORDON BLEU to a preheated 425°F oven, baking for 20 minutes or until the outside is crisp and golden and the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 160°F.
MORNAY SAUCE
Yes, of course you can serve this chicken main course as is, but we think it tastes way better with a ladle of creamy MORNAY SAUCE overtop followed by a sprinkle of fresh parsley. Oh, and about that sauce, we still vote for the classic version made with Gruyère cheese, but we suggest a little something extra: a tablespoon Dijon mustard. Mixing this into the creamy sauce alongside the cheese adds a bit of tang, heightening the flavours of the chicken, smoked ham and cheese.
SERVE
As mentioned at the top of this post, you’ll need little more than a salad and maybe a favourite vegetable side dish to enjoy. We love CHICKEN CORDON BLEU served with a CAESAR SALAD, this HEALTHY EVERYDAY SALAD or our simple INSALATA MISTA. Vegetable side dish suggestions include our easy GREEN BEANS, these crisp BUTTERED VEGGIES, or you can try our OVEN-ROASED VEGETABLE MEDLEY made with our POTATO & VEGGIE SEASONING. This dish also loves a squeeze of lemon juice to finish.
THE SPICE IS RIGHT!
Speaking of our Potato & Veggie Seasoning, we carry a whole array of spice blends. And just in time for the holidays, our three SPICE BLEND GIFT SETS are now available in Canada on Amazon.ca!
VEGGIE LOVERS (2-pack) – A packet of our POTATO & VEGGIE SEASONING plus a package of our GARLICKY SUN-DRIED TOMATO DIP; just add mayo and sour cream and you’ve got a delicious party dip. Go HERE to order.
MEAT LOVERS (2-pack) – A packet of POULTRY & PORK RUB plus a package of our BUTCHER’S BLEND. Go HERE to order.
WEEKEND ESSENTIALS: The whole shebang, 1 packet of everything! A packet of POULTRY & PORK RUB, BUTCHER’S BLEND, POTATO & VEGGIE SEASONING and a GARLICKY SUN-DRIED TOMATO DIP. Go HERE to order.
This main course idea is so tasty, we suggest you PIN the recipe to a favourite chicken or main course board on PINTEREST or BOOKMARK this tab for easy access. SHARE it with friends so they can make them too. We’d also appreciate seeing pics of all the delicious dishes you’re making these days. Use #weekendatthecottage when you post those pics on Facebook and Instagram. Thanks!
Oven-baked CHICKEN CORDON BLEU. A delicious meal awaits!
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Ingredients
For the chicken:
2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
sprinkle kosher salt
sprinkle black pepper
1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
¼ pound ham, thinly sliced
For the breading:
½ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 eggs room temperature
¼ cup water
2 cups breadcrumbs
To serve:
Fresh chopped parsley
Mornay sauce
Directions
Prepare the chicken: Cut chicken breasts in half horizontally to create two evenly sized cutlets. Place cutlets between two pieces of parchment paper and pound to an even thickness using the flat end of a meat mallet or rolling pin. Transfer cutlets to cutting board, sprinkle with salt and pepper, then swipe the top with ½ a teaspoon of Dijon mustard. Sprinkle some cheese onto the centre of each breast, followed by a slice or two of ham. Add a bit more cheese. Roll the long edge to create a roulade, remembering to fold in the short edges of the chicken breast to keep the filling secure. Transfer the rolled breasts to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Place uncovered in freezer to chill for 15 minutes.
Bread chicken: Place the flour and breadcrumbs into separate shallow plates or pie plates. Whisk water and eggs together in a medium bowl. Remove the chicken from the freezer. Roll a cutlet in the flour to dredge it, then dip into the egg mixture. Then roll in the breadcrumbs, pressing down gently to coat evenly. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat until all of the rolls are breaded.
Preheat oven to 425°F.
Bake: Transfer baking sheet to oven, baking the chicken until golden and bubbling on the tray, about 20-25 minutes or until an internal temperature of 160°F is reached.
Remove from oven and leave to rest for 5 minutes. Serve topped with Mornay sauce and paired with a fresh salad and a favourite vegetable side dish.
Until Cottage Season
