Cooking

There is a great Cook’s Illustrated recipe for grilled, stuffed chicken breasts that I’ve used exactly and with some personal modifications to make a really yummy meal. Unfortunately, in spite of their detailed instructions, my presentation is always lacking. If you’re someone who isn’t photographing your meals for a blog, this might work better overall.

Ingredients, Ham & Gruyere

• 4 bone-in chicken breast halves with the skin on
• Salt
• 1 quart cold water
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 1 medium shallot, minced
• 1 tsp minced fresh thyme
• 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 oz Gruyere cheese, rind removed, cut into four sticks measuring 3 inches by 1/2 inch
• 4 thin slices deli ham

Ingredients, Pesto & Mozzarella

• 4 bone-in chicken breast halves with the skin on
• Salt
• 1 quart cold water
• 4 Tbsp pesto — store-bought is fine
• 4 sticks of mozzarella cheese measuring 3 inches by 1/2 inch

Instructions

On the thick side of breast, closest to breastbone, cut a horizontal pocket, stopping ½ inch from edge so the halves remain attached. Dissolve 3 Tbsp salt in 1 quart cold water in a large container to create a brine; this will keep the chicken moist during cooking. Add breasts, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 30 minutes.

Turn all burners to high, close lid, and heat until hot, about 15 minutes. Scrape grate clean with grill brush and grease to prevent sticking. I get the best results with the middle burner off and the outside burners on medium-high, but your grill may vary

Combine butter, Dijon mustard, shallot and thyme in small bowl. Roll each piece of cheese in 1 slice deli ham.

Remove breasts from brine, dry thoroughly with paper towels and season inside and out with pepper. Spread equal amount of butter mixture or pesto inside each breast. Place 1 deli ham-wrapped piece of Gruyere or solo piece of mozzarella inside each breast and fold breast over to enclose. Evenly space 3 pieces kitchen twine (each about 12 inches long) beneath each breast and tie, trimming any excess.

Place chicken breasts, skin side down, over hot part of grill and cook until well browned, 3 to 5 minutes.

NOTE: When cooking, be advised not to walk away from the grill. I returned to find that one of the two ham and gruyere breasts was on fire — literally a flaming ball of chicken breast — and assumed that it was a lost cause. Removing the skin and carefully trimming the breast of any blackened spots left a meal that was perfectly edible.

Flip chicken and cook, covered, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of stuffing registers 160 degrees, approximately 30 to 40 minutes altogether.

Transfer chicken to carving board and let rest, tented with foil, 10 minutes. Remove twine, then carve breast meat from bone.

Results

Flavor-wise, both versions were a big hit with the family. Appearance-wise… well, let’s just say that we won’t be serving this to guests any time soon.

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