Ingredients
For the marinated chicken:
- 4 large chicken breasts about 9-10 oz each
- 1/4 cup Greek yogurt or plain yogurt
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- a pinch of kosher salt or flaky sea salt
- a pinch of ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp oil from the sundried tomatoes in oil or regular neutral oil like sunflower oil or light olive oil
For the chicken stuffing and cooking:
- 4 oz soft goat cheese not one with rind
- 1 cup grated/shredded mozzarella low-moisture
- 1/2 cup packed about 8 large sun-dried tomatoes
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 3 oz about 1 1/2 cup packed spinach
- 1 red onion thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp oil divided (1 tbsp for cooking the onion and 1 tbsp for cooking the chicken)
Instructions
Marinating the chicken
- Cut a pocket in the chicken breast from the thicker side.
- Season with thyme, garlic powder, salt, and ground black pepper (both on the outside of the chicken breast and the inside of the pocket).
- Mix the yogurt and 1 tbsp of oil in a large bowl and add the seasoned chicken breasts. Coat the chicken breasts (including on the inside of the pocket) in the yogurt mixture. Cover it and set it aside to marinate for 30 minutes. Note: You can also do this step ahead of time or the day before and let it marinate longer/overnight in the fridge.
Chicken Stuffing
- In a skillet over medium heat, add 1 tbsp of oil. When the oil is hot (after about 1 minute), add the thinly sliced red onion. Sauté, stirring often, for about 7-8 minutes until the onion has softened and just started to get some slightly charred bits.
- Add the spinach and sauté until wilted (less than 1 minute). Add the minced garlic, mix it in, and cook for 10 seconds. Take off the heat immediately after.
- Add the spinach-onion mixture to the soft goat cheese and 3/4 cup of mozzarella (leaving 1/4 cup mozzarella aside for topping the chicken before baking it).
Assemble, sear, and bake.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
- Once the chicken has marinated (for 30 minutes at room temperature or longer/overnight in the fridge), fill the pocket with the mixture (one fourth of the mixture per chicken breast).
- To a skillet over medium-high heat, add 1 tbsp of oil. Once the oil is hot (after about 1 minute), add the stuffed chicken and sear for about 2 minutes on each side (just enough to get some color on it).
- Transfer it to a baking dish*, top with the remaining mozzarella, and bake in the preheated oven (middle shelf) until the chicken reaches 165°F/74°C (about 25 minutes, more or less depending on the size of the chicken breasts you have and the oven). *Note: If your skillet is ovenproof and large enough to hold all four chicken breasts, you can just use that instead of transferring the chicken to a baking dish. It will cook slightly faster as well (about 5 minutes faster as the skillet will already be hot).
- Rest the chicken for at least 5 minutes before serving.