Chicken Cordon Bleu
Chicken breast rolled around ham and swiss, breaded, fried, and baked to a golden finish, topped with bearnaise sauce for a restaurant-worthy dinner at home.
- Prep Time
- 40 min
- Cook Time
- 40 min
- Total Time
- 1 hr 20 min
- Servings
- 4 servings
My most popular freezer meal casserole was actually inspired by the real deal — Chicken Cordon Bleu in all its glory. I first fell for it as a kid on a dinner cruise, back when it was really just a "chicken twinkie" from the freezer aisle, and I was instantly hooked anyway. Every restaurant seems to make it a little differently, but the version smothered in bearnaise sauce always wins me over.
When this showed up as an assignment in culinary school, I jumped on it immediately, even though that version was made with veal and deep fried. The technique stuck with me, and this is the at-home version I make for special occasions — usually with whipped mashed potatoes and garlic green beans on the side.
Culinary school scared undercooked chicken paranoia into me for life, so don't skip checking that internal temperature. Nobody wants food poisoning ruining a nice dinner.
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (large pieces)
- 4 slices swiss cheese
- 4 slices ham
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten with 2 tablespoons water
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- canola oil, for frying
- prepared bearnaise sauce, for serving
Instructions
- 1Trim the chicken breasts of excess fat. Place each between two pieces of plastic wrap and pound to 1/4 inch thick.
- 2Lay one slice of ham and one slice of swiss on top of each piece, then roll up tightly like a burrito, tucking in the sides. Place in a dish and refrigerate for about 15 minutes.
- 3Whisk together the flour, paprika, salt, and pepper in one bowl. Set up an egg wash and a bowl of breadcrumbs alongside it. Roll each chicken roll in the seasoned flour, then the egg wash, then the breadcrumbs, coating completely. Refrigerate another 15 minutes.
- 4Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat about 1 inch of canola oil in a saute pan over low-medium heat. Fry the chicken rolls until golden on each side, about 2-3 minutes per side, then transfer to a baking dish.
- 5Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a meat thermometer reads at least 165 degrees at the center. Top with warm bearnaise sauce to serve.
Storage & Reheating
Freezer instructions: fry the chicken as directed, let cool completely, then wrap individually in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then bake as directed. A packet of instant bearnaise sauce mix from the grocery store works perfectly here if you don't want to make it from scratch.
