Chicken ballotines with oregano pesto

Serves 2
Prep time 10 minutes
Cook time 55 minutes

150g chicken breast, divided into 2 pieces
salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
300ml chicken stock 
150g oregano leaves, finely chopped
80ml olive oil
50g savoy cabbage
1 slice of bacon, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves
1 bay leaf
splash of white wine
knob of butter

garnish
oregano leaves

• Place each chicken breast onto a sheet of cling film. Flatten the meat by bashing it with a rolling pin until the meat is about 2cm thick. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Roll the flattened chicken breast into a cylindrical shape with the cling film. Make sure the meat is rolled with plenty of spare cling film at each end, allowing you to tie the two ends together to create a ‘handle’.
• In a pan, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Place the cling-wrapped chicken rolls into the stock and simmer for about 40 minutes. Lift each cooked chicken roll out of the pan with its ‘handle’, and set aside.
• Combine the oregano leaves and olive oil in a food processor, and pulse a few times or until sauce becomes smooth. (Reserve about 60ml for the next recipe.)
• In a separate pan, stir fry the cabbage, bacon, garlic and bay leaf with 2 tbsp of chicken stock for a minute, and finish off with white wine.
• In another pan, add butter and sear the ballotines till they turn slightly brown. Then pan-roast the ballotines in the oven at 180C for 3 minutes. Slice the ballotines at a thickness of 3cm each, place them on top of the cabbage and pour oregano ‘pesto’ sauce over them. Garnish with oregano leaves.

SHARE