Homemade Cordon Bleu is a nutritious main dish that can easily become a single dish, also ideal for the summer season, served with salad and fresh bread. They are very practical as they can be stored in the refrigerator for a couple of days or frozen and available at any time.
For those who prefer lighter cooking, you can cook them in the air fryer at 392°F until golden.
We normally enjoy cordon bleu at dinners with children, but in reality, adults love them too. The preparation is not long, just follow a few simple steps. My advice is to start with whole chicken breasts. You can easily create a pocket with a good kitchen knife to stuff with ham and cheese. If you already have sliced chicken breast at home, don’t hesitate to prepare the recipe, make them as thin as possible with a meat tenderizer, and fold them after stuffing. For the rest of the steps, the recipe remains unchanged.
Before moving on to the recipe, I suggest other dishes to pair for a great dinner
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 25 Minutes
- Portions: 6 cordon bleu
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 750.64 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 25.53 (g) of which sugars 1.75 (g)
- Proteins 30.46 (g)
- Fat 59.32 (g) of which saturated 10.99 (g)of which unsaturated 45.80 (g)
- Fibers 1.35 (g)
- Sodium 684.46 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 117 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 1 lb lbs chicken breast (preferably whole)
- 3 oz oz cooked ham
- 3 slices of cheese (or soft sliced cheese)
- to taste all-purpose flour
- to taste breadcrumbs
- 3 eggs
- to taste salt
- 10 oz oz vegetable oil (for frying)
Tools
If using whole chicken breast, my advice is to use a good smooth-edged kitchen knife to create a good pocket for stuffing. For frying the cordon bleu, I suggest a pan with a 10-11 inch diameter and high sides.
- 1 Knife
- 1 Pan
- 1 Meat Tenderizer
Preparation
Divide your chicken breast into six more or less equal parts, then in each piece create a large pocket, without splitting it into two separate pieces but leaving one side connected. If it’s too thick, you can thin each flap with a meat pounder or the tip of a knife.
Stuff each piece of chicken with a slice of ham and half a slice of cheese. I recommend putting the cheese in the middle of the ham slice so it will hold it well inside during cooking, preventing unwanted leaks.
Fold the chicken flap to close the pocket and make sure the ham and cheese stay well in the internal part. Use your fingers to press well around the pocket to seal the chicken breast.
Now comes the most important part, the breading. If you’ve sealed the edges of the meat well, it’s a rather simple operation because the cordon bleu will remain compact. In a deep plate, break the eggs and add salt, and if you like, you could also add a pinch of pepper. Beat the eggs with a fork.
Now pass each cordon bleu first in the flour, then in the egg, and finally in the breadcrumbs.
Press well with the palms of your hands when passing the meat first in the flour and then in the breadcrumbs, to always cover the meat well in all external parts.
When you’ve passed all the pieces a first time in the breading, prepare the pan with vegetable oil for frying. Wait for the oil to be hot before placing your cordon bleu inside to cook.
While the oil is heating, do a second breading pass by simply passing the cordon bleu quickly in the egg and then only in the breadcrumbs. If the remaining egg doesn’t seem sufficient for this second pass, dilute it with a little water and beat it again with the fork.
When the oil is hot, fry your cordon bleu. In the indicated pan, I cooked three at a time.
NOTES
To check if the oil is hot enough for frying, you can immerse a toothpick in the oil. If bubbles form around it as if to fry it, the temperature is perfect; otherwise, wait. For excellent frying, I always recommend using the lid, which helps maintain the internal temperature of the oil, much like in a fryer.
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