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This chorizo apple cornbread stuffed chicken is the perfect fall meal. It packs lots of flavor into a meaty, seasoned chicken breast.
When it comes to fall cooking, I’m down for anything as long as it’s cozy and warm. Looking to make Chili Cornbread Casserole? Yeah, I’ll take a big bowl topped with extra cheese and maybe some cilantro.
Want to go old school with a Classic Roast Chicken? Absolutely. I’ll bring the Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes and Honey Roasted Carrots. You get it – I love all things comfort!
That’s why this cornbread stuffed chicken is right up my alley! It combines the classic comforts of cornbread and simple roast chicken and adds big-time flavor with chorizo, sweet fall apples, and tangy goat cheese.
My Pro Tips
Cornbread Stuffed Chicken Recipe Tips
Use uniformly sized chicken breasts so they all cook equally simultaneously. This will ensure no over or undercooked chicken.
Dried cornbread stuffing is available near the stuffing and bread crumbs aisle. It’s most common around American Thanksgiving, but you can also use the bag from the Stovetop box.
Are you not a fan of chorizo? You can substitute spicy or sweet Italian sausage or sage roll sausage. Anything you use will add flavor and texture.
No fresh spices on hand? Dried thyme will work just as well. You’ll want to use about 1/2 teaspoon in place of 1 teaspoon fresh.
Ingredients needed
- Chicken breast, boneless and skinless
- Spices
- Olive oil
- Chorizo
- Apple
- Yellow onion
- Kale
- Garlic
- Thyme
- Dried cornbread stuffing
- Chicken stock
- Goat cheese
How to stuff chicken breasts
Stuffing chicken breasts doesn’t have to be complicated. If you have a favorite filling, it can very likely be stuffed into a large, boneless, skinless chicken breast.
I like to start by seasoning my chicken breast and giving it a nice sear on both sides in a skillet. This will help give the outside of the chicken some lovely color. You don’t need to cook the chicken thoroughly in this step, as we are doing this more for color, and the chicken will be thoroughly baked in the oven in the upcoming steps.
After you have browned your chicken, you can make your stuffing! I’m using chorizo, apple, onion, kale, and some other fall-flavored spices for this recipe. After your meat and vegetables are cooked, add your dried cornbread stuffing and chicken stock.
Cut a slit into your chicken breast so you create a pocket big enough to stuff in your stuffing!
Add in some goat cheese, stuffing, and a little more goat cheese to the top.
Bake in the oven until fully cooked and the chicken registers at 165 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer.
More chicken recipes
Cornbread Stuffed Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 large boneless skinless chicken breast
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, to taste
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 12 ounces raw chorizo sausages, removed from casing
- 1 cup small diced apple
- 1/2 cup small diced yellow onion
- 1 cup minced fresh kale, packed
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
- 1 cup dried cornbread stuffing
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
Instructions
- Season each chicken breast with equal amounts of kosher salt and black pepper.
- In a large skillet set over medium high heat add olive oil. Add the chicken and lightly brown on each side. Remove the chicken from the skillet and let cool.
- To the same skillet add chorizo and break it up so there are small pieces of sausage. Let brown for 10 minutes.
- Add in the diced apples and onions and continue cooking until the apples start to soften and the onions are translucent.
- Add in kale, garlic, and fresh thyme, and cook until it's wilted, about 5 minutes.
- Add in dried cornbread stuffing mix and chicken stock. Stir together and remove from the heat.
- Let the mixture sit as you prepare the chicken. This should give the mixture plenty of time to moisten. If you notice the stuffing mixture is still really dry simply add in a little more chicken stock.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Cut a slit into the chicken lengthwise making sure to not cut all the way through. You want the chicken to open like a slit as you're creating a little pocket for the stuffing to be stuffed into the chicken breast. Try to make the cut as even as possible so each side of the chicken is the same thickness.
- Stuff 1 tablespoon crumbled goat cheese into the chicken breast and fill each breast with equal amounts of stuffing. It's ok to really get the chicken stuffed full.
- You can use toothpicks to secure the top so the chicken stays tight and the stuffing doesn't fall out. Don't worry, it won't close completely. If you have leftover stuffing it's great as a leftover side dish!
- Add the chicken to a 9×13 casserole dish (stuffing side up) and roast for 25-35 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked to 165 degrees F. The exact time will depend on the size and thickness of your chicken breasts.
- Once full cooked pull the chicken out of the oven and serve with 1 tablespoon crumbled goat cheese on top.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
You really have made an original Autumn meal! Love that you canmake the stuffing ahead of time too. I don’t know what it is but chocolate sure goes well with a dry red wine.
Okay, I admit it, I’m a bit of a Halloween nut 🙂 This chicken is gorgeous. So rustic and perfect for fall.
My kids always try to get me to dress up and I can’t get into it. But I think your party sounds like fun and this chicken and the lovely wine would entice me to reconsider!
You just made me go to Google and look up Bob Ross and happy trees! That costume idea is so funny…
Bwhaha, I’m so in the later half too! This is one of my least favorite holidays. Don’t get me wrong, love the candy, apples and pumpkin foods…just hate the whole dress up and scare people thing. So glad my kids are of the age to make their own costumes!! More time for me to make this chicken, YUM
So, this is gorgeous. I will be out trick or treating and stealing all of my kid’s candy, but I will also be dreaming about attending your dinner party.
Such a luxurious looking recipe. Loving the chorizo in it. Very Spanish 🙂
I made chorizo stuffing last year and it was SOOO good that I have never looked back. I’m OBSESSED with the idea of stuffing chicken breast with all of this deliciousness! Pinned!
Totally on the same side of the fence as you and the only reason I am excited for Halloween this year is because I could possibly be finally indulging in a glass of wine, which has been 9 months in the making! This chicken would be a great accompaniment too….so many flavors I can’t get enough of here!
I really don’t get all the fuss over Halloween as anything other than an excuse to shovel more candy into my pie hole. Of course, I’d totally dress up as a happy tree if it meant that I could eat one of these glorious stuffed chicken breasts. Heck, I’ll do just about anything for cornbread stuffing with goat cheese.