AIR FRIED BUTTERFLIED STUFFED CHICKEN BREAST

Air Fried Butterflied Stuffed Chicken Breast image

One of our favorite kitchen gadgets is an air fryer so we were really excited to try these stuffed chicken breasts. An air fryer makes preparing a meal fast, easy, and crisps things but keeps the oil down. These chicken breasts were succulent and very well seasoned. The cheese just oozes out. This is a healthier dinner option...

Provided by Robyn Bruce

Categories Chicken

Time 30m

Number Of Ingredients 11

Ingredients

2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 c frozen broccoli florets, thawed
1 c shredded cheddar cheese (or pepper jack cheese)
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
garlic powder, to taste
McCormick's Montreal steak seasoning, to taste
a little flour, for coating the chicken breasts
olive oil cooking spray
ranch dressing for drizzling
about 10 toothpicks for skewering the chicken closed

Steps:

1. Using a very sharp knife, butterfly the chicken breasts by starting to cut at one side but don't cut the entire way through. Open the butterflied chicken (like a book).
2. Sprinkle a little salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Montreal Steak seasoning on both sides of the butterflied chicken, but don't overdo it.
3. On the right half, put a layer of the shredded cheese. On top of the cheese, put a layer of the broccoli florets, laying them tightly together, side by side. On top of the broccoli florets, put a light layer of the shredded cheese.
4. Carefully lift the left side of the butterflied chicken and cover the right side with the left side (as though you were closing a book.)
5. Using 5 or 6 toothpicks, "skewer" the chicken breasts through the upper layer of chicken down through the lower layer of chicken, all around the edges, to close them nice and tight.
6. Lightly season (to taste) the top of each chicken bundle with a little more salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Montreal Steak seasoning.
7. Roll each bundle of chicken, both top and bottom in a little flour, just enough to coat it. Then spray each side with olive oil cooking spray.
8. Place the chicken bundles inside the air fryer basket. Set the temperature to 356 (or as close to that as yours allows) and set it for 25 minutes. Press "start." At the halfway point, open the air fryer and turn the bundles over to the other side and resume cooking.
9. (I did remove mine from the air fryer when it had 2 minutes left on the timer because I felt that they were completely done at that point, but you can let it go the entire time.)
10. Remove chicken from the air fryer and place on the plate, remove toothpicks. Drizzle just a little ranch dressing over top of each bundle and enjoy!!!
11. ***Tip: Be careful how you season the outside of this recipe. This recipe is to be seasoned from the inside "out" rather than from the outside "in". So, go easy on the outer seasonings.