Chicken Breast Stuffed With Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Pistachios

This recipe is from my foodie friend, Peter Minakis, from Kalofagas – Greek Food & Beyond.  I love reading Peter’s blog which highlights all things Greek.  Pistachios are a favorite of mine and they’re a nut that I feel adds a special flare to any dish.  Perhaps it is their Persian roots coupled with the fact that they are expensive.  Iran is the main producer of pistachios in the world.  Pistachio trees take approximately seven to ten years to reach significant production and are biennial bearing meaning the harvest is heavier in alternate years.  Pistachios are a good source of copper, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, and B6. The nuts deliver 30 vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients and make for a perfect snack food.

Serves 4
recipe from Kalofagas

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2 large chicken breasts
4-6 roasted red peppers, charred skins peeled off and seeded
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
sea salt and fresh ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup coarsely ground pistachios (shelled and unsalted)
olive oil for searing

Feta and Mastiha Sauce
2 large cloves of garlic, smashed
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock
1/4 cup strained Greek yogurt
1/4 cup crumbled Feta, mashed with a fork
1 teaspoon of lemon zest
1 teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves
1 shot of Skinos mastic liqueur (or 1 tear drop of Mastic, crushed OR a drop of Mastic essence)
salt and pepper to taste

Saffron Rice
2 1/2 cups of vegetable or chicken stock
a pinch of saffron
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup of long-grain rice

Preheat oven to 200c (400f).  Rinse rice and place it in a medium-sized baking vessel. Take a pinch of saffron and place in a bowl. Pour 1/2 cup hot stock over it and give the saffron about 5 minutes to bloom (liquid will turn a bright yellow).  Pour the saffron-infused stock along with the remaining 2 cups of stock, olive oil and rice into your baking vessel and stir. Adjust seasoning and place in oven for approximately 45 minutes or until all the liquid has been absorbed.   Remove from the oven, fluff with a fork, cover and keep warm.

Reduce oven to 190c (375f).

Rinse chicken breasts and pat-dry. Butterfly chicken breasts and then place between some plastic wrap and pound out until thin and even in thickness. Peel the charred skins off roasted red peppers and seed them. Shell unsalted pistachios and place in a food processor and pulse until course. Add the crumbled Feta and olive oil and process until blended.

Sprinkle smoked paprika on the insides of the chicken breasts.  Place roasted peppers to cover most of the chicken’s surface (allow a border of about 1/2 inch so that the filling isn’t exposed when rolling). Smear the Feta and pistachio filling over the peppers and spread it out evenly with a spatula, spoon or your hands.

Tightly roll up chicken breast and tie them up with kitchen string.  Rub a good amount of olive oil over the chicken breasts and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.  Place a large skillet on stove-top over medium-high heat.  Add chicken breasts to the skillet and sear on all sides until golden. Add some more oil if needed.  Remove chicken breasts from skillet and transfer to a baking tray. Place a meat thermometer into the centre of the breast and place in the pre-heated oven.  Roast chicken breasts for about 30 minutes or until the thermometer reads 180f or until the juices run clear. Remove from oven, keep warm and allow to rest at least for 5 minutes before slicing.

Using the same skillet that you seared the chicken in, over medium high heat, add the wine, stock, smashed garlic and bring to a boil. Reduce to medium heat, scrape up the brown bits with a wooden spoon  and simmer until the liquid has reduced by half.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and add lemon zest, fresh thyme and strained Greek yogurt. Gently stir in the yogurt and add the splash of Mastic liqueur. Simmer for a couple of minutes while stirring, take off the heat and reserve until chicken is ready to be serve.  Snip off the butcher’s twine from the chicken and carefully slice the into rounds. Divide the portions and serve on a bed of saffron rice. Spoon over some Feta and Mastiha sauce over the chicken along with come finely chopped pistachios for garnish.

The Culinary Chase’s Note:  You know when you see a recipe and think, that’s going to be nice?  Well, this is exactly how I felt plus it’s always music to my ears when my kids say, “mmmm Mom, this is good!”  I didn’t have Skinos Mastic liquor so I used a bit of Sambuca instead.  Keep an eye on the chicken when cooking as it may cook faster depending on how thin the chicken is.  Delish!

By The Glass Tasting Note:  This dish certainly takes the blah out of serving chicken as there is flavour in every element. The challenge of this dish is its mix of intense and slightly exotic flavours and the tanginess of the sauce. While Greece is famous for its pine infused Retsina wine, which despite its rather unique and to many palates (not Greek) outright unappealing personality is a great match to many Greek dishes. However, the saffron component of this dish makes it best to veer away from Retsina and opt for something more floral and spicy such as a Peloponnese Moschofilero. If there isn’t a Moschofilero at your local wine retailer (there likely won’t be) I suggest a New World Viognier. Two value priced versions that work here and that are widely available include Cono Sur Viognier from Chile and Graham Beck Viognier from South Africa.