Sun-dried Tomato Basil Brie Chicken

Ingredients

Serves 4
  • 4 chicken breasts, skin on
  • 1 wedge brie cheese
  • 4 large basil leaves
  • Sun-dried tomatoes

As the weather gets warmer every man is tempted by the call of an open flame and some meat. There is something primal about a man (or woman), the BBQ, and fresh air spiked with the smell of the meal on the grill.

While I advocate year round grilling, the time seems right to get back out there in earnest now that the snow is gone. This year, my first meal is a simple one which friends and family always rave about. There is a certain wow factor in anything stuffed and anything with cheese. Fortunately, sun-dried tomato, brie, and basil stuffed chicken breasts fit the bill just right. Easy to prepare, yet interesting enough to serve to guests. It is a perfect dish for the spring with its nice fresh garden flavours.

First step is to find some nice boneless, skin-on chicken breasts. This can be more difficult than it sounds as boneless & skinless seem to be the new normal. Frequently in order to get skin on breast, you need to purchase bone-in chicken which is fine if you can tolerate the added step of removing them.

This recipe can also be done in the oven, but I would recommend skinless breasts for that. Using skin on chicken breast on the BBQ adds a nice crisp layer and if you slow cook them (like you should) the fat melts and provides a rich smokey flavour. Now, I am not fortunate enough to have skin on chicken breasts. My long suffering wife cares more about my heart than the pictures for this site, but I digress.

Preparation

  1. Take the chicken out of the fridge and get it to room temperature while you prepare the stuffing.
  2. The first step in creating your little packages of goodness is to slice the brie so you have thick, long strips. Then, take your sundried tomatoes and line both sides of the brie and wrap them in a large fresh basil leaf or two. What you will have now is a tasty package ready to be stuffed into the chicken.
  3. Take a sharp knife and cut a slit along the length of the chicken and stuff the tasty filler in. Be careful to slice to the centre of the breast, but not all the way through as your cheese will drain out when on the grill. You will find that this is not finicky work. The chicken will stretch easily. Simply push it in and then try to pull the slit closed a little and take it to the grill.
  4. Now, those who know me know that simply slapping meat on a BBQ at full heat and waiting is a cooking technique for peasants. Your meals, and dinner mates, deserve more respect than that. For this dish I recommend setting your BBQ to about 300 degrees, but use indirect heat. Some BBQ’s now come with an optional over burner which works well for this. If you don’t have one, simply turn the heat up on one side and place the chicken on the other side, the one with no burner on, to cook.
  5. Your chicken has a big hole in one side with what will soon be melted cheese so you cannot flip the chicken. What you want to try to create is a slow, oven-like cooking process. Cook for around 20 minutes or so on indirect heat without flipping the breast and you will have a nice meal with a flavour-packed centre for you and your friends.
  6. I pair the chicken with a nice chunky Greek salad and a cold beer, but I guess that last part goes without saying.