Chicken Valdostana with Fontina (Printable)
Italian chicken breasts topped with prosciutto and Fontina cheese in white wine tomato sauce.
# What You'll Need:
→ Poultry
01 - 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
→ Cured Meats
02 - 4 slices prosciutto di Parma
→ Cheeses
03 - 4 oz Fontina cheese, sliced
→ Breading
04 - ½ cup all-purpose flour
→ Cooking Fat
05 - 2 tbsp olive oil
→ Sauces & Liquids
06 - ⅓ cup dry white wine
07 - 14 oz canned crushed tomatoes
08 - ¼ cup chicken broth
→ Aromatics & Seasonings
09 - 2 garlic cloves, minced
10 - 1 small shallot, finely chopped
11 - Salt and black pepper, to taste
12 - 1 tsp dried oregano
13 - Fresh basil leaves, for garnish
# How-To Steps:
01 - Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
02 - Place chicken breasts between sheets of parchment paper and gently pound to an even thickness of about ½ inch. Season both sides generously with salt and black pepper.
03 - Dredge each chicken breast in all-purpose flour, shaking off any excess to ensure a light, even coating.
04 - Heat olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the chicken for 2-3 minutes per side until lightly golden. Remove and set aside on a plate.
05 - In the same skillet, add the finely chopped shallot and minced garlic. Sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute.
06 - Deglaze the pan with dry white wine, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Stir in the crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, and dried oregano. Let the sauce simmer for 5 minutes to develop flavor.
07 - Nestle the seared chicken breasts into the simmering sauce. Top each breast with a slice of prosciutto di Parma followed by a layer of sliced Fontina cheese.
08 - Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly and the chicken is cooked through to an internal temperature of 165°F.
09 - Remove from the oven, garnish with fresh basil leaves, and serve hot with extra sauce spooned over the top.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- The combination of salty prosciutto and melting Fontina on top of golden seared chicken feels indulgent but comes together in under an hour.
- The white wine tomato sauce is the kind of thing you will want to drag crusty bread through until the pan is licked clean.
02 -
- Do not skip pounding the chicken evenly because a thick end will dry out before the thin end finishes cooking.
- Letting the sauce simmer those five minutes before adding the chicken back concentrates the flavor dramatically so resist the urge to rush.
03 -
- Use an oven-safe skillet from the start so you never have to transfer the chicken and risk breaking the crust or losing sauce when moving it to the oven.
- Buy the Fontina from a deli counter rather than prepackaged slices because fresh Fontina melts dramatically better and has a depth of flavor that the packaged version loses.