Wild Rice Stuffed Chicken Breast

This Wild Rice Stuffed Chicken is an elegant dish: A baked chicken breast stuffed with wild rice and sausage, topped with a Chive Cream Sauce!

More than 15 years ago, we were sitting down at the Science Museum of Minnesota, sampling the food that would make up our wedding menu.

It was fantastic - Chicken breast stuffed with wild rice and sausage, a cream sauce, and gorgonzola mashed potatoes.

When time came for the actual wedding, however, it was... less fantastic. The chicken breast seemed to have been boiled, the filling was bland and tasted unseasoned, and the whole thing tasted like hospital food.

We were told it was a matter of a change in staff or something, but... ugh, what a disappointment - especially after talking about how excited we were, after the tasting!

Anyway, about a year after our wedding, I made a home version to serve for our first anniversary.

It was great! Everything we wished the actual wedding meal would have been - a nicely roasted chicken breast, great flavour in the wild rice filling... very satisfying.

I’ve been throwing it together - a little different each time, on account of not writing anything down - ever since.

Recently, I decided to finally measure everything, and do it up as a proper recipe... and here we are!

I did up a recipe for Gouda Mashed Potatoes as a sub for the Gorgonzola ones - bleu cheese grosses me out, sorry!

Wild Rice Stuffed Chicken Breast Ingredients

Before getting to the recipe, a few words on ingredients:

Chicken Breasts

I like to use medium sized, boneless skinless chicken breasts.

They’re a good balance of easier to stuff (large), but still small enough to be a reasonable size for a meal.

If you want, you can use the stuffing to stuff a turkey breast, you’ll just need to adjust the cooking time a bit - keep an eye on it!

Wild Rice

I like to use really nice wild rice from small producers, rather than the mass produced stuff at the grocery store.

It REALLY makes a difference.

Since moving home, I’ve taken to ordering it from Canadian Pure Wild Rice, and it’s fantastic. (No relationship to report, just a fan of their product!).

I know that cost or availability of good wild rice can be prohibitive - especially in some areas - but if it’s a possibility for you, I totally recommend treating yourself to the good stuff!

Sausage

When I started making this 15 years ago, it was with Kielbasa.

I have no idea if that was an adaptation, or if the source material had that kind of sausage in - the memory has been lost to the years.

We like it with the Kielbasa, though, so that’s what we use!

I cook it right in with the wild rice, as some of the fats render out of the sausage and flavour the rice.

That said, you can use any smoked - or cooked - sausage that you like!

If you’re using a raw meat sausage - like an Italian sausage - I would crumble and brown it before using it in the rice cooker.

Chicken Broth

Whenever I cook rice - especially brown or wild rice - I love to use chicken broth instead of water. It gives it a really nice flavour.

I use low sodium chicken broth from a tetra pack - low sodium, because it gives me more flexibility for adjusting the salt level.

This also works nicely with mushroom broth - it tastes great with the rest of the ingredients.

If you don’t have prepared broth on hand, feel free to just use water with a bouillon cube or some bouillon powder tossed in.

That said, you can use water if you prefer.

How to Make Wild Rice and Sausage Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Full recipe follows, but here's a pictorial overview:

Ahead of time, combine chicken broth, wild rice, and chopped Kielbasa in a rice cooker. Cook until rice is done.

Remove rice from heat, fluff with a fork and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside, or chill for later use.

Preheat oven to 375 F, line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Trim chicken breast, if necessary. Pat dry with paper towels, and season on both sides with salt and pepper.

Use a sharp knife to cut a pocket into the thickest part of the chicken, about ¾ of the way through to the other side.

Stuff both chicken breasts with wild rice mixture.

If necessary/desired, use tooth picks to secure the opening of the pocket closed.

Bake chicken for 35-40 minutes, or until they reach an internal temperature of 165 F. (Time will depend on the size of chicken breasts used)

As the chicken is cooking, make the sauce:

How to Make Chive Cream Sauce

In a small saucepan, melt the butter.

Whisk in chicken broth concentrate and Dijon mustard until smooth. Add heavy cream, stirring well to combine.

Bring mixture to a simmer, allow to gently simmer for 10 minutes or so, until slightly thickened.

Add sour cream, whisk well until smooth. Add chives, stir well to combine, then season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Allow to heat through, keep warm until serving.

To serve, plate the chicken breasts and drizzle with chive cream sauce.

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5 from 2 votes

Wild Rice Stuffed Chicken Breast

This Wild Rice Stuffed Chicken Breast and Dijon Chive Cream Sauce is an elegant dinner for 2, perfect for a romantic dinner!

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr 40 minutes mins

Course: main

Cuisine: Canadian

Diet: Gluten Free

Servings: 2 People

Calories: 674kcal

Author: Marie Porter

Equipment

Rice Cooker

Ingredients

Wild Rice Stuffed Chicken Breasts

• 1 ⅓ cup Chicken Broth
• ⅓ cup Wild Rice
• ⅓ cup chopped Kielbasa
• Salt
• Pepper
• 2 Large boneless skinless chicken breasts

Chive Cream Sauce

• 1 tablespoon Butter
• 1 teaspoon Chicken Broth Concentrate
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• ½ cup Heavy cream
• ¼ cup Sour cream
• 2 tablespoon Finely chopped fresh chives
• Salt and Pepper

Instructions

• Ahead of time, combine chicken broth, wild rice, and chopped Kielbasa in a rice cooker. Cook until rice is done.
• Remove rice from heat, fluff with a fork and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Set aside, or chill for later use.
• Preheat oven to 375 F, line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Trim chicken breast, if necessary. Pat dry with paper towels, and season on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Use a sharp knife to cut a pocket into the thickest part of the chicken, about ¾ of the way through to the other side.
• Stuff both chicken breasts with wild rice mixture. If necessary/desired, use tooth picks to secure the opening of the pocket closed.
• Bake chicken for 35-40 minutes, or until they reach an internal temperature of 165 F. (Time will depend on the size of chicken breasts used)
• As the chicken is cooking, make the sauce:

Chive Cream Sauce

• In a small saucepan, melt the butter.
• Whisk in chicken broth concentrate and Dijon mustard until smooth. Add heavy cream, stirring well to combine.
• Bring mixture to a simmer, allow to gently simmer for 10 minutes or so, until slightly thickened.
• Add sour cream, whisk well until smooth. Add chives, stir well to combine, then season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Allow to heat through, keep warm until serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 674kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 48g | Saturated Fat: 25g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 211mg | Sodium: 1185mg | Potassium: 851mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1403IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 102mg | Iron: 2mg

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