This recipe has all the goodness of cajun chicken pasta, without the pasta. Of course, you can serve it with buttered pasta, or you can skip the carb loading and serve it up with veggies or a salad as shown. Either way, no one is going to complain about that gooey cheese oozing out of the middle with mushrooms, bell pepper, and onion all stuffed inside a deliciously seasoned chicken breast.
For more delicious stuffed chicken breast recipes, try our lasagna stuffed chicken, fajita stuffed chicken, or cheesy herb stuffed chicken.
Why Our Recipe
- Chicken breasts are loaded with sautรฉed veggies and pepper jack cheese.
- Everything is coated in Cajun seasoning so you know it’s going to be packed with flavor.
- Easy enough for a weeknight dinner, but impressive enough to serve to guests.
If you’re looking for a new way to enjoy chicken, these Cajun Stuffed Chicken Breasts are the perfect option. We love a good stuffed chicken recipe. This one is packed with sautรฉed veggies and melty pepper jack cheese. Every bite is loaded with flavor, thanks to a generous coating of Cajun seasoning. We like to make our own homemade blend to control the flavor, but you can use your favorite store-bought blend as well.
Ingredient Notes
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts: Thick ones are perfect so you can butterfly them. If they are thin, you’ll want to just pound them out to an even thickness. You can also buy chicken that’s already butterflied at many grocery stores.
- Olive Oil: You can use any neutral cooking oil like avocado or vegetable oil as well.
- Mushrooms: Either white or cremini works here, depending on your preference.
- Bell Pepper: We like to use a mixture of red and green for color and flavor since red have a little bit of sweetness.
- Onion: White or yellow onions will work here.
- Pepper Jack Cheese: We like to bring the flavor and the heat here. Monterey jack would be the second place choice.
- Cajun Seasoning: Store-bought Cajun seasoning works well, but if you like making your own, you can adjust the spice levels to your taste.
- Butter: A little pat of butter on top to melt over the chicken breasts as they cook keeps them moist and flavorful.
Methods for Stuffing Chicken
Butterfly Method: This is the most common method for stuffing chicken breasts. You simply slice the chicken horizontally, stopping just before cutting it all the way through. When you open it up, it looks like butterfly wings. This works best when the chicken breast is plump and thick.
Pounding Thin: If your chicken breasts are already on the thin side, you can place them between two sheets of plastic wrap and use a meat mallet (or even a rolling pin) to pound them to an even thickness. This not only helps them cook more evenly but also gives you a flat surface thatโs easy to roll up around the stuffing. Just be careful not to over-pound, or the chicken may tear.
Pocket Method: If you’d rather not flatten the chicken, you can slice a pocket into the side of the chicken breast. Simply make a horizontal cut, being careful not to cut all the way through. This creates a cavity to hold the stuffing. The pocket method is great if you want to keep the chicken in its original shape and prefer the filling to be fully enclosed.
Securing with Toothpicks
Using toothpicks is a simple but effective way to ensure your stuffing stays neatly tucked inside the chicken while it cooks. Once you’ve filled your chicken breasts and folded or rolled them, slide a few toothpicks vertically through the edges of the chicken to pinch it closed. Aim to place the toothpicks where the chicken naturally folds, making sure the stuffing is securely contained.
Youโll want to insert the toothpicks about halfway in, with the ends sticking out just enough to make them easy to remove after baking. Be sure to remind yourself (and anyone helping in the kitchen!) to take out the toothpicks before serving. Itโs an easy step to overlook, but no one wants a surprise toothpick in their meal!
Homemade Cajun Seasoning
Cajun seasoning can be bought in the seasoning section of the grocery store. Each brand will be slightly different in their ingredients and proportions. We like to save the money and make it ourselves. Bonus, you also get to control the flavor and spice level. Mix it up in a ziploc bag or small jar, and if you want to make a big batch to store, just change all the measurements to tablespoons.
More Cajun chicken recipes…
Cajun Chicken Drumsticks
35 mins
Cajun Beer Can Chicken
1 hr 25 mins
Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta
30 mins
Cajun White Chicken Chili
40 mins
Watch the video below where we will walk you through every step of the recipe with a video demonstration.
My family and I loved this recipe. Thanks!
I tried it. It’s so easy and really yummy. Everyone loves it and emptied their plates. It’s in our dinner list now.
This was delicious. I followed the recipe exactly. This is a new family favorite – for those that do not like it as spicy, I just put less of the Cajun seasoning and it is still scrumptious. Thank you very much for the recipe and the Cajun seasoning recipe!
Yay! I’m glad you liked it! Thanks for taking the time to come back and comment.
I tried this with chicken thighs and 40 minutes was not enough. I also substituted zuccini for mushrooms. Other than that, it looks good. I am adding an extra 15 minutes to brown the meat.
Good call on adding more time. Chicken thighs always require a longer cooking time than boneless skinless chicken breasts.
Do you cut the chicken to get the stuffing inside?
No. If you watch the video you’ll see I actually pound mine out thin and fold them. I’ve tried lots of different methods to stuff chicken breasts and this is by far my favorite. It deems to allow a lot more filling without everything falling apart. It’s also in the instructions but sometimes it is easier to show you in a video.
That works too but what works better for me is butterflying the chicken breast and put all stuffings on one side of the breast and then just simply lay the other side of the breast over the stuffings to close
I tend to buy chicken breasts from a butcher that are regular sized and don’t lend well to butterflying. Even when I buy oversized chicken breasts I have found that my method allows you to fill it with more of the filling because the toothpicks hold it in. And I definitely love a lot of the fillings!
No you just fold the chicken over.
But you don't mention when or where to add the cpices and the butter. Could you explain, please?
put the spices on top of the chicken just be fore you put it in the oven. Do the same for the pat of butter
Oh wow. These look absolutely scrumptious. I really like the extra spice to stand up to the pepper jack cheese.
Oh wow. These look absolutely scrumptious. I really like the extra spice to stand up to the pepper jack cheese.
I have always thoroughly enjoyed stuffed meat dishes when I have gone out to eat. This chicken looks super yummy. From the looks of the picture, I thought that you'd have to cut out the core of the chicken breast. If I gathered correctly from your article, you simply fold over the chicken breast.
http://www.saladmenu.com/avocado-stuffed-chicken/
I absolutely LOVE spicy foods and have never seen a Cajun stuffed chicken breast – These look SO good – Cannot wait to try them!
6/24/17: Made this last night. Abso-bloomin’-lutely delicious! And I’m not a whiz in the kitchen. But this recipe is so easy.