Black pudding stuffed chicken breast or chicken Braemar served with an incredibly easy and delicious mustard, cream and chive sauce.
This recipe takes around an hour to prepare and cook, but you can prepare the chicken up to 24 hours ahead of time and throw it in the oven when you are ready.
Chicken Braemar
Wrapping stuff in bacon is a well-trodden path in kitchens, whether it's dishes like my cod loin wrapped in bacon, pork tenderloin wrapped in bacon, chicken wrapped in Parma ham, or brie and cranberry stuffed chicken, it just rocks.
Here I go with a chicken breast stuffed with black pudding, then wrapped in some lovely streaky bacon and roasted in the oven.
It's a technique that I used in my Balmoral chicken recipe. This dish is very much a sister dish to that, and it is often named after another Scottish town, Braemar.
I pair the chicken with a creamy mustard-heavy sauce, and both chicken and black pudding are wonderful alongside mustard.
I use a combination of English mustard for a big punch of flavour and then wholegrain mustard for texture and a little subtlety.
This dish just works; you can do all the prep a day or two in advance, and you can scale it up or down to feed as many or as few as you like very easily.
Be sure to get extra black pudding and use it as part of a proper fry up for breakfast!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use back bacon rather than streaky bacon?
I would not, back bacon has very different properties and does not contain anywhere near enough fat to achieve a nice wrap around the chicken breast.
What is streaky bacon?
This question is often asked by US visitors to my site. I see you and I've got you!
Streaky bacon is what you guys call bacon; we Brits usually refer to back bacon when we say "bacon". Back bacon is what you guys call Canadian bacon.
Can I use thick-cut bacon?
If you are getting your bacon from the butchers, it will likely be fairly thickly cut. It is not ideal for wrapping around a piece of meat, but fear not, you can fix it.
Place the bacon on a chopping board and use the side of a kitchen knife to flatten the bacon; it works a treat. You can even use a rolling pin if you like.
Can I cook this in an air fryer?
Yes, and it works really well; there is no need to slide it under the grill to crisp up the bacon.
Cook at 180°C or 350°F for 20 minutes and then give it 3-5 minutes at 200°C or 390°F. Check that the chicken has reached 73°C or 165°F before serving.
Can I use different types of mustard?
Yes, if English mustard is a bit too pokey for your tastes, then move to Dijon mustard, it works perfectly well.
My sauce has gone really thick. Have I done something wrong?
No, don't worry, the mustard will thicken the cream very quickly when it is cold. As you heat the cream, it will loosen up and create a nice sauce.
Serving Suggestions
I've served this black pudding stuffed chicken breast with Parmentier potatoes and buttered runner beans in these pictures.
It's a dish that screams "meat and two veg," and there are loads of ways you could change it up.
You could double down on the calorific value of this recipe and go for a buttery mashed potato, clapshot (swede and potato mash) or celeriac mash.
If you wanted something a little less "indulgent", then some simple boiled potatoes are a good option; there is plenty of the sauce to go around!
When it comes to greens, you are once again awash with options!
I love buttered cabbage with this recipe because cabbage and mustard are a heavenly combination!
But simply cooked Brussels sprouts, roasted tenderstem broccoli or my garlic green beans with almonds are all great options.
Equipment Used
I only name-check brands of equipment if I think that they make a material difference to a recipe. But if you have any questions, feel free to ask them in the comments section below the recipe.
- Oven.
- Stovetop.
- Grill, aka broiler.
- Baking tray.
- 15cm or 6" saucepan.
- Whisk.
- Kitchen knife.
- Chopping board.
- Weighing scales and or a combination of a measuring jug, cups and spoons.
- Quick-read meat thermometer (optional).
Black Pudding Stuffed Chicken Recipe with a Mustard Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 Large Chicken Breasts (Skinless) 475g Total
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 150 g Black Pudding 5oz
- 12-15 Rashers Streaky Bacon 225-250g
For the Mustard Cream Sauce:
- 175 ml Double Cream ⅔ Cup
- ½-1 tablespoon English Mustard
- 1-2 tablespoon Wholegrain Mustard
- ½ teaspoon Vegetable Stock Powder
- 10 g Fresh Chives ¼ Cup
Instructions
- Place the chicken breasts on a chopping board and, using a large sharp kitchen knife, cut a pocket in the breast from top to bottom, leaving 1-1.5cm (½") holding the breast together and 1-1.5cm (½") at the top and bottom of the chicken breast.
- Season the "pocket" with a little salt (not too much) and the black pepper.
- Form the black pudding into two sausages roughly the same size as the pocket that you cut into the chicken, then stuff the breasts, pressing down to create a fairly natural-looking shape.
- Season the outside of the chicken with the remaining salt and wrap the chicken with the bacon, making sure that the ends of the bacon sit on the underside of the chicken breast. If your bacon is thick-cut, bash it with the side of a knife or a rolling pin to make it a little thinner.
- Place the chicken on a baking tray and place it in the oven at 220°C or 430°F.
- As soon as the chicken goes into the oven, reduce the heat to 180°C or 350°F and cook for 30 minutes or until the chicken reaches 65°C or 150°F. Then slide the chicken under a grill for 4-5 minutes to crisp up the bacon a little, remove and rest whilst you finish the sauce. Check that the chicken has reached 73°C or 165°F before serving.
- Whilst the chicken is cooking, place all of the ingredients, except the chives for the mustard sauce, in a small pan and gently heat until it is hot, then set it aside. Start with the smallest amount of mustard and add more to your taste. I like this recipe to be very mustardy, but it is not to everyone's taste.
- Finely chop the chives.
- When you are ready to serve, slice the chicken, and finish the sauce with the chives.