Chicken Valdostana with Prosciutto Fontina (Printable)
Breaded chicken topped with prosciutto and Fontina, baked 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 tablespoons 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 teaspoon dried oregano
13 - Fresh basil leaves, for garnish
# Directions:
01 - Preheat the oven to 400°F.
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 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 to 3 minutes per side until lightly golden. Remove and set aside.
05 - In the same skillet, add the shallot and garlic. Sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Deglaze the pan with white wine, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Stir in the crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, and dried oregano. Simmer for 5 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
06 - Lay the seared chicken breasts back into the sauce. Top each breast with a slice of prosciutto and a generous portion of Fontina cheese.
07 - Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbly and the chicken is cooked through to an internal temperature of 165°F.
08 - Remove from the oven, garnish with fresh basil leaves, and serve hot with extra sauce spooned over each portion.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- The combination of salty prosciutto and melting Fontina creates a flavor that tastes like you spent all day cooking, even though you barely broke a sweat.
- That white wine and tomato sauce is secretly simple but tastes like something from a restaurant with cloth napkins and a wine list.
02 -
- Do not skip pounding the chicken evenly because a thick end will be raw when the thin end is already overcooked and tough.
- Letting the sauce simmer those five minutes is not optional because that is when the raw acidity of the tomatoes cooks down into something rich and balanced.
03 -
- Use an oven-safe skillet from the start so you never have to transfer the chicken and sauce to a different dish, which creates unnecessary mess and risks breaking the cheese layer.
- Let the skillet rest for two minutes after coming out of the oven before serving because the sauce will thicken slightly and the cheese sets just enough to stay on the chicken instead of sliding off.