Chicken breasts stuffed with stuffing is a great way to use leftovers at the holidays or get your stuffing fix anytime. This chicken comes out so flavorful and with a crunchy, golden topping!

A spoon scooping up a baked chicken breast stuffed with stuffing from a casserole dish.

You know what instantly makes a ho-hum chicken dinner interesting and fun and extra delicious?

Stuffing it with fun fillings!

We adore broccoli cheese stuffed chicken and spinach stuffed chicken for some veggie goodness.

And some cheesy Mexican stuffed chicken or pizza stuffed chicken for kid-approved dinners.

I also love making chicken cordon bleu or chicken stuffed with prosciutto, spinach and mozzarella when friends come for dinner.

You can browse these easy stuffed chicken recipes for more inspiration.

Today, we’ve got a brand new one that’s perfect for the holidays!

Close up of chicken breasts stuffed with stuffing in a baking dish.

Chicken breasts stuffed with stuffing sounds repetitive and I’m guessing you’re gonna want to have it on repeat.

(See what I did there with the little word play? Haha, so sorry.)

We’ve got juicy baked chicken breasts stuffed with your favorite holiday stuffing - made from a bag or using leftovers - and topped with a crunchy breadcrumb coating that gets browned and delicious.

This is a pretty simple and easy recipe, but it’s oh so hearty and tasty. You’ll be happily digging in to crunchy and savory bite after bite.

OK, let’s get cooking.

Ingredients laid out in separate bowls on a counter for making traditional stuffing.

Sautéed onion and celery in a skillet with a wooden spoon mixing it.

Chicken breasts in a bowl alongside small bowls of seasonings.

Chicken breasts on a cutting board being butterflied open.

Chicken breasts in a baking dish stuffed with stuffing and stuffing breadcrumbs on top.

Baked stuffed chicken breasts with stuffing in a rectangular red baking dish.

Now, I’ve got some notes and tips coming up below on how to make chicken stuffed with stuffing. Just tryin’ to be helpful.

If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.

Ingredient Notes:

Stuffing: You can use homemade stuffing (including leftovers from Thanksgiving or a holiday dinner) for this recipe. Or you can get a bag of classic stuffing at the store and use it to make this recipe anytime. I’ve tried it both ways and have notes for both in the recipe card.
Chicken: You’ll need to butterfly your chicken breasts to lay them flat for seasoning and then stuffing. I have notes in the recipe card and also have a full how to butterfly chicken breasts post if you’d like to read up on this easy but essential technique.
Dried cranberries: I like the pop of sweetness this gives the stuffing and the stuffed chicken. I’ve made it without before and it was fine, but I prefer it.
Italian seasoning: This gets sprinkled on top of the chicken breasts and adds some extra flavor. If you don’t have any or if you have a super herby stuffing mixture, feel free to skip it.
Topping: I love using some raw crunchy stuffing from the bag as a topping for the chicken breasts. It acts as a super breadcrumb-like layer on top and gets browned in the oven. If you don’t have any cause you’re using leftover cooked stuffing, no worries, you can swap in a buttery breadcrumb topping. I have info in the notes section of the recipe card.

Close up of a silver serving spoon scooping up a baked chicken breast stuffed with stuffing from a casserole dish.

Also to note, I don’t secure my chicken breasts with toothpicks or string before baking. I find that butterflying them and just folding them back over is sufficient.

And I’m kinda lazy like that.

If the stuffing in your chicken breasts looks like it might want to fall apart, feel free to add a few toothpicks.

Oh, and I use and recommend using a digital thermometer to ensure your chicken is properly cooked through. It should get to 165 before you remove it from the oven.

Want to make this ahead? Totally do-able.

Chicken breasts stuffed with stuffing served on dinner plates with mashed potatoes and green beans.

Make Ahead Notes:

You can prep this recipe ahead of time through step 4 in the instructions below (getting the chicken prepped and stuffed). Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Remove from the refrigerator when preheating the oven and add the breadcrumb mixture to the top of the chicken breasts.
Bake as directed, adding an additional 5 minutes if needed to ensure everything is cooked through and hot.

As for serving, here’s what I do.

When I’m making this recipe using stuffing from a bag mixture, I do the quick stovetop method for preparing the stuffing. Then I use some to stuff the chicken breasts. I put the remaining prepared stuffing into a casserole dish and finish it in the oven while the chicken cooks. (The instructions are on the bag.)

Chicken stuffed with stuffing served on a dinner plate with mashed potatoes and green beans.

Then you just need a vegetable side to round out your meal!

These green beans with mustard butter sauce go great, but a bagged salad or some steamed broccoli would work well, too.

Last thing, if you have leftovers…

Leftover stuffed chicken will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

I recommend slicing it before you reheat it — which you can do either in the microwave or stovetop — so it warms through more evenly and more quickly without drying out the chicken.

The crunchy top will soften after refrigerating it and reheating it, but it's still tasty.

A chicken breast stuffed with stuffing cut in half to show the filling on a dinner plate.

I hope you give this a try and hope your family loves it as much as mine does!

Enjoy!

XO,

Kathryn

Yield: 4 servings

Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Stuffing

Name: Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Stuffing
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 (12 oz.) bag herb seasoned classic stuffing (such as Pepperidge Farm) or leftover stuffing (see notes below); 4 tablespoons unsalted butter; 1 cup diced onion; 1 cup diced celery; 1/2 cup sweetened dried cranberries (optional); 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth; 4 (6-7 oz.) boneless, skinless chicken breasts; 4 teaspoons Dijon mustard, divided; Salt and black pepper; 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil; 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning; 1/3 cup reserved (raw) stuffing mixture (see notes)

Chicken breasts stuffed with stuffing is a great way to use leftovers at the holidays or get your stuffing fix anytime. This chicken comes out so flavorful and with a crunchy, golden topping!

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

For the stuffing:

1 (12 oz.) bag herb seasoned classic stuffing (such as Pepperidge Farm) or leftover stuffing (see notes below)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced celery
½ cup sweetened dried cranberries (optional)
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

For the chicken:

4 (6-7 oz.) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 teaspoons Dijon mustard, divided
Salt and black pepper
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
⅓ cup reserved (raw) stuffing mixture (see notes)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375. Line an 8x12 or 9x13 baking pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray then set aside. (You can also use a glass casserole dish and just spray it with cooking spray.
Reserve ⅓ cup of the raw, crunchy stuffing breadcrumb mixture for later.
Prepare the stuffing according to package directions. I recommend using the stovetop saucepan method to initially make the stuffing. You can then stuff the chicken and bake the remaining stuffing mix in the oven along with the chicken.
Butterfly chicken breasts by cutting through them, not all the way, horizontally and opening like a book. (See this how-to post for details if needed.)
Brush the insides of the chicken breasts with 1 teaspoon each Dijon mustard and season lightly with salt and black pepper.
Add ¼ cup of the prepared stuffing to the inside of each chicken breast then fold over to close it up.
Place the stuffed chicken breasts in the prepared pan. Drizzle each one evenly with the olive oil and sprinkle with the Italian seasoning. Add about 1 ½ tablespoons of the reserved raw and crunchy stuffing mixture to the top of each chicken breast, pressing down to help it adhere. (Or if you don’t have any, you can use buttery breadcrumbs here; see notes below.)
Bake the stuffed chicken at 375 for 30-35 minutes, until golden brown on top and chicken is cooked through and reaches an internal temperature of 165.
You can also bake any remaining stuffing mixture according to the package directions. (My package says to bake in a 2-quart casserole dish for 30 minutes and I do it at 375 at the same time as the chicken.)
Serve hot and enjoy!

Notes

Stuffing: You can use pre-made stuffing (including leftovers from Thanksgiving or a holiday dinner) for this recipe. Or you can get a bag of classic stuffing at the store and use it to make this recipe anytime. I’ve tried it both ways and have notes for both in the recipe card.

Stuffing alternative: If you are using leftover stuffing or don't have any reserved raw/crunchy stuffing to use as the topping for the chicken breasts, here's the alternative. Mix together ½ cup of plain breadcrumbs and 3 tablespoons of melted butter until well combined. Spread evenly on top of the chicken breasts before baking.

Dried cranberries: I like the pop of sweetness this gives the stuffing and the stuffed chicken. I’ve made it without before and it was fine, but I prefer it.

Italian seasoning: This gets sprinkled on top of the chicken breasts and adds some extra flavor. If you don’t have any or if you have a super herby stuffing mixture, feel free to skip it.

I use and recommend using a digital thermometer to ensure your chicken is properly cooked through. It should get to 165 before you remove it from the oven.

Make-ahead: You can prep this recipe ahead of time through step 4 in the instructions (getting the chicken prepped and stuffed). Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Remove from the refrigerator when preheating the oven and add the breadcrumb mixture to the top of the chicken breasts. Bake as directed, adding an additional 5 minutes if needed to ensure everything is cooked through and hot.

Leftovers: Leftover stuffed chicken will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I recommend slicing it before you reheat it — which you can do either in the microwave or stovetop — so it warms through more evenly and more quickly without drying out the chicken.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 301Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 56mgSodium: 398mgCarbohydrates: 27gFiber: 3gSugar: 18gProtein: 13g