Pepper Jack Stuffed Chicken

Justin turned thirteen last week — I realize I missed noting it because Justin's birthday falls quietly, the way Justin does everything. Born in 2007, same year as Tyler, different parents, different entry into this family. Justin does not make much of birthdays. He never has. The celebration is small and preferred that way — a dinner of his choice (chicken fried steak), the chocolate sheet cake, and the specific absence of fuss that Justin requires the way other children require fuss. I made the dinner. I made the cake. He ate both and said thanks and went to his room, and the brevity of the thanks was the fullness of the feeling, compressed the way Justin compresses everything — tight, controlled, contained.

Dave gave Justin a pair of football gloves — the sticky kind, the kind the defensive backs wear, the kind that Justin has been looking at in the sporting goods section every time we go to Walmart. Justin put them on and made catching motions in the kitchen, and his hands in the gloves looked like a man's hands, not a boy's, and the transition was visible and immediate and startling. When did Justin's hands get big? When did the boy who was five when the world ended become this tall, angular, intense thirteen-year-old with football gloves and a tattoo that does not yet exist but that I can already see forming in the future the way you can see weather approaching on the plains?

The blog had its best month. Eighty thousand page views in June. The pandemic has turned everyone into a home cook, and the home cooks are finding me, and the finding is mutual — they find my recipes and I find their comments and the comments are the conversation I have been having with strangers for four years, the conversation that says: you are not alone in the kitchen, you are not alone in the struggle, you are not alone. Eighty thousand people, and every one of them is in a kitchen somewhere, making something, feeding someone. The thought is staggering. The thought is the best thing about the internet.

Justin chose chicken fried steak, and I made it, and I will always make it — but on the nights I want to bring that same spirit of a hearty, celebratory dinner without the full production, this Pepper Jack Stuffed Chicken is the one I reach for. It has the same comfort-food solidity that Justin gravitates toward, the kind of meal that doesn’t announce itself but lands with weight, the way gratitude does when it comes from someone who doesn’t say much. Eighty thousand people found me in June, and I keep thinking: this is the kind of recipe I’d make for any of them on a night that mattered quietly.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 30 min | Total Time: 45 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 6 oz each)
4 oz pepper jack cheese, cut into 4 thick slices
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter

Instructions

Prepare the chicken. Preheat oven to 375°F. Using a sharp knife, cut a deep pocket horizontally into the thickest side of each chicken breast, being careful not to cut all the way through.
Stuff with cheese. Tuck one slice of pepper jack cheese into each pocket. Press the edges of the chicken together to seal as best you can. Secure with a toothpick if needed.
Set up the breading station. Place flour in a shallow dish. Beat eggs in a second dish. Combine breadcrumbs, garlic powder, smoked paprika, onion powder, salt, and pepper in a third dish.
Bread the chicken. Dredge each stuffed breast in flour, shaking off the excess. Dip in egg, letting the excess drip off. Press firmly into the seasoned breadcrumbs to coat all sides evenly.
Sear for color. Heat olive oil and butter in an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Once the butter foams, add the chicken and sear 3–4 minutes per side until deep golden brown.
Finish in the oven. Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and bake 18–22 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F and the cheese is fully melted. Remove toothpicks before serving.
Rest and serve. Let the chicken rest 5 minutes before plating so the cheese stays tucked inside when you cut in.

Nutrition (per serving)

Pepper Jack Stuffed Chicken — The Birthday Dinner I Made With My Whole Heart