Now that we made the chorizo we had to something with it, right? Actually, the reason I made the chorizo was two-fold. First, I had made it previously and my sister-in-law Eva asked me for the recipe. Second, I wanted to make this dish and I sure am glad I did. 🙂
I like roulades. I even like the way it’s pronounced. 🙂 Roulade catches your attention. It makes your dish sound sexy, sophisticated and restaurantish. When you tell your guests you are making roulades, they think they are in for a special treat. It sounds so much better than rolled chicken breasts doesn’t it? I also like the way roulades present themselves on a plate. Sometimes, they look like little pinwheels. Other times, like this one, you have just a nice filling in the center of the selected protein. You just want to eat them they look soooo good. Another reason I like roulades is because it’s a fabulous way to add layers of flavor to a dish. The fillings for roulades are seemingly endless. You can use cheese, meat, chutneys, veggies, herbs and spices, pestos, etc. All you have to do is use your imagination. Further, with lean proteins it helps keep the protein moist. You can also make roulades out of virtually anything. We have made them out of salmon, flounder, pork loin, chicken and eggplant. Again, all you need is a little imagination and you can make beautiful roulades that everyone will like. Roulades are also remarkably simple to make. The whole process can be completed from start to finish in about 40 minutes; so, roulades make a good weeknight meal for the family. I mean, what is there not to like about roulades?
It has been a while since we last had a roulade and I have been trying to be inspired. When I made the chorizo the first time I wondered how it would do in a roulade. So, I scoured the internet looking for inspiration. Sadly, by the time I became inspired we had eaten all of the chorizo. 😦 That was several months ago. When Baby Lady was talking to her sister Eva, she commented on we had made our own chorizo and how wonderful it was. Eva aksed me if I would post the recipe to which I agreed. It just took a little while for me to do it. Nevertheless, I knew I wanted to make a roulade when I made chorizo again. This is what we came up with and this is what we did.
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 4 Tbsp butter, split
- 1 onion, small dice
- Kosher salt
- 1/2 pound homemade Mexican chorizo (if commercial, remove the casing)
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup grated aged Manchego cheese
- 1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup toasted, sliced almonds, coarsely chopped
- 1 egg
Instruction
Slice partially through the chicken breasts at the thickest part to open it like a book.
Place the chicken breasts in between plastic wrap and using the implement of destruction of your choice, take out your pent up aggressions from a hard day’s work.
Ah, the joys of beating a helpless piece of meat. 🙂 You want to pound the chicken so that it is roughly 1/4″ thick. Cover and set aside in the fridge until you’re ready.
Now, add the butter to the sauté pan over medium-high heat and melt.
Next, add the onions
and season with salt .
Cook the onions until they are soft and aromatic but do not brown, roughly 7 to 8 minutes.
Now, add the chorizo to the pan in chunks.
Cook the chorizo until it is cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer to a mixing bowl.
When cool enough to handle (still warm) add the almonds
breadcrumbs,
parsley,
manchego cheesse
and egg.
Now, it’s time to get your hands dirty – Mix it all together so that it is completely incorporated.
Divide the filling among the 4 chicken breasts. I told you this gets messy. 🙂
Roll the breasts
and secure with toothpicks.
Next, add the remaining 2 Tbsp butter to a heavy skillet over medium high heat
Add the rolled chicken breasts to the skillet.
Sear the breasts on all sides
Place in a 350 F oven and cook 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
Remove from the oven and allow to rest a few minutes. Slice on an angle and plate. Serve with some nice Mexican rice and a fresh tomato-cucumber salad and enjoy. We certainly did. 🙂
REMCooks 
Thank you Richard. Looks so delicious, I will try to make it soon. First the chorizo.
Thanks Eva. You will like making the chorizo although with the Ranch Mart nearby I would simply buy their stuff. The chorizo they sell in the DFW area is pretty nasty. 😮
This looks great, Richard. It is certainly great you have Baby Lady to handle the photography, especially when your hands are as dirty as in the photo. I bet this was delicious.
Thanks Stefan. Having Baby Lady take the photos helps a whole lot, especially when you have your hands full of food. 🙂 She also does a great job at catching the action shots. This was a fun dish to make and one we will redo but next time I want to do a sauce with it. I’m still working that out in my mind.
What a fantastic recipe for the chorizo! I just mentioned your recipe for the chorizo to my husband, and he said “yes, as soon as it gets chillier and fishing season is over, we’ll have plenty of meat-grinding time.” 🙂
Thanks Kathryn. Be forewarned about making sausage. It’s a lot of fun and can get seriously addicting. I have made numerous types of breakfast sausage, chorizo, boudin, etc. It’s fun and you really get to play with the seasonings. I also prefer sausage to almost anything.
When I first tried my hand at making sausage I needed to find some natural casing, either lamb or pig. So, I went to a German deli (Kuby’s) over by Southern Methodist University in Dallas. They specialize in sausage and my hunting friends take their deer meat and game to Kuby’s for processing and making into sausage. I went up to the counter to talk to one of the butchers and informed him I was going to make some sausage and wanted to buy some casing. He asked me how much sausage I was going to make because casing comes frozen in a 75 lb “hank.” I told him I was probably going to make 40 lbs that weekend. That, to me, was a lot of sausage. He chuckled, went in the back, brought me out 4 ounces of lamb casing and gave it to me. He also told me to come back when I was serious. 😀 4 ounces of casing made well over 60 lbs of sausage!!! I asked him how much sausage they made per week and he said over 10,000 lbs.
Wow, that is insane! Sorry I’ve been gone unplugged for a spell. This is good info, thank you so much. I guess I should ask for just a couple of ounces of casings when I go visit the meat market where I was planning on buying it, lol.
Go someplace that actually processes sausage. They love to share information and will be glad to help those who are beginning. They are also more inclined to give you a couple of ounces of natural casing. Lamb casing will work beautifully and is the right size.
Thank you Richard, I appreciate the “insider” info. 🙂