Inside-out Chicken Parmigiana

I love this chicken dish because it’s impressive but easy, with classic pub flavours and a little extra pizzazz. Importantly, it’s the perfect dish to prepare ahead of time: make your rolls, steam your spuds, then finish it all off when your guests arrive or the family is clamouring.

My inside-out scroll is a spin on the traditional Aussie pub parmi – or do you say parma round your way? The traditional crumb crust and the ham and cheese toppings are rolled inside a flattened chicken breast. It’s then steamed rather than fried, locking in flavour and moisture, and the napoli sauce goes under instead of over. Don’t worry, though, we still get golden brown crisp and crunch from the twice-cooked potatoes.

Everyone who makes this (and eats it) loves it!

The recipe is from the Plan Ahead chapter of my cookbook and chip, Entertaining with Dani Valent. The chicken can be rolled and the potatoes steamed a couple of days before you serve them. Who said entertaining was a hassle?

Cut to the chase:

• 3:20 smashing out those chicken breasts
• 4:20 filling and rolling the chook

Serves: 6-8 as a main
Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Method

Crumb
1. Place bread, lemon zest, garlic and olives into mixing bowl. Chop for 6 sec/speed 7 to turn to a rough crumb. Turn out into a small dish and set aside.

Sauce & potatoes
2. Without cleaning mixing bowl, place shallots and garlic clove into mixing bowl and chop for 2 sec/speed 5. Scrape down sides of mixing bowl with spatula.

3. Add butter and cook for 3 min/100ºC/speed 1.

4. Add passata and chicken stock to mixing bowl. Place potatoes in Varoma and set Varoma into position. Steam for 20 min/Varoma/speed 2.

Rolled chicken
5. While potatoes are cooking, prepare chicken. Separate tenderloin from chicken breast. Place chicken thighs between two sheets of baking paper and flatten by beating with a meat mallet or rolling pin to a rough rectangle that’s thin enough to roll up (approx. 1-1.5cm thick). Remove top sheet of baking paper from flattened chicken and place a sheet of aluminium foil underneath the bottom sheet.

6. With the rough side of chicken facing upwards, sprinkle the crumb mixture along the centre of the breast, followed by torn pieces of silverbeet, a slice of prosciutto and mozzarella. With the aid of your baking paper and foil, roll chicken into a tight scroll, twisting the ends to secure. (Rolls can be set aside in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, or frozen, as can steamed potatoes, and the sauce.)

To assemble
7. If necessary, top up sauce in mixing bowl with water, to cover the blades. Add salt and pepper to taste. Place chicken rolls in Varoma, making use of both dish and tray and set Varoma into position. Cook for 20 min/Varoma/speed 2.

8. Preheat oven to 190ºC. Transfer steamed potatoes into a roasting tin, toss with olive oil and salt and place in preheated oven for 20-30 minutes, or until edges are golden and crisp.

9. When Varoma steaming time has elapsed, pierce chicken with a skewer to centre of a roll. If juices run clear, chicken is cooked. If not, top up liquid in mixing bowl if necessary, and cook for a further 6 min/Varoma/speed 2. Remove Varoma and replace with measuring cap. Blend sauce 30 sec/speed 4-7, slowly turning from speed 4 to speed 7.

10. Remove chicken from wrappers and slice each thigh on the diagonal into scrolls. Pour a pool of sauce onto each serving plate, arrange chicken on top of sauce with layers exposed, and add golden potatoes.

Serve with extra sauce on the side for guests to help themselves.

Tips

• Feel free to use stock paste and water instead of liquid stock.
• If you don’t have a meat mallet or a rolling pin, try using an empty bottle of wine.
• Use the tenderloins to make kid-sized Inside-out Chicken Parmigianas.
• Yes, you can freeze the rolls too – defrost in the fridge before steaming as in the recipe.
• If you are cooking rolls straight from the fridge they will probably take a little longer than 20 minutes to cook. You can either set to 25 min/Varoma/speed 2 at step 7, or follow the recipe and add time at step 9.

Variation

• Replace silverbeet with any seasonal greens.

The Plan Ahead menu from my Entertaining cookbook also includes Almond Crackers, Sweet Potato and Grain Salad and amazing Peanut Butter Parfait but there are lots of other ways you could serve this Inside-out Parmi as part of a dinner party. My Good Food article gives the option of Mimosa Float, Romesco Dip and stunning Chocolate Volcanos – see all the recipes here.

Love this style of cooking with the Varoma? It’s a great technique that locks in flavour and moisture. This cooking method is also used in Beef Rotolo, which is available to subscribers. Steak is similarly rolled, this time with pesto, and steamed in the Varoma over stock, which becomes the base for a mustard sauce. Or for another dish that’s deliciously mouthwatering, try my Pineapple-spiked Vietnamese Lamb Salad.  Subscribe to check it out.

Did you know Dani Valent gift vouchers are available right here? They make the perfect present for the Thermo-lover in your life.

More about this website

Dani Valent is a subscription website for Thermomix cooking videos. It’s a place to find inspiring, informative, practical, beautiful Thermomix videos, just like this one :)

Subscribers have access to the complete recipe library plus a new video and recipe every week. You can read a list of recipes available here. Dani Valent is the destination for everyone that wants to get more from their Thermomix. It’s like a TV channel full of Thermomix content!

The site follows on from my award-winning Thermomix cookbooks and is a great partner for my third Entertaining cookbook.

See more about Dani Valent…

What are people saying about Dani Valent?

Don’t miss out on great recipes and fun videos: subscribe or purchase a gift voucher for that Thermo-lover in your life!

More about this video

• I love my Obus top!
• See my three cookbooks lined up behind me? This was the first time I put them all together and I must confess I felt rather thrilled.