Healthy Recipes Holidays Chicken Ballotine with Creamy Leek & Chestnut Stuffing 5.0 (1) Add your rating & review This chicken ballotine is a delicious, impressive meal for the holidays. Deboning a chicken takes time and skill. Our recommendation: Get your butcher to debone it, then you can stuff and roll it. By Nora Singley Nora Singley See More Nora Singley is a food stylist and recipe developer with a keen eye for detail, honed by her six years working for Martha Stewart. She has styled food for movies, commercials, cookbooks and magazines, and was culinary producer for five seasons of Moveable Feast on PBS. EatingWell's Editorial Guidelines Updated on September 26, 2025 Reviewed by Dietitian Breana Lai Killeen, M.P.H., RD Reviewed by Dietitian Breana Lai Killeen, M.P.H., RD Breana Lai Killeen, M.P.H, RD, is a Chinese and Jewish chef and dietitian who has worked in all facets of the food world. She is a recipe developer, culinary nutritionist and marketing specialist with more than 15 years of experience creating editorial and digital content for top food and kitchen brands. EatingWell's Editorial Guidelines Save Rate PRINT Share Jump to recipe Close Active Time: 1 hr 20 mins Total Time: 2 hrs Servings: 10 Nutrition Profile: Soy-Free High-Protein Egg-Free Jump to Nutrition Facts This chicken dish is impressively presented and ideal for holiday gatherings.Whole-wheat country bread in the stuffing provides a source of fiber.The dish features a blend of fresh aromatic herbs like parsley and rosemary. What Is Chicken Ballotine Made Of? A ballotine is a whole chicken that has been deboned, stuffed and tied to hold its shape. It can be roasted, braised or poached, and served hot or cold. What Is the Difference Between Galantine and Ballotine? A galantine is poultry or fish that has been deboned, stuffed and pressed into a cylindrical shape. It's traditionally poached and served cold. A ballotine can be served hot or cold, but it's typically served hot. Additional reporting by Jan Valdez Keep Screen Awake Ingredients 1/2x 1x 2x Oops! Something went wrong. Our team is working on it. This recipe was developed and tested at its original yield and has not been tested at other yields. Note that only the ingredient list is scaled, so you may need to make adjustments to ingredient amounts, cooking times and equipment sizes in the recipe steps. Scaling could also impact the nutrition analysis. Original recipe (1X) yields 10 servings 2 cups cubed whole-wheat country bread (1/4-inch pieces) 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided 4 cups sliced leeks (about 3 medium) 1½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided ½ teaspoon ground pepper, divided ¼ cup dry vermouth plus 2 tablespoons, divided ½ cup heavy cream 1 ½ cups coarsely chopped jarred or vacuum-packed chestnuts (7 ounces) ½ cup chopped fresh herbs, such as parsley, rosemary, sage and/or thyme 1 (4 pound) whole chicken, deboned Directions Preheat oven to 350°F. Place bread cubes on a large rimmed baking sheet and bake until dry and toasted, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl. Increase oven temperature to 400°F. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon each oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the foaming subsides, add leeks, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally and adjusting the heat as necessary, until light golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Add 1/4 cup vermouth and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add cream and cook until slightly thickened, about 1 minute more. Scrape the mixture into the bowl with the bread. Add chestnuts and herbs and stir to coat. Place the chicken on a work surface, skin-side down and legs facing downward. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Using a small spoon or your fingers, stuff the leg cavities with as much of the bread mixture as will fit. Spread the remaining bread mixture over the surface of the breast meat. Working from the long side of the breast, fold the chicken tightly into the middle. Repeat with the other side, so that it overlaps the other half slightly. Roll and flip the chicken so that the seam is face down and the skin is face up. Starting at the top of the breast, truss the bird, making slipknots by looping kitchen string around and under the chicken repeatedly, at approximately 1-inch intervals. When you reach the bottom, turn the chicken over and thread the twine over and under each of the horizontal strings created during the first step of trussing. Tie the 2 ends of the string together, pulling to tighten and secure. Tuck in any stuffing that has fallen out. Season the outside of the chicken with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the pan, seam-side up. Cook, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes total. Position the chicken seam-side down and transfer the pan to the oven. Roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of the stuffing registers 165°F, 40 to 45 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a clean cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, skim fat from the pan drippings. Place the pan over medium heat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons vermouth and cook, scraping up the browned bits, until the liquid has nearly evaporated, about 3 minutes. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and swirl the pan until it's melted. Remove string from the chicken and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Serve drizzled with the pan sauce. Equipment Large rimmed baking sheet, kitchen string, large ovenproof skillet Originally appeared: EatingWell Magazine, December 2020; updated December 2022 Save Rate Print Nutrition Facts (per serving) 504 Calories 28g Fat 21g Carbs 38g Protein Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label Nutrition Facts Servings Per Recipe 10 Serving Size 1 slice Calories 504 % Daily Value * Total Carbohydrate 21g 8% Dietary Fiber 2g 7% Total Sugars 4g Protein 38g 76% Total Fat 28g 36% Saturated Fat 10g 50% Cholesterol 133mg 44% Vitamin A 1159IU 23% Sodium 461mg 20% Nutrition information is calculated by a registered dietitian using an ingredient database but should be considered an estimate. * Daily Values (DVs) are the recommended amounts of nutrients to consume each day. Percent Daily Value (%DV) found on nutrition labels tells you how much a serving of a particular food or recipe contributes to each of those total recommended amounts. Per the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the daily value is based on a standard 2,000 calorie diet. Depending on your calorie needs or if you have a health condition, you may need more or less of particular nutrients. (For example, it’s recommended that people following a heart-healthy diet eat less sodium on a daily basis compared to those following a standard diet.) (-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a special diet for medical reasons, be sure to consult with your primary care provider or a registered dietitian to better understand your personal nutrition needs.