Easy Date-Night Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts

Need a fancy and delicious but easy meal? You can have these delicious Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts on the table in 30 minutes, start to finish!

I made these Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts for Scott one evening last week with some roasted asparagus. His eyes got big when he saw the pretty presentation and even bigger when he took the first bite. "Wow, so good!" was his response. I also served this to our son Nick, his wife Lindsay and their two little ones, Emmy and Hayes, a few days ago. Everyone loved it and gave a huge thumbs up so I thought you would probably enjoy it too!

Weeknight friendly yet dinner-party and date-night worthy

If you've made our Stovetop Juicy Tender Chicken Breasts, you'll be pleasantly familiar with this new recipe. It's the same delicious rub and easy technique, except you wrap the breasts in prosciutto before sautéing. And after the chicken is done, there is a simple (but delicious and optional) white wine/chicken broth sauce and a garnish of fresh rosemary. The whole recipe will take you less than 30 minutes.

I love recipes like this that are simple enough to throw together after work on a busy weeknight but also fancy enough to serve for guests, for a nice dinner party or a romantic night in for two. This makes such a pretty presentation on a plate without much effort at all.

Skeptical?

Don't believe this fancy looking Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts recipe could be so easy? I would probably be doubtful too, if I hadn't done it several times myself. Check out the simple steps:

1. Make the rub. It's only 5 ingredients and you probably have all of them in your spice cabinet. If you don't, these are herbs and spices you'll use a lot, especially if hang out here at The Café, so they won't be wasted. The rub combination includes garlic salt, paprika, Italian seasoning, sugar (to enhance browning) and black pepper. Just stir these guys all together and you're ready to roll.
2. 
3.  The next step is the one that sounds fancy, but couldn't be easier. We've taken a few pictures to make the simple steps clear. Lay out two pieces of overlapping prosciutto (more if the chicken pieces are large or the prosciutto pieces are small) on a work surface. Place one spice-rubbed chicken breast (smooth side down) on top of the prosciutto and just wrap it up like you might swaddle a newborn baby (haha, can you tell I was a mother-baby nurse for 25 years?).
4. Repeat the little wrapping procedure with each piece of chicken then turn them all over (seam side down) and sprinkle with a little more of the delicious rub.
5. Now you're ready to cook the chicken. Heat a pat of butter with a splash of olive oil in a medium-large sauté pan (with a lid) until hot and just starting to sizzle. Add the chicken and cook, uncovered for 3-5 minutes until the underside is a beautiful golden brown.
6. Cover the pan and set a timer for 5 minutes. Check the meat for doneness (an internal temperature of 160˚F) and cook a little longer if needed (the time will vary depending on the size of the breast portions). When the chicken is done, remove it from the pan, tent with foil and let the chicken rest.
7. You can be done at this point or take a few more minutes to create a delicious little sauce. Just add splashes of white wine and chicken broth, bring to a boil and cook until reduced a bit and super flavorful. Another pat of butter and a shower of finely chopped fresh rosemary are the finishing touches for a fabulous sauce to drizzle over this beautiful chicken.

Lots of options for pairing

I like to serve these Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts with roasted asparagus or roasted Haricots Verts (the long, thin French green beans) for a healthy dinner.

It's also delicious with mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes or pasta. When Nick and Lindsay came for dinner, I served a Panzanella salad which also paired really nicely with this wonderful chicken.

Want to impress family and/or friends (or "a friend") with a delicious dinner? This Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts recipe will make you look like a kitchen rock star with minimal effort on your part. Make it soon! You and whoever you serve it to will be so... happy you did!

Cafe Tips for making these Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts

• It's super easy to overcook chicken breasts. That's why they're often tough and dry. An instant thermometer is worth its weight in golden to help determine when chicken is done, prevent overcooking and ensure juicy tender meat. The ideal internal temperature for perfectly cooked chicken is 165˚F. I usually take mine out of the pan when the thickest part of the meat registers 160-162˚F as the temp will rise slightly as the chicken rests.
• If you don't have an instant thermometer, you won't have to break the bank to purchase one. This one works well and is decently inexpensive.
• This recipe is easily halved for a date night, but you might want to make all four portions as the leftovers are DELICIOUS! Just warm the next day on 50% power in the microwave. It makes a great take-to-work lunch or a dinner on the run.
• For a pretty presentation and quicker cooking time, look for smaller chicken breast portions. You might not have noticed this but grocery stores and chicken packaging plants will often have the same number of breasts in a package. So if you look for the lowest weight packages, you'll get smaller portions.
• Look for prosciutto in a package with long rectangular pieces (as pictured below). If you request prosciutto at the deli counter you'll often get a package of shaved pieces of differing sizes. I have found beautiful packages of perfect (for this recipe) prosciutto at Sam's Club, Costco as well as my local grocery store.
  
• I definitely don't always purchase organic ingredients, but I do find that organic chicken breasts are often more tender.
• I often make a big batch of this rub and store it in a glass jar. That eliminates one step when making these Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts or our Juicy Tender Sautéd Chicken Breasts (same rub and a weeknight staple around here).
• You'll need a large, heavy-duty sauté pan with a lid for this recipe. Cast iron works well as does a good stainless steel sauté pan. I love this All-Clad Stainless Steel Tri-ply Sauté Pan and this Staub Braiser Pan.
• Although this recipe says that it serves 4, it will easily feed 6, especially if your chicken breasts are not super tiny.
• To prep this Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts recipe ahead of time, season and wrap the chicken breasts with prosciutto then refrigerate. Just before dinner proceed with step 3 below (under "For the chicken") for a quick, delicious, fuss-free meal!

Thought for the day:

You alone are the Lord .
You have made the heavens,
The heaven of heavens with all their host,
The earth and all that is on it,
The seas and all that is in them.
You give life to all of them
And the heavenly host bows down before You.
Nehemiah: 9:6

What we're listening to for inspiration:

How Great Thou Art

If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review! It’s so helpful to other readers to hear your results, adaptations and ideas for variations.

5 from 2 votes

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Easy Date-Night Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts

Need a fancy and delicious but easy meal? You can have these delicious Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breasts on the table in 30 minutes, start to finish!

Author: Chris Scheuer

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: American, Italian

Keyword: Easy Chicken Breasts, Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken Breasts

Prep Time: 15 mins

Cook Time: 15 mins

Total Time: 30 mins

Calories: 314 kcal

Ingredients

For the rub:

• 2 teaspoons garlic salt
• 2 teaspoons mild paprika
• 2 teaspoons dry Italian seasoning
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper

For the chicken:

• 4 small to medium boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 8-12 slices prosciutto or enough to wrap around each breast
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

To finish (optional):

• ½ cup dry white wine
• ½ cup low sodium chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon cold butter cut into 4 pieces
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary plus more for garnish

To serve:

• rosemary sprigs for garnish

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For the rub:

1. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir well to combine. Set aside. Sprinkle the breasts with the rub, reserving one teaspoon.

For the chicken:

1. Lay two prosciutto slices on a work surface, overlapping so that the width of the two is slightly smaller than the width of your chicken breasts. Place a chicken breast (with the smooth side down) on top of the prosciutto and wrap it around so that it covers most of the chicken.

2. Repeat with the remaining prosciutto and chicken. Lay the prosciutto-wrapped breasts with the smooth side up on the work surface. Sprinkle each lightly with the remaining rub. Allow breasts to sit with the rub on for 15-20 minutes, at room temperature.

3. Heat the butter and olive oil in a cast iron or heavy stainless steel pan over medium heat. Butter should sizzle a bit and be fairly hot, but watch it at this point to prevent burning. Make sure the pan is large enough to accommodate all of the breasts without crowding.

4. Add the chicken (smooth side down) and allow to sit for 3 minutes without touching. After 3 minutes, take a peek at the underside of one of the breasts. If it’s browning too quickly lower the heat a bit. Continue cooking for a total of 5 minutes or until the underside is nicely browned.

5. Flip breasts to the opposite side (seam side down) and immediately lower heat to medium-low. Cover and continue to cook for another 5-10 minutes, until internal temperature reaches 160˚F when an instant thermometer is inserted into the center of the thickest part of the breast. (The time will vary depending on the size of each portion - very large breasts will take longer. Use the thermometer as your guide, not the time.)

6. Once 160˚F is reached, remove the chicken to a clean plate and cover it loosely with foil. You can stop at this point and let rest for 5 minutes before serving OR proceed with the sauce, letting the chicken rest while it's being made.

To finish and make the sauce (optional):

1. Add ½ cup wine to the pan and bring to a boil, stirring and scraping any brown particles (fond) from the bottom of the pan. Cook until the wine is reduced by one half, 1-2 minutes.

2. Add the chicken broth, return to a boil and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken a bit. Add the cold butter one piece at a time, stirring until each piece is melted before adding the next. Stir in one teaspoon of finely chopped fresh rosemary.

To serve:

1. Transfer the chicken to a platter and (optionally) drizzle with the sauce. Sprinkle with more finely chopped fresh rosemary and garnish with rosemary sprigs.

Recipe Notes

See Café Tips above in the post for more detailed instructions and tips.

 

Calories 314kcal

Fat 19g

Saturated fat 7g

Trans fat 1g

Cholesterol 98mg

Sodium 1461mg

Potassium 528mg

Carbohydrates 3g

Fiber 1g

Sugar 1g

Protein 27g

Vitamin A 711%

Vitamin C 1%

Calcium 17%

Iron 1%