Sous Vide Chicken Breast with Spinach and Herbed Cheese

I have been known to say I love anything with spinach, and that is pretty close to the truth. I also happen to love herbed cream cheese (my favorite brand is Boursin®, of course). Include the two with a chicken breast that contains the mixture and you have a five-ingredient dinner dish that everyone loves. I typically serve half a chicken breast per person, which makes this recipe serve 6.

Author

Barbara Freda

I grew up in a cooking family and after getting a degree in Spanish and Anthropology, realized what I really wanted to do was to go to culinary school. After working in a NYC bank for a few years, I managed to get to culinary school and got my first jobs in NYC kitchens, including a long stint at Union Square Cafe in its earliest years. After (sadly) leaving NYC, I realized I needed to step away from the 80-hour work weeks, so I left the heat of the kitchen for the cool of the computer keyboard: I started writing about food, the business of food, and technology in the food industry, as well as teaching cooking classes. Recipe development remains one of my top loves, and the opportunity to develop recipes for Anova has been fun every step of the way.

Prep Time: 00:20

Recipe Time: 01:30

Temperature : 146.3F / 63.5C

Ingredients

• 3 (8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 8 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
• 1 (5.2-ounce) package herbed cream cheese, such as Boursin®
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 2 strips thick-cut bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled

Directions

1. Set the Anova Sous Vide Precision Cooker to 146ºF (63.5ºC).
2. Slice the chicken breasts in half horizontally, leaving enough meat intact to make a pocket in the breast.
3. In a small bowl, mix together the spinach and cheese. Stuff spinach mixture in the pocket of each chicken breast. Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and paprika.
4. Place each chicken breast in its own quart-size zipper lock bag. Seal the bags using the water immersion technique. Place the bags in the water bath and set the timer for 1 1/2 hours.

Finishing Steps

1. When the timer goes off, remove the bags from the water bath. Carefully remove the chicken from the bags and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is shimmering, add the chicken and sear for 1 minute on each side. Transfer to serving plates and let rest for 5 minutes. Top with crumbled bacon. Serve.