Gordon Ramsay’s chicken ballotine is a butterflied breast stuffed with herby sausage meat, rolled tightly in cling film, poached until just firm, then pan-fried in foaming butter until golden. Sliced into rounds and served with a wholegrain mustard velouté. Serves 4, about 50 minutes plus chilling.
This recipe comes from his cookbook Chef’s Secrets where he says “flavour is especially important when it comes to chicken, there are too many tasteless birds around.” He uses chicken suprêmes stuffed with sausage meat, tarragon, and chervil.
The technique is two-stage cooking. Poaching sets the shape and cooks the stuffing through gently, then a quick fry in butter gives the outside a golden crust without overcooking the chicken.
Gordon Ramsay Chicken Ballotine
Course: DinnerCuisine: FrenchDifficulty: Hard4
servings20
minutes25
minutes530
kcal45
minutesRestaurant-style ballotine from Ramsay’s Chef’s Secrets cookbook. Chicken breast stuffed with herby sausage meat, poached then pan-fried in foaming butter, sliced into rounds and served with a creamy mustard velouté. The poach-then-sear method keeps the chicken moist while the stuffing cooks through. About 530 kcal per serving.
Ingredients
- For the ballotines:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (suprêmes if available)
250g (9 oz) good quality pork sausage meat (about 4 thick sausages, skinned)
1 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
1 tbsp chopped fresh chervil or flat leaf parsley
2 tbsp olive oil
Large knob of butter
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- For the mustard velouté:
300ml (½ pint) chicken stock
15g (½ oz) butter
15g (½ oz) plain flour
3 tbsp double cream
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Prepare the chicken: Remove any sinews from each breast. Using a sharp knife, slit each breast horizontally, three quarters of the way through, then open out flat like a book. Season the inside with salt and pepper.
- Stuff and roll: Mix the sausage meat with the tarragon and chervil (or parsley). Spread the mixture evenly over the opened chicken breasts. Roll up each one tightly, then wrap in several turns of cling film, twisting the ends firmly for a good seal. Chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours to firm up.
- Poach: Bring a large shallow pan of water to the boil. Lower the wrapped chicken rolls into the water and poach for about 15 minutes until they feel just firm when pressed. Lift the rolls straight into a large bowl of iced water and leave for 10-15 minutes to cool quickly. Remove the cling film.
- Make the velouté: Melt the butter in a small saucepan, stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the chicken stock until smooth. Simmer for 5 minutes until thickened. Stir in the cream and wholegrain mustard. Season to taste and keep warm.
- Pan-fry: Heat the olive oil and butter in a large frying pan. When the butter starts to foam, add the poached chicken rolls and fry for about 5 minutes, turning regularly, until nicely browned all over. Leave to rest in a warm place for 5 minutes.
- Serve: Slice each ballotine into thick rounds and arrange on warmed plates over creamy mashed potato. Spoon the mustard velouté over and around the slices.
FAQs
Why poach the ballotine before frying?
The gentle poaching cooks the sausage meat stuffing all the way through without drying out the chicken. If you tried to cook it from raw in a pan, the outside would burn before the centre was safe to eat.
The ice bath afterwards stops the cooking and firms up the roll so it holds its shape when you slice it. Ramsay wraps them in “several turns of cling film, twisting the ends well for a good seal” before poaching.
Can you use chicken thighs instead of breast?
Ramsay includes this as a variation in the same cookbook. Bone the legs with the skin intact, place the sausage meat along the centre, tie with string, wrap in foil, and slow roast at 170°C (340°F) for up to an hour.
Thighs stay juicier because the dark meat has more fat. They won’t slice into clean rounds as easily, but the flavour is richer. His chicken Wellington uses a similar stuffed-and-wrapped approach with puff pastry.
What sausage meat works best?
He calls for “good quality fresh sausage meat, about 4 thick sausages, skinned.” In the UK, that means proper butcher’s sausages with high meat content, not cheap supermarket ones full of filler.
Buy 4 thick Cumberland or Lincolnshire sausages and squeeze the meat out. The tarragon is the key herb here, it’s a classic French pairing with chicken. If you like that combination, his béarnaise sauce uses the same herb and works beautifully alongside poultry.
What to serve with chicken ballotine?
Ramsay suggests “pasta or Pomme Purée” in the cookbook. His rich mashed potato makes a perfect base for the sliced rounds, with the velouté pooled around it.
For a different sauce, his peppercorn sauce is a richer alternative to the mustard velouté for a special occasion. A rocket salad on the side keeps things balanced, the peppery leaves cut through the richness.
Can you make it ahead?
This is one of the best dinner party dishes because almost everything can be done in advance. Poach and ice-bath the rolls a full day ahead, keep them in the fridge in fresh cling film. The velouté can be made ahead too.
When guests arrive, fry the rolls for 5 minutes and reheat the sauce. Slice at the table for the restaurant reveal. Overnight chilling actually helps because the sausage meat firms up even more.
How do you stop the stuffing falling out?
Three things. Only slit the breast three quarters through, not all the way, so the meat stays in one piece. Wrap in multiple layers of cling film with the ends twisted tight. Chill for at least 2 hours before poaching.
If the rolls feel loose after wrapping, give them longer. Ramsay says “a couple of hours” minimum but overnight is better. The colder the roll, the better it holds together.
