How Long To Cook Mini Chicken Roasts

Roast chicken with stuffing & gravy on a weeknight...can't be done you say? Just not enough time?

chicken thigh filled with stuffing and wrapped in bacon on white baking tray

Well guess what? I have the solution - Chicken Mini Roast with Stuffing. PS: and gravy!!! Done in UNDER 1 HOUR!

"How?" you ask. Well, I have put together a homemade stuffing you will want to eat all by itself, then wrapped it in succulent chicken thighs (easily my favourite cut of chicken) THEN wrapped that little perfect little parcel in bacon.

Yes Bacon. It deserves a capital B. And as we know, everything tastes better with Bacon.

And gravy. Did I mention the gravy? Because a roast dinner needs gravy.

I don't want to toot my own horn/blow my own trumpet etc, but these are sooooo gooooooood!!!!!!!!! I was so proud of myself when I made them for the first time it was a bit ridiculous, I couldn't get over how good they tasted!!! ?

Here is a close-up of the stuffing inside.

chicken mini roast with stuffing - traditional roast chicken stuffing chicken thighs easy weeknight meal roast dinner

Looks good, doesn't it?

If you love roast chicken but don't have time to make it (or carve it), then these little bad boys are for you.

Lee-Ann ♥

chicken mini roast with stuffing - traditional roast chicken stuffing chicken thighs easy weeknight meal roast dinner

4 skinless boneless chicken thighs - trimmed (approx 500g - any thicker sections beaten out slightly)
4 rashers streaky bacon (rind removed)
1 ¼ cup fresh bread crumbs - firmly packed (I use sourdough)
3 tablespoon salted butter - melted (divided plus extra if required)
1 egg (lightly beaten)
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon + a good pinch ground sage (divided)
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon dried marjoram
pinch fine salt
1 ½ tablespoon plain flour
1 ½ cups chicken stock
8 toothpicks

Pre heat oven to 180 c / 355 f fan forced. Line a low sided, rimmed baking tray/sheet with baking paper & set aside
Place breadcrumbs in a small bowl along with onion powder, garlic, ¼ teaspoon sage, thyme, marjoram & salt then mix lightly
Add 2 tablespoon melted butter to breadcrumbs and mix to combine well, then add beaten egg and mix until well combined
Place bacon rashers vertically on a clean work surface, then place one chicken thigh smooth side down on each rasher of bacon to form a cross or "+" shape
Take ¼ of breadcrumb mixture and compress with your hands to form a rough oval shape patty, then place patty in the center of the chicken thigh - the patty will run the same direction as the bacon
Bring up both sides of the chicken thigh to wrap around the patty, then bring up both ends of the bacon to cross over the top of the mini roast then secure each bacon end with a toothpick and place on prepared tray (see notes)
Using a pastry brush, brush the remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter evenly over the mini roasts, and bake for 30 - 35 mins or until cooked through & stuffing has crispy edges
To make gravy, remove mini roasts from baking sheet/tray and keep warm, then carefully pour the remaining butter & pan drippings into a small saucepan, adding extra butter if needed & mix in the plain flour (see notes)
Stir butter & flour mixture over low heat until mixture starts to look grainy & bubbly. Switch off heat, then gradually add stock 1-2 tablespoon at time for about the first 500ml / ½ cup, making sure the liquid is fully incorporated with no lumps before the next addition of stock. Add a good pinch of powdered sage & simmer until gravy has thickened slightly, taste & season if required
Remove toothpicks to serve if you wish, top with gravy & serve

I cook these mini roasts on a rimmed baking sheet. It needs to have sides because there will be some melted butter & chicken juices in the pan when the cooking is finished. I like to use something with low sides - it helps the chicken & bacon brown up better due to the better heat circulation.

I suppose that strictly speaking the gravy is optional - but what's a roast without gravy? If you don't make the gravy you can cut 10 mins from the cooking time.

A note on the pan drippings/butter that we are using to make the gravy - this one of those times you will have to make a judgement call as to whether to add extra butter if required. It will depend on how much melted butter is left after cooking - only you can be the judge at the time. For the mini roasts that you see here in my photos, I added about 2 teaspoon of extra butter to make the gravy.

I actually used my baking paper as a funnel (carefully!) to pour the butter & drippings into the saucepan.

*Please note that the amount of calories per serve is provided as a guide only, as ingredients and cooking methods can vary greatly*