This homemade Chicken Bread is stuffed with a delicious, creamy chicken filling. Despite looking complicated, it's easy to make the bread, and perfect for tea-time, parties, and Iftar time during Ramadan.
1teaspoongranulated or castor sugarI used granulated
1/2cupwarm water for kneading the dough
Creamy Chicken Filling Ingredients
2cupsboiled and shredded chicken
2 small red onionsfinely chopped
1teaspoonsalt
1teaspooncrushed black pepper
4tablespoonsfresh chopped coriander
3chopped green chiliesde-seeded if you prefer the filling to be mild
2tablespoonsflour
2tablespoonsbutter
1 1/2cupsmilk
Topping the Bread
Sesame seeds for the toppingoptional
Egg wash
Instructions
Preheat oven to 200 C and prepare two baking sheets lined with parchment paper or aluminium foil.
Make the Dough
Start by proofing the yeast. In a medium sized bowl, combine the water, yeast and sugar and mix well. Cover and let rest for a 5 minutes until the yeast mixture is creamy and frothy.
In a large mixing bowl combine 4 cups of flour, 2 tablespoon milk, 1 teaspoon salt, 4 tablespoon oil, 2 eggs and 1 teaspoon granulated sugar, and the yeast mixture.
Knead the dough using your hands or a stand mixer for about 10 minutes until it is soft and springs back at the touch of a finger.
Form into a ball and place in a greased bowl. Cover the dough and let it rise for about 40 minutes to 1 hour in a warm place nearby the oven.
While the dough is rising, prepare the chicken filling.
Make the Creamy Chicken Filling
In a medium sized saucepan, add 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 chopped red onions.
Cook the onions till they are just translucent, we don't want any color on them.
Add 2 tablespoons of flour and let it cook for about 1 minute while stirring continuously.
Pour in 1 1/2 cups of milk and stir slowly until it becomes thick. The sauce is ready when you run a finger down the back of the mixing spoon and it remains.
Add the shredded chicken, coriander, green chilies, black pepper and salt. Mix well and let it cool.
Assembling the Bread
After the dough has risen, divide it into 2 equal sized balls.
Roll one dough ball into a rectangular shape.
Put your cooled chicken filling in the middle of the rectangle and cut diagonal slits on the longer sides of the rectangle.
Fold over the slits in a criscross fashion, neatly folding at the end. (Refer to to the pictures below to see the method).
Repeat this for the second dough ball.
Brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Place the breads on a greased baking tray and bake for about 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
Dry Active Yeast: I prefer this yeast, but it is perfectly fine to use instant yeast as well. I always prefer to proof my yeast separately to ensure that it's activated properly.
Oil: Use any neutral-flavored vegetable oil of your liking.
Water: Use lukewarm water or it should be at 38C / 100 F. Any higher, and it will kill the yeast.
Shredded chicken: I boil 450 grams of chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and soy sauce. Once it's cooked through, I let it cool and shred with two forks. You can also use leftover shredded chicken, or even roitsserie chicken.
Onion: Use any onion you have on hand, I used red onion.
Green chillies: Add as many or skip altogether to your liking.
Coriander/cilantro: Adds a delicious fresh flavor to the chicken filling. Can replace with parsley but the flavor won't be the same.
Butter: I use salted but you can use unsalted as well.
Milk: For a creamy chicken filling, it's best to use whole milk. However, you can also use low-fat milk as well.
Egg wash: I combine 1 egg with 2 tablespoons of water and whisk well to make the egg wash. You can also simply brush with some milk as well.
Sesame seeds: Can be substituted with black sesame seeds or skipped altogether.
Make Ahead/Freezing Instructions:
After baking, let the bread cool completely. Then wrap tightly in cling film, and freeze for up to 1 month. To reheat, thaw completely overnight in the fridge, and bake in the oven at 170 C for a few minutes until it's warmed through.
Filling Variations & Ideas:
Minced Meat: You can use this keema as a filling for this stuffed bread. It's spicy and full of flavor, and perfect as a filling.
BBQ Chicken: You can also mix the shredded chicken with BBQ sauce (like I do in this recipe for Dorito Nachos) and use this as a filling for the bread. Top with some pickled jalapenos and cheese, and bake!
Nutella: You can also use nutella as a filling, and top it with crushed walnuts, for a sweet version of this bread.
Turkey & Cheese: Stuff the bread with your favorite cheese and turkey slices for a deli version.
Malai Boti Filling: For a different take, you can also use this Malai Chicken Tikka Boti, and shred it before using it as filling.