Chicken Rollatini with Pesto & Cheese

ByAnna + Liz Published Updated
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Chicken Rollatini with Pesto & Cheese is made with chicken cutlets stuffed with pesto and cheese, and baked until golden. Serve this with a simple arugula salad or with an Italian tomato salad for a complete dinner.

Two baked chicken rolled up and stuffed with pesto and cheese on a white plate.

Classic Italian Dish

Chicken rollatini is a classic Italian dish. This easy recipe is straightforward and requires 10 minutes to prepare, and about 15 to 20 minutes to bake.

I make our chicken rollatini’s with prosciutto and cheese often, and while my family was asking me to make them again, I decided to jazz up the flavors even more. And it turned out delish!

For more ideas and chicken recipes, try our Chicken Rollatini with Ham, Cheese & Spinach and Easy Chicken Casserole (Cordon Bleu). And, for more skillet chicken recipes, don’t miss our Mom’s Best Chicken Piccata and Tuscan Creamy Chicken Pasta (+video).

Notes and tips

  • To help save time, you can buy the already-made (and”all-natural”) pesto sauce, instead of making your own. I prefer to make my pesto sauce, to control the ingredients I want in it.
  • No need to add any salt to the cutlets, the pesto sauce provides enough salt; it’s mixed with grated cheese, olive oil, and seasonings.
  • It’s best and for easy prep to purchase the chicken already sliced into cutlets.
Two baked chicken rollatini served on a white plate.

What You’ll Need…

Staple ingredients are what makes this chicken dish so darn easy and delicious! For this chicken rollatini recipe, you will need the following ingredients:

  • Skinless Chicken Cutlets – choose thin chicken cutlets, about 1 pound of less.
  • Olive Oil – choose a good quality olive oil, or extra virgin olive oil to dip the cutlets into.
  • Plain Bread Crumbs – you will need some bread crumbs to coat the cutlets. Choose plain BC for less sodium, and other seasonings.
  • Italian Mozzarella– we had a small ball of BeL Gioioso mozzarella, and used only one slice per cutlet.
  • Pesto Sauce – you can use your own pesto sauce, or any jarred brand you prefer.
  • Garlic Powder – some garlic powder is used to flavor the bread crumbs.
  • Black Pepper – some pepper is also use for the bread crumbs.
  • Olive Oil Cooking Spray – is used to lightly spray each rollatini to lightly coat them before baking, and to help keep them moist.
All the ingredient are displayed for this chicken rollatini recipe.

How to make it

These chicken rollatini are made with thin chicken cutlets, lightly coated with olive oil and bread crumbs, topped with homemade fresh basil pesto sauce, and mozzarella cheese. Then they are rolled up and baked. Easy, simple and not complicated.

4-Easy Steps to Follow: How to Make Chicken Rollatini with Pesto & Cheese: (*full recipe card on the bottom)

  1. First, dip the cutlets, one at a time, into the oil, coating both sides. Then allow the excess oil to drip back into the bowl. Then transfer to the bread crumbs and coat both sides.
Dipping raw chicken cutlet into olive oil then into bread crumbs, coating both sides.

2. Second, lay the prepared cutlets onto your baking sheet. Top with a tablespoon of basil pesto sauce, then place a piece of mozzarella in the center.

3. Next, roll the chicken up and place them with seams side down on the bottom. Then, lightly spray over each one with olive oil cooking spray.

Steps to filling the chicken with pesto sauce, and slice of mozzarella, and rolled up.

4. Bake for about 20 minutes, until they are golden brown. Remove and serve. Delicious!

Ideas for sides to serve it with

Questions & Answers…

  1. Can we use Chicken Breasts? Yes, but you will need to slice the breast horizontally, in halves to give you thinner pieces. And, maybe pound them before you start.
  2. Can we use any jar of pesto sauce? Yes, you can. But I have to make my own and for 2 reasons. One, it is fresh tasting, and two: my daughter is allergic to all nuts, so we can never use the jarred brand of pesto.
  3. Do we need to grease the baking pan? No need for that, the chicken is already coated with enough olive oil, so they won’t stick.
  4. Need more servings? Sure! All you need to do is double the ingredients for this recipe.
Two baked chicken rollatini served on a white plate.

A great dinner…

This chicken rollatini recipe is perfect for an easy weeknight dinner. Serve it with a simple salad, and some crusty bread, along with extra pesto sauce drizzled on the side for dipping. A hearty and delicious meal for the whole family.

Try these next!

If you try our chicken rollatini, let us know and leave a comment below! For more delicious dinner ideas, follow us on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook. Happy Cooking!

Yield: 3 servings

Chicken Rollatini with Pesto & Cheese

Two baked chicken rolled up and stuffed with pesto and cheese on a white plate.

Chicken Rollatini with Pesto & Cheese is made with chicken cutlets stuffed with pesto and mozzarella, and baked until golden. Simple, easy to make, and a dinner your whole family will love!

Prep Time 8 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 28 minutes

Ingredients

  • 3 thin chicken culets (3 oz each)
  • 1/4 cup of olive oil
  • 1/3 cup of plain bread crumbs
  • 3 slices of fresh Italian mozzarella
  • 3 Tbsp. basil pesto
  • 1/4 tsp. garlic powder
  • 1/8 tsp. black pepper
  • olive oil cooking spray

Instructions

    1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (204C).

    2. Rinse and drain the chicken cutlets. Set aside.

    3. In a small dish, add the olive oil for dipping, and set is nearby.

    4. In a second plate, stir the plain bread crumbs with garlic powder and black pepper.

    5. Take a chicken cutlet, one at a time, dip it into the oil, coating both sides, and allow the excess oil to dip back into the bowl. Then dredge the cutlet into the bread crumbs mixture, and pat to coat both sides. Transfer to your baking pan. Lay them flat on your baking sheet.

    7. Next, spread 1 tablespoon of pesto sauce onto each chicken cutlet. Cut a small piece of mozzarella and place in the center of each, directly on top the pesto sauce. Then roll up the cutlet, and place it with its seam side facing down.  No need to use toothpicks to secure. Lightly spray with olive oil on top of each rollatini.

    8. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden crispy on the outside.

    Serves 3

Notes

Remember that all ovens vary. You will need to check on them after 15 minutes, so keep an eye on them. Also, the time needed to bake, will also depend on the thickness of the cutlets.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

3 servings

Serving Size:

1 serving
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 430Total Fat: 23.4gCholesterol: 112mgSodium: 284mgCarbohydrates: 12.4gFiber: 3.5gSugar: 2.4gProtein: 44.3g

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© 2 sisters recipes
Cuisine: Italian / Category: Chicken Recipes

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11 Comments

  1. Oh my word – this looks so delicious! I like to make my own pesto too tho I do have a jar of sundried tomato pesto in the fridge atm. Might try that!
    cheers
    sherry

    Reply

  2. My family loved it. So, being a non-meat eater tried it with fillet of sole instead of chicken. YUM! Fish stays very moist. Same recipe otherwise, except the fish cooks a bit faster.

    Also found the cooked chicken rollatini freezes and reheats well. I even made extra and and froze some the fish version -but I refroze the sole rollatinis using FRESH, UNCOOKED fish. Perfect for a quick meal.

    Reply

    1. What a delicious idea! Haven't tried it yet with fish, but I bet it is just as yummy as you say it is! Thanks for a great tip!

      Reply

  3. These look so good! Gotta love quick and easy chicken recipes 🙂 And stuffing them with pesto and mozzarella was a wonderful idea!!!

    Reply

  4. Perfect recipe for chicken – always looking for more – thanks!Mary x

    Reply

  7. My husband and I loved this dish! He is a picky eater and I often worry about if he will like foods "with flavor" The pesto goes great with the chicken and breading, this dish is a definite make again and again. Liz, I know the peas are not up yet but I am making them AGAIN! Thanks so much for your recipes they are great!
    Christine

    Reply

  9. I made this dish for dinner and my husband absolutely loved it! It was super easy to make. Thanks Anna and Liz!

    Reply