Chicken Bread stuffed with a delicious, creamy chicken filling. Despite looking fancy it’s super easy to make. It’s perfect for tea-time, lunch boxes and picnics.
This braided chicken bread is a hearty combination of freshly baked home bread and chicken pie.
Ingredients for Braided Chicken Bread
Making chicken bread is a 2 step process, the dough and the filling. The ingredients required are below . It makes 2 bread loaves.
Dough – This is my multipurpose dough recipe that I use for pizzas and Garlic Knots.
- Plain Flour – all purpose flour.
- Yeast – I used instant dry yeast
- Sugar – helps yeast to activate.
- Oil – prevents dough from sticking.
- Salt
Chicken Filling
Shredded Chicken – Boiled and shredded chicken. Use chicken fillets and boil them with little bit of salt.
Flour – all purpose/plain flour helps to bind the chicken mixture.
Butter – I add little bit of oil and some butter. It gives creamy texture to chicken filling.
Black Pepper – use black pepper powder.
White Pepper – its adds flavour as its different kind of spice and flavour as compared to black pepper.
Chilli Sauce – any type of chilli sauce can be used. It gives a bit kick to the filling. You can also substitute it with tomato sauce/ketchup if you dont want it to be spicy.
Onion – one medium sized onion – finely chopped.
Milk – makes the chicken mixture creamy.
How to Make Braided Chicken Bread ?
Prepare the Dough first. Allow the yeast to rise in a quarter cup of water with sugar. You can prepare the dough in a stand mixer or use a wooden spoon and hands.
Allow it to rise for 1 -2 hrs. The dough needs perfectly warm place to rise. I usually warm the oven slightly and then turn it off. Put the dough inside, the warm air inside will help rise the dough more quickly.
To Make Filling – I used boiled chicken that is shredded. Begin with sautéing onions in oil and butter. Add flour and cook for a couple of minute. Add chicken and put salt, pepper and chilli sauce. Lastly add milk and mix , this makes the chicken creamy and it all comes together. Allow it to cool down.
To Assemble: Roll the dough into a oval/oblong shape. Put the filling in the center. Cut 2 inch strips on either side. Braid the strips by bringing alternative side on the top and overlapping them. Seal it at the ends. Brush it with egg and sprinkle with sesame. I like to add some nigella seeds as well, it gives a great nutty taste.
Bake the bread for 25 -30 minutes until its golden on the top.
TIP: It can be tricky to lift the bread after its filled. You can assemble it by placing in the tray you will be using to bake.
Watch How to Make It
Filling Ideas
When it comes to filling for this bread there are many things you can use apart from creamy chicken. You can use vegetarian filling. Check Samosa Pie recipe for potato filling. Mince meat is another great option for this bread. Checkout Turkish Pide for meat filling recipe.
You can also add cheese to this recipe if you like cheesy chicken bread.
Freezing the Chicken Bread
After baking, let the bread cool completely. 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 warm.
Other Recipes to Try:
Samosa Pie
Garlic Knots
Turkish Pide
Chicken Puffs
Braided Chicken Bread
Ingredients
Dough
- 2½ cup Plain Flour ( 450 g)
- 2 tsp Instant Yeast ( 7g)
- 2 tsp Oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- Warm Water for kneading dough
Chicken Filling
- 2 cups Boiled Chicken Shredded See Notes
- ½ Onion Chopped
- 1 tbsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Butter
- ½ tsp Black Pepper
- ¼ tsp White Pepper
- 1 tbsp Chilli Sauce (Subsitute Tomatoe Sauce)
- ½ cup Milk
- 1 tbsp Oil
Assembly
- 1 egg Lightly Beaten
- Nigella seeds and sesame seeds.
Instructions
Dough
- In small bowl or a cup add warm water, yeast, and granulated sugar together , cover and let it stand for 5-10 minutes. The yeast will rise become foamy.
- In a stand mixer bowl add flour, prepared yeast, olive oil and salt. If you don’t have a stand mixer, simply use a large mixing bowl and mix the dough with a wooden spoon .
- Mix it for 2 minutes while adding the water gradually. You may not use the whole amount of water mentioned. As soon as dough comes together stop adding water and mix for another 2 minutes. At this stage the dough should be slightly sticky.
- Lightly grease a bowl with oil and put dough in it. Cover and allow it to rise at room temperature for 2 hours. If you want it to rise quicker, heat oven at 150° C for 10 minutes. The oven should be hot enough to touch. Put the dough inside and it should rise in 45 mins to 1 hr.
Chicken Filling
- In a pan heat oil and butter until it melts. Add onion and sauté until its translucent. Add plain flour and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add chicken along with Salt, pepper and Chilli sauce. Mix well until everything is combined well
- Add the milk while stirring it and mixing the chicken with wooden spoon. It should form a creamy mixture. You can add more milk to adjust the consistency but make sure its not runny.
- Allow the mixture to cool down to room temperature.
Assembly
- Dust some flour on a clean surface and knead the dough for a minute. Divide it into 2 parts.
- Roll it into oval/oblong shape using a rolling pin. Put the chicken filling in the middle. Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter cut 1½ inch strips on each sides.
- Bring up the strips on each side to cover the chciken filling, making a criscross or braid pattern. Seal the sides.
- Transfer the bread on a tray lined with baking paper. It can be tricky to lift the bread after its filled. You can assemble it by placing it in the tray you will be using to bake.
- Brush it with lightly beaten egg and sprinkle sessame or Nigella seeds. Bake it in the oven for 25 – 30 mins or untill golden brown.
How much water?
Hi Jasmine, initially use around 1/4 cup when you add yeast. After this add water gradually while mixing the dough.It would be around 3/4 cup. Avoid adding to much as it makes the dough sticky.Hope this helps !!