Hunters Chicken

Here I’ll show you the easiest and most delicious to make the British pub classic Hunters Chicken!

Hunters Chicken is THE perfect midweek meal. It requires minimal prep and is ready in around 30mins. Plus, it never fails on flavour. Follow me…

Hunters Chicken Ingredients

At its heart, this recipe only requires 4 main ingredients. I like to add a couple of additions, but they’re not deal breakers. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Chicken – boneless skinless chicken breasts.
• BBQ Sauce – try and grab a good quality sauce as it makes up a big bulk of the recipe.
• Cheese – cheddar is traditional and typically what I use.
• Bacon – streaky bacon, smoked or unsmoked.
• Seasoning – I like to season the chicken in smoked paprika, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, black pepper and salt. You can get away with salt and black pepper though if that’s what you have on hand.
• Chives – to garnish, for an extra pop of colour and flavour.

Can I use a different cheese?

I sometimes sneak in some mozzarella with the cheddar, which works great. You can use all mozzarella, it’ll just lack slightly in flavour. Monterey Jack works nicely, as does Red Leicester.

Preparing Hunters Chicken

Typically hunters chicken is layered as chicken topped with bacon, then BBQ sauce then cheese. It does the trick, but I find wrapping the chicken in bacon gives you a far better result. This not only helps keep the chicken from drying out, but it also brings the dish together a bit more, instead of the toppings just sliding off a plain chicken breast.

When wrapping the chicken, just make sure the end of each bacon strip is tucked underneath the chicken. Just to ensure it doesn’t unravel in the oven. You can make Hunters Chicken in a large cast-iron skillet or a shallow baking dish.

Process shots: sprinkle seasoning over both sides of the chicken (photo 1), wrap in bacon (photo 2), add to skillet or baking dish (photo 3), bake until the chicken is cooked (photo 4).

Making Hunters Chicken

So after you’ve baked the chicken you’ve essentially got yourself chicken wrapped in bacon, which ain’t all that bad. But a Hunters Chicken ain’t a Hunters Chicken without the BBQ sauce and cheese.

Once you’ve smothered the chicken in sauce and cheese, I recommend popping it under the grill to melt the cheese. You could place it back in the oven and melt it that way, but you run the risk of the chicken overcooking by the time the cheese melts.

Can you make Hunters Chicken ahead of time?

I don’t recommend fully making it and reheating, just because the chicken won’t be as juicy. If you want to get ahead of the game I’d recommend just seasoning and wrapping the chicken, then tightly storing it in the fridge until needed.

Serving Hunters Chicken

Once the cheese has melted, I like to finish with some fresh chives. I recommend adding these if you have them, just because they add a final pop of flavour. But I wouldn’t make a special trip to the shop just solely for them.

What to serve with Hunters Chicken

Here’s a few ideas for you:

• Fries or Wedges and Coleslaw
• Roasted Potatoes and Green Beans
• Mash and Peas

For another delicious chicken wrapped in bacon recipe check out my Spinach Artichoke Chicken Wrapped in Bacon!

Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipe for this Hunters Chicken shall we?!

How to make Hunters Chicken (Full Recipe & Video)

5 from 7 votes

Hunters Chicken

By: Chris Collins

Here I'll show you the easiest and most delicious to make the British pub classic Hunters Chicken!

Prep: 5 minutes mins

Cook: 30 minutes mins

Total: 35 minutes mins

Servings: 4

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Equipment

• Large Cast Iron Skillet or Baking Dish
• Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
• Cheese Grater
• Small Pot (for seasoning mix)

Ingredients 

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Hunters Chicken

• ▢ 4 boneless/skinless Chicken Breasts (around 7oz/200g each)
• ▢ 12 slices of Streaky Bacon
• ▢ 1 cup / 240ml good quality BBQ Sauce (see notes)
• ▢ 1 cup / 100g grated Cheese, or as needed to cover chicken (see notes)
• ▢ finely diced Fresh Chives, to garnish (optional)

Chicken Seasoning (see notes)

• ▢ 1 tsp Smoked Paprika
• ▢ 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
• ▢ 1/4 tsp EACH: Salt, Black Pepper, Cayenne Pepper (can omit cayenne or alter to spice preference)

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 200C/400F.
• In a small pot combine chicken seasoning. Evenly sprinkle over each side of the chicken breasts (don't rub it in or it'll clump up).
• Wrap each breast in 3 slices of bacon, then place into a large cast iron skillet or baking dish. I usually make sure the ends of the bacon are underneath the chicken, just so it doesn't unravel in the oven.
• Bake for 25mins until the chicken is piping hot and white through the centre. Remove from the oven and switch the oven to grill.
• Generously spoon BBQ sauce over each breast, then generously top with cheese. Place back under the grill until the cheese melts.
• Serve up and enjoy!

Video

Notes

a) BBQ Sauce - Try and grab a good quality sauce, just because it makes up a large part of the dish. Here I've used sweet baby ray's, which you can find in most stores.

b) Cheese - Classic option is cheddar, and that's what I usually go for, but in reality most melty cheeses will work. Mozzarella and Monterey Jack are great options.

c) Seasoning - It's not a deal breaker if you don't have smoked paprika, garlic powder and cayenne, but definitely season with salt and pepper.

d) Prep Ahead - I don't recommend making the whole thing and reheating, but you can season and wrap the chicken, then tightly store in the fridge. Preferably bring close to room temp before baking, just to take the chill out the centre.

e) Serving - I usually serve in 3 different scenarios:

• Fries or Wedges and Coleslaw
• Roasted Potatoes and Green Beans
• Mash and Peas

f) Calories - Just for the chicken, no sides.

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Nutrition

Calories: 798kcal | Carbohydrates: 30.78g | Protein: 62.3g | Fat: 45.95g | Saturated Fat: 6.643g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.37g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3.828g | Trans Fat: 0.347g | Cholesterol: 175mg | Sodium: 1519mg | Potassium: 1268mg | Fiber: 0.9g | Sugar: 24.56g | Vitamin A: 774IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 229mg | Iron: 1.72mg

Looking for more?

You’ll find plenty more delicious comfort food like this in my Debut Cookbook ‘Comfy’

For more similar recipes check out these beauties:

Classic British Dinners

• Toad in the Hole
• Coronation Chicken Curry
• Cottage Pie (or Shepherd’s Pie)
• Giant Pigs in Blankets
• Chicken, Leek and Mushroom Pie

If you loved this Hunters Chicken recipe then be sure to pin it for later! Already made them or got a question? Give me a shout in the comments below and pick up your free ecookbook along the way!