History

Chicken cordon bleu as a dish unto itself first appeared on restaurant menus in the United States in the early 1960s. According to the Food Time Line website, it is clearly an American recipe innovation. This specific combination and name did not originate in Europe. It was considered a trendy dish at the time and served at fashionable, high-class restaurants.

Origins

There are many regional dishes from Europe that share characteristics with Chicken Cordon Bleu. Some of the countries that include roulades, or roll ups of meat, in their cuisine are Germany, France and Italy. Almost all of them are based on veal or chicken wrapped around stuffing, another meat, cheese or a combination of any of these. Many of them are then breaded and fried. The names and recipes vary widely, but their connection to the dish is apparent.

Closest Dishes

The Ukrainian dish called veal Kiev consists of veal wrapped around seasoned butter that is then battered and fried. The Swiss dish of veal cordon bleu is veal wrapped around thinly sliced ham and Gruyere cheese. It is battered and fried as well. These two dishes were popular restaurant items in the early 1960s and appear to have the closest connection to chicken cordon bleu.

Misconceptions

The dish did not originate at any of the prestigious Cordon Bleu cooking schools of Europe as often thought. It is not exactly clear who was the first person to prepare and name the dish chicken cordon bleu. The term cordon bleu has come to denote a chef of exceptional quality. The originator may have been playing off that perception when naming the dish. He may have simply been substituting less expensive chicken for veal in veal cordon bleu.

In The News

The first reference to chicken cordon bleu in the "Los Angeles Times" newspaper was in 1968. There are earlier references to its predecessor, veal cordon bleu.