Ways To Cook Chicken Breast Meat
One of the biggest challenges in cooking chicken breast meat is to make sure that it remains tender, juicy and tasty. This is because chicken breast meat is lean and tough meat and could become stringy and dry if not prepared properly. However, it is also the healthiest part of the chicken as it has less fat and contains mostly lean meat without the skin. One will need to use marinade and cooking techniques to produce great tender delicious chicken breast meat.
Say, you have a family recipe for chicken recipe but you are trying it out for the first time. However, you left it on the stove for too long and your chicken ended up practically dry and stringy. There was nothing wrong with the recipe but the duration of the cooking time. Chicken breast meat must not be overcooked or else it will dry out and neither should it be uncooked or else it’d be too raw for anyone’s taste!
There are plenty of different ways to cook chicken breast meat, either you bake it, roast it, stir fry it or even deep fry it. Whatever way you choose to cook it, you must first remember that marinade is also important to add flavors to it according to whatever recipe you have on hand. Then, if you really want tender chicken breast meat, then you will need to tenderize it, either with a mallet or with through another means, marinade. You could use the commercial bottled marinade or you could marinade the chicken in apple juice overnight and you’d get soft, tender chicken breast meat.
Otherwise, if you are thinking of deep-frying it for some crunchy chicken treats, then using buttermilk is as good a tenderizer as any for tender, soft and juicy meat. The next trick is when you cook the chicken. If you are baking or grilling it, you will have to be careful to ensure the temperature is not set too high so as not to overcook the chicken. It is best to keep it at medium to medium high instead of at high temperature. Also, do set the cooking time at a shorter time-frame instead of longer. If it is not completely cooked, you can always pop it back into the oven for another round of baking but if it is overcooked, it will be too late.
Now, if you plan to try you hand at stir-fried chicken, it is always best to slice the chicken meat into small, thin pieces so that the meat cooks easily and thoroughly. It will also save you time and spare you from overcooking it. A stir fry chicken recipe I can share with you is ‘Stir-Fried Mushrooms Chicken’. First, you season the chicken with some soy sauce and pepper. Then, you sautee some garlic till fragrant. Add sliced brown mushrooms and stir-fry for about a minute or so. Then you throw in the chicken pieces and stir-fry for about 3 minutes. Make sure the heat is maintained at medium low. Once the juices run clear, the chicken is cooked and you can remove from heat immediately.
Although the chicken breast meat could prove to be a challenge to cook, it is low in fat, packed with proteins and is great for lunch and dinner. It suits those on a diet and those watching their weight very well and that’s not all, it is pretty versatile. Chicken breast meat can be cooked any way you like and as long as it is done correctly, it will be tasty, healthy and best of all, low in fat!
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Tags: breast meat recipes, chicken breast meat, chicken recipes, food, Recipes