June 9, 2009

Cooking Tender Chicken Breast Meat

by Lynnette Lo

When you cook chicken breast meat, you will want to ensure that the meat is not overcooked or dry and tough. Having an end result of succulent, juicy breast meat is not all that difficult if the chicken is cooked correctly. Chicken breast meat is lean and has less fat than any other part of the chicken as long as the skin is removed so it is probably the best and healthiest part too. Employing simple cooking and marinating techniques would be able to render the lean chicken breast meat into something delicious and tender.

It will never do to have the best chicken recipe but end up with tough overcooked chicken that are stringy, dry and hard to chew. The secret to cooking chicken breast meat is in the way it was cooked and how long it was cooked. Of course, the meat has to be thoroughly cooked but overcooking it could render it dry, tough and inedible.

There are several ways to prepare the breast meat. You could stir fry it or roast it or bake it for a healthier option. Or if you don’t mind the extra calories, or fat, you could deep fry it too. However you want to prepare it, you must always remember to add some flavors to it with a great marinade from your recipe. If you really want some tender chicken breast meat, tenderize it. Although you can always get a bottle of tenderizer, often used for steaks, but you could always go natural and avoid the commercial stuff. Try marinating the chicken pvernight with apple juice and you will get the same effect.

Now, if you are thinking of deep-frying the chicken for some crunchy chicken fingers, you could also choose to use buttermilk as marinade. Buttermilk is also another natural tenderizer. Next, we talk about how you cook the chicken. When you are grilling it or baking it in the oven, remember to keep the temperature at moderate and set the cooking time to shorter periods. All you need to do is to pop the chicken in and set it at maybe, 15 minutes cooking time and then check on it. If it is cooked by then, remove from the oven. The cooking time varies according to the size and amount of chicken you are cooking.

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.

It may seem that cooking chicken breast meat is difficult but it is great for dieters as it is low in fat and high in proteins. It can be prepared for lunch or dinner and it is pretty versatile as it can be prepared in many different ways. As long as you learn the correct techniques in locking in the moisture and keeping it tender, chicken breast meat is a great low fat choice of protein.

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