How To Prepare Chicken Breast For A Healthy Meal
Chicken is a healthy and versatile protein that can be used in a variety of dishes. chicken breast is a leaner cut of chicken that is often recommended for those looking to eat a healthier diet. While chicken breast is generally healthy, it is important to cook it properly to ensure that it retains its nutritional value and is safe to eat.
When preparing chicken breast for a meal, it is important to first rinse the chicken with cold water. This will help remove any bacteria or contaminants that may be present on the chicken. Next, pat the chicken dry with a paper towel or clean the kitchen towel. Once the chicken is dry, you can then begin to prepare it for cooking.
One simple way to prepare chicken breast is to season it with salt, pepper, and other spices of your choice. You can also coat the chicken in flour, bread crumbs, or other similar ingredients before cooking. This will help to create a crispy outer layer on the chicken when it is cooked.
When cooking chicken breast, it is important to use a method that will not dry out the chicken or cause it to become tough. Baking, grilling, or poaching chicken are all good options. Be sure to cook the chicken until it reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure that it is safe to eat.
How To Cook Perfect Juicy Chicken Breast
Here, how to bake, boil, pan-sear and grill chicken breast. Juicy results every time.
Quinoa and Brown Rice Salad with Peppers and Beans-Photographed on Hasselblad H3D2-39mb Camera
Layla Khoury-Hanold is a contributor at Food Network.
Chicken breasts are a go-to staple, lauded for their neutral flavor profile and versatility. But there are a few techniques to master to ensure that your chicken breasts turn out juicy, tender and flavorful. Here, we answer all your pressing chicken breast questions and share our top recipes for making chicken breasts.
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If you accidentally spill coffee on your keyboard, there are a few things you can do to try and fix it. The first thing is to try to remove as much of the coffee as possible with a cloth or paper towel. If that doesnt work, try spraying some rubbing alcohol on a cloth and wiping down all the keys. If those methods dont work, you may have to get a new keyboard.
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What To Serve With Baked Chicken Breast
There are many things that go well with chicken breast, but some of the most popular include roasted vegetables, mashed potatoes, rice, quinoa, and salad.
You can also serve chicken breast with rice or pasta, or also pair chicken breast with a number of different sauces or toppings, depending on your preference.
For a more hearty meal, you could add some bread or rolls to the side. You can also get creative and experiment with different flavors to find what you like best.
Be sure to pair your chicken with a side that will complement its flavors and help round out the meal. Whatever you choose to serve with your chicken breast, make sure that it is cooked thoroughly and properly seasoned. Enjoy!
What Youll Need To Make This
- Chicken breasts I use boneless skinless chicken breasts. Again, I prefer organic chicken breasts. It is important to use a high quality meat as some chicken breasts are injected with a solution of saltwater to plump it up so it looks better on the shelves.
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper Keep in mind that kosher salt is twice the size of table salt. A sprinkle of table salt is much saltier than the same amount in kosher salt.
- Paprika Use sweet or smoked paprika.
- Butter use Ghee if youre doing Whole30.
- Italian seasoning
- Garlic minced
- Olive oil extra virgin
Some people like to season their chicken breast with spices and some brown sugar. but because I want to keep it low-carb, I didnt add brown sugar. However, if you prefer, add one teaspoon of brown sugar to the spice mixture and season your chicken.
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Start Grilling The Chicken On The Cool Zone
Place the chicken skin-side up on the cooler part of the grill. Close the lid and cook for about 15 minutes. Check occasionally if the chickens exterior is burning, move it to a cooler area. Use tongs to flip the chicken, cover, and cook about 15 minutes more, or until an instant read thermometer inserted into the center of a chicken breast registers 150 degrees F.
How To Use Cajun Seasoning
Cajun seasoning is extremely versatile! Try sprinkling this seasoning blend on:
Its such a great all-purpose blend that you can almost add it to anything! Check out how I used it in my One Pot Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta. I also use a slight variation on this blend to make my Cajun Sausage and Rice Skillet, Blackened Shrimp Tacos, Blackened Shrimp Pasta, and Cajun Cabbage and Noodles.
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The Chicken Breast Seasoning
Made with just brown sugar, paprika, oregano, garlic powder, salt and pepper, the secret ingredient in this is brown sugar:
Makes more seasoning, so you can coat the breast thoroughly and give it a beautiful crust without overpowering it with lots of spices that need longer to cook than chicken breast does and
Makes it juicy the chicken sweat while it bakes, so you end up with wetness that makes the chicken more juicy than the usual baked chicken breast.
Yes it adds sweetness but dont worry, this baked chicken breast is still savoury!
Ways To Use Chicken Breast
Once you have your juicy baked chicken breast, there are so many incredible ways to use it!
- With Vegetables. Baked chicken breast is delicious served with vegetables. We especially love ours with Roasted Broccoli, Oven Roasted Potatoes, and Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Garlic.
- With Pastaor Rice. Serve your chicken with any of your favorite pasta or rice dishes .
- On a Green Salad. Pump up the protein of your favorite salad by adding some chicken.
- For Chicken Salad. To use leftover oven baked chicken breasts in a cold chicken salad, let the chicken come to room temperature, then refrigerate it until it is chilled down. Dice it, then add it to your favorite chicken salad recipe, such as this Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad or this Curry Chicken Salad.
- In a Recipe. Use this chicken in a recipe that calls for cooked chicken. See our full list of healthy chicken recipes for ideas.
For easy use, you can dice or shred this baked chicken breast.
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How Long To Bake Chicken Breast At 400 After Searing
Chicken breasts quickly seared on the stove will only take 15-18 minutes in the oven at 400. In other words, searing can reduce the baking time by 1-3 minutes. A longer searing time can reduce baking time further.
But why sear chicken before baking? As you can see in the photos, chicken breast doesnt brown well when baked at 400. Searing provides some browning on the chicken, and helps to lock in the moisture and flavor.
Should I Put Laptop In Rice
There is a growing trend of people putting their laptops in rice to help protect them from water and other liquids. There are many proponents of this practice, but there are also some who warn against it. Some argue that the heat created by the laptop will cook the rice and potentially damage the computer. Others say that the rice will act as a protective layer and keep moisture out.
Ultimately, if you are concerned about your laptops safety, it is best to take it to a technician or specialist for testing.
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How To Bake Thin Sliced Chicken Breasts
Jodi / /
Learn how to bake thin-sliced chicken breasts in a couple of simple steps. These baked chicken cutlets are tender and cook quickly. Learn our easy method for simply seasoning this dinner staple.
Do you tend to steer away from baking chicken breasts because of the fear they will lack flavor and tenderness? We can all agree that we have been there a time or two, but not anymore! With our simple method for baking chicken breasts, we can all officially say goodbye to dried-out chicken!
This tutorial on How To Bake Thin Sliced Chicken Breasts will walk you through each step to creating a tender and flavor-packed chicken breast. Watch our full version video showcasing three simple chicken toppings over on our YouTube channel.
In under 25 minutes, you can have juicy chicken prepped, baked, and served. As a bonus, you can fully customize the flavor of the chicken depending on your familys preferences.
With the minimal equipment and ingredients needed for this recipe, it will become a meal staple. Ready to try this game-changing method for baked chicken? Lets go!
Oven Roasted Chicken Breasts
The foundation for many weekly meal preps, Simple Oven Roasted Chicken Breasts are crispy, juicy and tender. Just a few minutes of hands on time saves you hours in the kitchen during the week. And theyre better than store-bought rotisserie chicken!
I wasnt going to post this recipe for a variety of reasons. The pictures are not beautiful. The recipe is silly, stupid simple. Its just chicken. I didnt want to insult you all by posting something like Oven Roasted Chicken Breast but the truth of the matter is..its the basis for many of my quick prep meals.
In a pinch, I like to use a rotisserie chicken but I find when I buy them in advance and store them in the refrigerator, they dry out. And then theyre only really good for making chicken salad.
So, I like to make a few roasted bone in chicken breasts on Sunday and use them throughout the week. Sure, I could make another trip to the store and buy a fresh rotisserie chickenbut why? By making my own chicken, I can control what I put into it. And I keep it simple.olive oilkosher saltpepper. And split chicken breasts, of course, but I think you get the gist.
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Prep The Chicken 15 Minutes Before Cooking
Pat the breasts dry with paper towel to remove excess moisture . Next, season both sides generously with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Allow the chicken to come to room temperature for 15 minutes this ensures even cooking results, plus, it gives the salt and pepper time to permeate the skin.
Baked Chicken Breast Ingredients:
To make this baked chicken breasts recipe, you will need:
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts: You can either purchase fresh chicken breasts or frozen chicken breasts . Some chicken also comes pre-brined nowadays, in which case you can skip step one below.
- Butter or olive oil: Your pick! I like the extra flavor that butter adds, but olive oil will also work well.
- Kosher Salt: An essential ingredient in our brine, and we will also use salt to season the chicken before baking.
- Seasonings: I included an all-purpose blend of smoked paprika, garlic powder, salt and black pepper in the recipe below, which is super-simple and goes with just about anything. But feel free to sub in any dry seasoning blend that you prefer.
Also, if you bake chicken regularly in the oven, I strongly having a cooking thermometer on hand too. It is the most foolproof way to ensure that your chicken is not over- or under-cooked, and works like a charm. I recommend either this:
- Instant-read cooking thermometer : which I have owned and used for years when cooking chicken, which retails for about $9.99 on Amazon.
- Dual-probe wireless meat thermometer: which I also own and love because it can be used inside of a hot oven , which retails for about $24.99 on Amazon.
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How To Bake Chicken Breast In The Oven
Pro Tip: If you desire an extra crispy outside layer, broil the chicken breast for a few minutes before its fully cooked.
How To Cook Chicken Breast On A Blackstone Griddle
Blackstone griddle is an excellent piece of equipment to cook your chicken breast on. Not sure how to go about cooking chicken breast on your griddle? We will show you! Cooking chicken breast can be done in 2 or more ways however, we will be showing you 2 methods by which you can cook your chicken breast on your Blackstone griddle. Enjoy!
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Wet Vs Dry Brined Chicken Breasts
- Pros. Short brining time. Just 15 minutes yielded fantastic results. Chicken retained more moisture.
- Cons. Messy. I dont love having my chicken sitting in a bowl of water. Wet brining takes up more space. You need to rinse the chicken after it is brined which is messy and has a slightly higher contamination risk .
- RESULT. Some of the juiciest chicken Ive ever tasted. It was plumper than the dry brine, though I cant say one was more tender than the other.
Still deciding? Check out these close ups.
Cooking Boneless Vs Bone
The cooking technique below is for boneless chicken breasts . Bone-in chicken breasts take much longer to cook through, so youll want to utilize the oven to make sure the breast heats through completely without burning on the outside. For bone-in chicken breasts, I suggest using the method outlined in my Herb Roasted Chicken Breast recipe.
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How To Bake Chicken Breast
The key to baking the best juicy chicken breast is in these 3 factors:
Chicken Breast SizeChicken breasts can vary in size between 5 and 10 ounces, so the cooking time can vary. If baking more than one breast, make sure theyre all the same weight, so they cook at the same rate. Make sure your fillets are all the same thickness to ensure even cooking. Pound each breast out to a little more than 3/4-inch at the thickest part
What Temperature to Bake Chicken BreastIm willing to bet youve been baking your chicken at 350 for 1 hour, right? I did that for years, as well. Stop doing that! The best temperature to bake chicken breasts at is 425 degrees F. Cooking them fast at a higher temperature seals in the juices and the key to caramelization.
How Long to Bake Chicken BreastSo, youve pounded the chicken breasts out to 3/4-inch even thickness and preheated your oven to 425 degrees F. But how long do you bake them for? Large chicken breasts take about 20-22 minutes to cook. Medium-sized breasts take about 18-20 minutes. They are finished cooking when an internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. The safest way to test for doneness is with an instant read thermometer.
Should You Bake Chicken Covered Or Uncovered
When it comes to baking, you should always be cautious about the ingredients you are using. You may be asking yourself whether or not you should bake chicken covered in order to protect
it from being harmed by the sun or rain. After all, both conditions can cause heat and bacteria to grow on chickens, which can lead to them becoming sick or even dead.
There is no completely wrong answer when it comes to baking chickencovered in an air tight container like a canning jar or a Rubbermaid box. However, if you are going to bake uncovered,
make sure that your oven is either equipped with a broiler or a thermal overload protection device in order to prevent excessive heat from reaching your bird.
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This is a sponsored post in partnership with DeLallo. All opinions are my own as always. I do genuinely adore this brand and the family and team behind it, and use their food in my home constantly. Many thanks for supporting brands like them that help make this site possible.
For another delicious meal idea using DeLallos Pomodoro Fresco sauces, check out my friend Marias Easy Cheesy Baked Tortellini over at Two Peas and Their Pod. And if youd like to try a creamier version of this pasta, check out this delicious Chicken Alfredo Baked Ziti .