How do you cook....

[Moxie]

Burgers that are flavorful and juicy???

 

Frozen, boneless, skinless chicken breasts that aren't dry and stringy??

 

[wintermom]

My dh is the BBQ expert in our house. For chicken breasts, defrost in the fridge first, sear both sides on high heat, then lower the heat and spray with water to keep them moist. When you can cut through the thickest parts and they are white and no pink, they are done. We don't usually marinate them or add sauce before or during cooking.

 

Do you make your own burgers or use store-bought?

[Annie G]

I use Bubba burgers to grill. They are cooked from frozen and come out juicy. 

Chicken breasts I pound thinner, which tenderizes them and reduces the time needed to cook, which keeps them from drying out. 

[KungFuPanda]

I've tried both of these and they work really well.

 

For chicken:

 

http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-cook-moist-tender-chicken-breasts-every-time-36891

 

For Burgers

 

http://www.food.com/recipe/emerils-burger-seasoning-382944

 

Another note about burgers . . . Don't go too lean with the ground beef. The super lean mix is great for other things, but you WANT some fat for juicy burgers.

[Amy in NH]

Panda is right about the fat content for your burgers.  The skin serves a similar purpose for the chicken breasts.  If I'm going to cook on the grill I prefer the split chicken breasts because the skin keeps the meat moist, and the bone protects it from direct heat/burning.  Often I will split a whole chicken (or two for leftovers) down the breast bone and cook that on the grill.

 

It sounds like you're overcooking them and then serving too soon.  Cook until almost done, then let sit covered to finish cooking and redistribute the juices.

 

Stringy chicken breasts could be roosters or old laying hens.  Are you getting them for a big discount?

[Lady Florida.]

Another note about burgers . . . Don't go too lean with the ground beef. The super lean mix is great for other things, but you WANT some fat for juicy burgers.

 

Dh usually grills our burgers outdoors, but occasionally I cook them on the stove in our grill pan. I'm usually one to buy very lean ground beef, but not for burgers. Chuck has a decent fat content for juicy, flavorful burgers.

 

We season with Montreal Steak Seasoning. Usually we mix it in the ground beef before shaping the patties, but we've also just sprinkled it on each individual burger patty. I've tried the "make a dent in the center so they don't puff up" trick, but I don't notice a difference. Maybe we just aren't doing it right.

 

Bone-in chicken is not as convenient as boneless, but it gives a juicier piece of chicken (especially breasts) with more flavor. 

[bolt.]

Chicken breasts, in a covered frying pan

 

- Thaw breasts.

 

- Preheat pan to med-high, add 1t olive oil, 1t butter, plus any seasonings.

 

- Add breasts, cook (uncovered) for 2 minutes.

 

- Flip breasts, reduce heat to just one tick above minimum, insert meat thermometer, put on lid.

 

- It takes about 14 minutes for small-ish breasts, but consult the meat thermometer (try not to let out much steam). Turn off the heat as soon as you hit the poutry temperature, but leave the lid on.

 

- Leave the lid on for 10 minutes with no heat -- they won't cool much at all (and if they do, you can just briefly turn the burner back on at a high temperature to get them piping hot before serving).

 

This results in very tender breasts that are pretty much poached, but they are browned on both sides and very flavourful.

 

(Wow this method is really similar to the link above, just no pounding and no flour coating, and the times are a touch longer -- probably to account for no pounding.)

[VaKim]

Or you can do chicken breasts in foil in the oven. When I do it, I put bbq sauce on some of them for my dh, who likes it.

 

http://www.livestrong.com/article/538857-how-to-cook-boneless-skinless-chicken-breasts-in-tin-foil-in-the-oven/

[Laura Corin]

I don't cook chicken breasts whole, because you can't keep an eye on whether they are going dry or not.  My go-to recipe for chicken breast:

 

Marinate chicken breast cut into 1" cubes in olive oil, crushed garlic, lemon juice and fajita seasoning.  Meanwhile, saute an equal quantity (as the amount of chicken) of frozen sliced bell peppers.  Put those aside to keep warm.  Put the chicken with marinade into the same pan and saute until just cooked (use a knife to open one of the cubes to check that it is white, but try not to cook beyond that).  Quickly fold back in the peppers, season and serve with a green veg and steamed brown rice.

 

L

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

I've moved away from boneless, skinless chicken breasts because it is hard to cook them well.  Meat needs a little fat!  I love skinless thighs and they are much more forgiving if the cooking time goes over by 5 minutes. 

 

My favorite chicken breast recipe adds the fat back in:  Roll the chicken breasts in seasoned mayo (I just use generic poultry seasoning), then in panko, crunched up potato chips, or homemade bread crumbs, then bake at 400 for 30 minutes.  Yummmy. 

 

Like others have said, for burgers, use a higher fat burger meat, sear on both sides, then finish on low and/or let them sit off heat to finish and make sure the juices reabsorb. 

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

Oh, here's one more recipe that we enjoy using breasts:

 

Terriyaki poached chicken breasts - my dad, who believes all meat should come with grill lines on it, loved this recipe despite turning his nose up initially at the idea of "boiled" (poached) chicken.

[naturemom]

This is how we do burgers:

80% ground chuck

Scoop handful of meat

Shape into patty barely smooshing

(Mixing and smooshing makes burger tougher, IME)

Salt and pepper

Sear and cook about 2-3 minutes per side

 

I subscribe to Cook's Illustrated. It's helped dh become excellent cook.

[Jaybee]

I don't cook chicken breasts whole, because you can't keep an eye on whether they are going dry or not.  My go-to recipe for chicken breast:

 

Marinate chicken breast cut into 1" cubes in olive oil, crushed garlic, lemon juice and fajita seasoning.  Meanwhile, saute an equal quantity (as the amount of chicken) of frozen sliced bell peppers.  Put those aside to keep warm.  Put the chicken with marinade into the same pan and saute until just cooked (use a knife to open one of the cubes to check that it is white, but try not to cook beyond that).  Quickly fold back in the peppers, season and serve with a green veg and steamed brown rice.

 

L

I do almost this same thing. I just don't do the bell peppers or fajita seasoning, though that sounds really good. Cut up the chicken (easiest when still a little frozen), briefly marinade in olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, and salt, and cook on medium high heat, stirring often. It doesn't take long, and if you don't over cook it, the chicken is tender and delicious. If you do overcook it, yep, it's a bit tough.

[Chris in VA]

One way I like is to smear some mayonnaise on the chicken breast (better if you pound it even, first). You are low carb, right? You can finish them by rolling in parm cheese, a little salt and garlic powder,  and low carb bread crumbs all mixed together. Really good! (You can even skip the bread crumbs and they come out moist and yummy.)

[fairfarmhand]

I use chicken tenderloins to avoid over cooking on the grill.

 

Burgers, I cook till they look done. Then I put them on a pan in the oven covered with foil and bake at 350 for about 15 minutes.

[Muttichen]

For burgers -- 

 

Use 80 % ground beef

 

For one pound ground beef:

Beat 1 egg

Tear up one slice of bread and 1/4 cup milk and mix well.

Add about 1/2 cup finely chopped onion, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper.

Add ground beef, mix, and shape into patties.

 

"All beef" patties will always be dry.  You need some bread in there to soak up the yummy juices!

[Annie G]

For burgers -- 

 

Use 80 % ground beef

 

For one pound ground beef:

Beat 1 egg

Tear up one slice of bread and 1/4 cup milk and mix well.

Add about 1/2 cup finely chopped onion, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper.

Add ground beef, mix, and shape into patties.

 

"All beef" patties will always be dry.  You need some bread in there to soak up the yummy juices!

 

 

I've eaten many juicy burgers that have nothing added to the meat. We're low carb so adding bread wouldn't work for us.  Some of our friends are gluten free and that would throw them off if our burgers contain gluten.  

[KungFuPanda]

If you don't own an oven thermometer, you may want to get one. You can set the alarm to go off when your burgers or chicken reach the proper temp. This will prevent you from over or under cooking anything.

[whitestavern]

Pound chicken breasts to a uniform thickness prior to cooking. Or, try thighs. Always juicy and flavorful. Get 80/20 on your beef. Google ice burgers. They're awesome.