Moist chicken?

[Night Elf]

Someone please tell this awful cook how to make a chicken dish that is moist. We had broiled chicken last night, which is usually how we make it. It just comes out dry. I have to stick to plain dishes because my kids aren't adventurous enough for bold flavors. What about baking it? How do i bake the perfect chicken? Oh, I buy chicken breast fillets and they are usually really thick.

[Lizzie in Ma]

Place in a 9X13" pan

dump a package of onion soup mix on top,

cover tightly

cook at 300 for 2 hours

I can do this even if they are not completely thawed and they come out perfectly!

[Laura Corin]

Three things to consider:

 

- cut

- cooking time

- marinade

 

Chicken breasts are the hardest cut to make moist - the meat is low fat and tends to dry out.  When I make chicken breasts, I almost always use a marinade and am very careful not to over cook.  My best recipe is:

 

Cut chicken breasts into cubes and mix with olive oil, lemon juice and garlic.  Put in the fridge for at least an hour.

Saute sliced bell peppers in a little olive oil.  Remove from pan and keep warm.  Saute the chicken with its marinade until the chicken is only just done (cut into a couple of cubes to check that the inside is white).  Combine with the peppers and serve quickly with rice and a steamed veg.

 

As far as chicken in the oven - I cook whole chickens, which stay moist for me.  This is my favourite recipe - you can use olive oil if this is too much butter.

 

For chicken pieces in the oven, I almost always do thighs/drumsticks because the meat texture can cope without going dry.

 

L

[Matryoshka]

Take a whole chicken.  Put in pan, sprinkle with salt/pepper/any other spices if you like.  Bake at 450 for 15 min. or so, uncovered.  Turn down to 350 and cover lightly with tinfoil (I fold it and make like a little "roof" shape).  Bake till done - I use a thermometer - 170 in breast for chicken.  Always super moist, and then you can make gravy too.

 

This is also how I cook Thanksgiving turkey, except both phases are longer. :)

[milovany]

Oh, I buy chicken breast fillets and they are usually really thick.

 

Switch to thighs.  They taste better and the moist problem is solved.  .  :)

 

[Matryoshka]

 Oh, I buy chicken breast fillets and they are usually really thick.

 

If you must use breasts... I almost always chop up breasts into pieces.  I brown them in a hot, heavy pan, then add them back to something with a sauce.  Very moist.  I have one recipe where they are whole breasts; the recipe is also in a pan with a lot of (mushroom) sauce and sherry.  Also always moist.

 

I recently tried a new recipe that's in the oven - the breasts are still cut up and browned in a pan before baking.  It also has a cup of chicken broth in the pan to keep things moist.  Came out great - probably making it again this week.

[Night Elf]

My son and I only like the white meat of the breast. I hate dark meat. I'll try cutting it thinner. I didn't think of that. But I do think I'll try baking it next time instead of broiling. We broil our pork chops, also boneless, and they always turn out nicely.

[ThatHomeschoolDad]

Sear first if desired, then foil and oven - not too hot. You can do stovetop, covered, but check temp and allow for rest time.

 

You'll get more moisture from a whole bird, foiled in the oven. Cheaper too.

 

Thermomerer is a must. One day, I will own a Thermapen and leave the little cheap ones in the drawer.

[trinchick]

I make a really good artichoke chicken that stays nice and moist. Not health food by any stretch, but very good.

 

I just eyeball it, so all amounts are estimates:

 

Can of quartered artichoke hearts

1/2 cup of mayonnaise

1/2 cup of parmesan cheese (I've used both the good stuff and the stuff in the can; either will work)

few cloves of garlic, minced

a good shake of seasoning salt

 

Mix all together and spread over chicken in baking dish. Bake about 45 minutes at 350. I usually throw some sweet potatoes and asparagus in at the same time to roast, and, voila, dinner is served!

[KungFuPanda]

Try this method. I've used it. It really works.

 

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

 

If you want to bake your chicken instead, you need an oven thermometer that you can set to beep when your chicken hits the right temp. It also helps to soak te pieces in salt water first.

[zoobie]

Barefoot Contessa's method always comes out perfectly if you want to bake. Take bone in breasts, rub on a little oil or butter, salt and pepper heavily, bake at 350 for 45 minutes. I use it in other recipes, but if you like simple chicken, that way is nice and moist! You can change the seasonings, bake with onion slices or lemon slices...

 

I never do boneless breasts in the oven. Those get seared in a cast iron skillet on both sides for three minutes, then turned again and spritzed with lemon or put some plain water in the pan (depends on seasoning), cover and cook until 160+ degrees inside. It will keep raising to 165 if you let it rest, covered before cutting.

[gingersmom]

Roast a whole chicken in a rotisserie. 

 

My son would never eat chicken before I started making it this way. 

 

Moist and delicious!

[Spy Car]

There are some good ideas here. I will add one more option that you could try as a change of pace.

 

Try "poaching" some chicken breasts. This method will almost always turn out tender and moist. It will not have the carmelized savoryness of grilled, roasted, or seared chicken, but does have a nice clean taste that is good hot or cold in things like soups, salads, sandwichs, and things like that. It might not be the thing you want to do all the time, but it gives chicken breasts another "look" that you might like.

 

Bill

[Chelli]

I bake boneless, skinless chicken breasts quite a bit and have not had them dry out yet. Here are some of our favorites that are baked:

 

Oven-Fried Chicken

 

French Dressing Chicken

 

Also, if you want just a plain baked chicken breast, I've had the most success with this method. 

 

Sprinkle breasts with salt and pepper (and any other seasonings you'd like depending on what flavor you're going for.) 

 

Heat some olive oil in a pan that can go from stovetop to oven, (I use my enamel-covered cast iron skillet.)

 

Once oil is hot, brown chicken on both sides.

 

Immediately put pan in a 350 degree oven and bake for 15-20 minutes.

[ScoutTN]

1. Bone-in!

If you want white meat, get the bone in breasts and roast them, then skin them. Do not overcook! Use a meat thermometer. Cook a whole chx low and slow - 4 hours at 275, with some liquid in the roasting pan. Wine, stock, water, beer all work.

 

2. Crock pot! Though I think it is easy to overcook chx in one. I do a whole chx for about 5 hours on low and it is fall off the bone tender but not mushy. 

 

 

[wapiti]

I slow-cook a lot in the oven, often boneless skinless thighs in a dutch oven (my slow-cooker runs a bit too hot so I prefer the oven).  Sometimes I roast skin-on/bone-in breasts upside down on a bed of onions and olive oil - I sear first, skin-side down in a pan, then roast low and slow (say, 250?  I can't remember how long) in the oven using a meat thermometer.  Once in a while I saute or grill chicken tenders.  I never buy boneless skinless chicken breasts.

[Dory]

I always put lots of butter under the skin and stuff with either oranges or apples. Onions go inside and a little bit around (to help flavor the juices), garlic is the same. Rosemary, a little bit of Thyme, and a couple bay leaves (leaves inside the chicken). For the last 10-15 min I spread either apple butter, or orange marmalade (depending on what fruit I stuffed it with) and let that roast on top. I don't make gravy from it when I do it like this, I usually oven roast the veggies instead, but I NEVER have a dry bird doing them with fruit. The fruit just saturates it and the butter under the skin does wonders.

[gardenmom5]

I will roast a whole chicken - rubbed with olive oil and herbs.  put the BACK up-breasts down, the fat from the back will then dribble down through the rest of the meat.  it's very juicy and flavorful, and the skin is crisp.

 

if it's coming out dry - another thing is try a lower temperature.

[dbmamaz]

i also bake whole chicken at high temp, starting breast down, then flip and lower temp.  I rub the inside of the bird with kosher salt

 

recently did chicken breasts, boneless - cut them up, including cutting them thinner, so they cook faster. Marinate all day in pickle juice.  cook on a grill pan, or broil 5 minutes/side.  

[goldberry]

Place in a 9X13" pan

dump a package of onion soup mix on top,

cover tightly

cook at 300 for 2 hours

I can do this even if they are not completely thawed and they come out perfectly!

 

This works on boneless, skinless?

[Mrs_JWM]

I always brine chicken, and I usually cook a half or a whole bird. I also think pastured chicken is 1000x better than anything I ever bought in the store. :)

 

I agree with Bill's poaching method fir breasts, too. Very good and easy and fast!

[Guest]

Do you have a pressure cooker?  My friend uses one to cook her chicken for chicken and yellow rice, and it always comes out very moist.

[CupOCoffee]

These are some great ideas!  While I am not the OP, I came to this thread to see what you all would say!  

 

Thanks for sharing!

 

~coffee~

[DarlaS]

Barefoot Contessa's method always comes out perfectly if you want to bake. Take bone in breasts, rub on a little oil or butter, salt and pepper heavily, bake at 350 for 45 minutes. I use it in other recipes, but if you like simple chicken, that way is nice and moist! You can change the seasonings, bake with onion slices or lemon slices...

That's what I do, and I never watched that show. I just brush with a little olive oil, sprinkle on some seasoning (I like Spike seasoning) and hey turn out nice! Garlic would be great too. Just a few slices here and there.

[Trish]

Take a whole chicken.  Put in pan, sprinkle with salt/pepper/any other spices if you like.  Bake at 450 for 15 min. or so, uncovered.  Turn down to 350 and cover lightly with tinfoil (I fold it and make like a little "roof" shape).  Bake till done - I use a thermometer - 170 in breast for chicken.  Always super moist, and then you can make gravy too.

 

This is also how I cook Thanksgiving turkey, except both phases are longer. :)

I add a few more spices for the sprinkling, like garlic salt, and a touch of cinnamon, but yes, just plain roasting a chicken is one of the easiest dishes I make, it never turns out poorly, and it's my kids' favorite. They like it with mashed potatoes and corn on the side. I make it anytime roasting chickens go on sale. (take out the giblets before roasting)

[AK_Mom4]

Pizza Chicken!  A perfect recipe for the not-so-inspired chef!  And it works great with boneless skinless chicken breasts.

 

Put chicken breasts in dish

Cover with Spaghetti sauce

Sprinkle Cheese on top - I use shredded mozarella

 

Cover dish with foil and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes.  Check chicken to make sure it's cooked thru before serving.

 

Very kid friendly!