32 Chicken Breast Recipes to Make You Like White Meat (2024)

FAQs

How to make white meat chicken taste good? ›

Add a touch of spice to your chicken breast by combining paprika, cinnamon, turmeric, cumin, ginger, garlic and olive oil to create a paste. Then cover your chicken breast with the paste and pat down to secure. This Middle Eastern spice rub is delicious when charred on the grill.

Start with chicken breasts cut and pounded into thin cutlets, dredge them in flour, then dip them in beaten eggs and coat with a mixture of panko and Parmesan before frying. You can cook the cutlets in vegetable oil, but clarified butter gives them a wonderfully rich, nutty flavor.

There are three key tricks: tenderize, marinate, and controlled cooking time. When you use all three of these methods, you will have succulent, moist chicken every time, and you can apply these strategies to other cuts of meat as well.

Marinating not only adds flavor, but the combination of healthy fat and acid in most recipes also helps tenderize the meat. A good marinade is roughly three parts oil to one part acid, plus salt and other seasonings like spices, crushed garlic, or a little natural sugar.

Just sprinkling a little salt on top of your chicken right before cooking it will only season the surface. But seasoning the chicken with salt well ahead of time or brining it in a salt-water solution will draw salt deep into the meat, resulting in a very tasty piece of chicken.

The Best Ways To Cook White Meat

Fast and hot is the best way to cook chicken breast, since it has very little fat. Think of pan-searing and grilling -- these are the methods that will give you the best results.

Make sure your chicken breast is well-seasoned before adding it to the pan. Cook each side evenly until brown. Once done, bake the chicken breast in a pre-heated oven until juices run clear. The crispy skin from the sear will help keep juices intact while baking cooks the insides through without drying them out.

What is the best way to cook chicken breast without drying it out? ›

1) Marinate the chicken in water, wine, or other liquids for up to an hour before cooking. This will tenderize the meat and add flavor. 2) Slowly cook the chicken on low heat with a lid on top for about 15-20 minutes per pound of chicken. The lid prevents the chicken from drying out too much.

Brines and marinades help tenderize the meat by bringing more moisture in the protein. With that extra moisture, you lose less when you cook.

Oil Velveting (Zǒu Yóu): Flash deep-fry chicken slices in hot oil for 1-2 minutes; a popular method in Chinese restaurants. Hot Water Velveting (With Egg White): Marinate chicken with whisked egg white, starch, and salt and pepper, followed by hot water blanching to retain tenderness.

Rub a whole chicken with olive oil, garlic, and this traditional mix of spices from southern France: savory, rosemary, marjoram, and thyme. Lavender, fennel, sage, tarragon, and even citrus zest are sometimes added.