3 Tips for Cooking Chicken Healthy

Can you remember a time when you got sick of eating chicken? Most of us who have tried repeatedly to live healthy can. There are three healthy ways to cook chicken, and even better, they’re surprisingly easy to do. Since part of living a healthy lifestyle and maintaining an attractive figure requires your primary source of protein to come from chicken, it is only fitting that you should know the healthiest and quickest ways for eating it.

Tips for Cooking Chicken #1 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Boneless chicken breasts are the absolute quickest way to go about preparing chicken. You can buy them at any grocery store and use them as you need them when you make meals. Just pull one from the freezer, thaw it and cook. Buying your chicken this way is much cheaper and much easier than buying a whole chicken and having to remove the skin and cut it up yourself. With the bones and skin already removed you can have your dinner ready in 30 minutes. All you have to do is flavor the chicken and bake it in the oven and wait for the timer to buzz.

Tips for Cooking Chicken #2 Whole, roasted chicken

This is a great option because it will leave you with leftovers, which can then be used to make healthy sandwiches or salads over the course of a few days. It takes about an hour to roast a whole chicken in the oven, but preparation requires you to only sprinkle some seasonings. Once this is done the chicken need only be placed in a pan and stuck in the oven at a high heat. Then while you’re waiting for it to finish ,you can accomplish other chores you may have or go exercise.

Tips for Cooking Chicken #3 Rotisserie chicken

This is an excellent option for the person who hates cooking. You can buy a rotisserie chicken at any grocery store deli that is ready to eat as soon as you get home. You know that it is healthy for you because of the way it was cooked. In addition, you will enjoy having leftovers to use in meals over the next day or so, which will save you the time and trouble of having to decide what to eat.

The sky is the limit when it comes to preparing chicken. The three different types above are healthy ways. In fact, a good rule of thumb is that if you bake it, broil it or boil it, it’s healthy. Make sure and stay away from eating it fried or breaded. Both process use high fattening substances such as cooking oil, butter and eggs.

If you need ideas for how to prepare chicken so that you get a chance to experience different flavors, there are numerous recipes on the internet and in cookbooks you can reference. So many that there is truly no excuse for ever getting tired of eating chicken again.

Posted in: Cooking Chicken | Comments(0)

How to Cook Chicken in a Crockpot: Our Top 5 Crockpot Chicken Cooking Tips

Believe it or not there are a ton of ways to cook chicken in a Crockpot. Crockpot chicken recipes are easy, once you get the hang of using a Crockpot, and delicious. The Crockpot method produces chicken dishes, bursting with flavor, making them as satisfying as they are healthy. Furthermore, once you master Crockpot cooking, you will find that these Crockpot chicken recipes virtually make themselves.

Still, the Crockpot – while a great and versatile cooking tool – is not as user friendly as the oven or microwave. It is very easy to ruin your meal either by cooking the ingredients incorrectly or using Crockpot recipes that are not well designed.

Tips for Cooking Chicken in a Crockpot

1. Defrost The Chicken First

Chicken can carry diseases. When your chicken is frozen before you put it in the slow cooker, it can cause the cooking time to take longer, thereby increasing your risk of catching these diseases and bacteria. By defrosting the chicken first, you significantly reduce this risk, because you create an environment inside the pot that will allow your food to heat up more quickly and retain the heat easier.

2. Heat on High, Then Cool

Once again, for the safety of you and your family, it is a good idea to cook the chicken on high before you put the slow cooker on low to ensure that you quickly raise the temperature of the chicken to over 165 degrees as quickly as possible. This is done to kill off all of the bacteria which have ample opportunity to grow in your slow cooker.

3. Remove All of the Skin

Even if it is not mentioned in your Crockpot chicken recipes, it is important that you remove all of the skin from the chicken before you place it inside the pot. This will improve the texture of the dish and make cooking times more uniform.

4. Keep the Pot Closed

Removing the top of the pot to smell, taste or stir, you are removing a great deal of heat that is important to the slow cooker process. Doing so can ruin your Crockpot chicken recipes, and also increases cooking time by quite a bit.

5. Spices and Peppers Should Be Near the End

Most Crockpot chicken recipes are going to have some types of spices or hot peppers in order to bring out the chicken flavor. But if you place these ingredients inside the Crockpot too early, you risk causing them to lose or alter their flavor. These types of ingredients should be added near the end of the cooking process to ensure that they retain the taste you want.

Crockpot Chicken Recipes are Easy

There are thousands of recipes for cooking chicken inside your slow cooker. These recipes are easy to implement, taste great, and make healthy meals that the whole family can enjoy. If you utilize the above tips for cooking chicken inside of a Crockpot, you too will see that with such a rich flavor, chicken and the ingredients that complement it can allow you to make delicious food that you and your family will enjoy every day.

www.davecancook.com Just a DROP of water maybe less!!

Posted in: Cooking Chicken | Comments(0)

Why You Should Eat (Well-Cooked) Chicken and Eggs Despite Bird Flu

To prevent consumer fears, Kentucky Fried Chicken has started putting stickers on all their containers in the U.S. guaranteeing that their fried chicken is “rigorously inspected, thoroughly cooked, quality assured.”

From China to Indonesia, Turkey to Trinidad, KFC and other chicken restaurants have seen business drop as people become afraid of bird flu. The poultry industry in Europe is deep trouble as many consumers there have stopped eating chicken and eggs.

Should you stop eating chicken and eggs to avoid bird flu?

Yes, if you’re eating raw or undercooked chicken or other poultry. One reason that Vietnam has more cases of bird flu in people is that they like to eat a delicacy — raw duck blood pudding. One of the ways the Vietnamese government used to get bird flu under control is to discourage the preparation of this dish. So that’s partly why Vietnam has not reported any bird flu cases in people so far in 2006.

Therefore, it’s definitely good advice to not eat raw chicken (or duck).

Since most people around the world eat their chicken cooked not raw, the most common risk from eating chicken comes from first slaughtering, de-feathering, eviscerating and cooking infected chickens. This puts you in contact with the dead bird’s blood and vital organs and you could become infected with H5N1 in this manner.

Well cooked chicken meat and eggs are safe to eat if cooked properly, according to a joint statement issued by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO). They issued this statement in December 2005 through the International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN).

Cooked properly means the meat and eggs must be completely heated to 70 degrees Celsius or 158 degrees Fahrenheit, so there is no red or raw meat.

However, they also recommend that meat and eggs from chickens known to be infected with H5N1 not be used as food.

I’ve seen people ask, “If it’s safe to eat chicken when it’s well-cooked, why do they burn infected chickens instead of eating them, especially since those countries are poor and the people are hungry?”

Ask a government employee what CYA stands for. I’m sure that in Vietnam and Thailand they have different letters for it, but they understand the concept. Even in countries not run by lawyers, government officials understand they don’t want to be blamed for people’s mistakes.

That is — if you give enough people dead bird flu infected chickens and tell them to make sure they cook the chickens thoroughly, some numbskull will NOT cook it thoroughly, eat some that’s still pink and raw, get sick and die and their relatives will blame you.

If the relatives won’t, the international press will. Since it’s still a communist government, Vietnam probably doesn’t care much that a few farming families would blame it for the failure of the relatives to properly cook the chickens.

But they certainly know how to play the PR game with the world press — it’s how they defeated the world’s mightiest superpower, after all — and so they don’t want reporters from CNN broadcasting their bird flu deficiencies to the rest of the world.

To their credit, the government of Vietnam has realized that bird flu is a dangerous threat to their poultry and their people and therefore have taken stringent steps to bring it under control.

Furthermore, although properly cooked H5N1-infected chicken meat is not dangerous to eat, it is IS dangerous to prepare. A lot of documented cases of bird flu came from people handling the uncooked carcasses of infected birds.

So it is much safer to simply burn them. Nobody gets to eat them, but that prevents anybody from getting sick from eviscerating and cooking them.

If you do cook chicken, separate the raw meat from any cooked or ready to eat foods, to avoid any contamination. Do not chop them up on the same board or with the same knife. Wash your hands thoroughly with soap in between handling the meat and afterward. “Thoroughly” means for at least 30 seconds.

Wash all plates and utensils carefully and thoroughly.

Then wash your hands again and rub a germicidal hand lotion such as “No-Germs” or isopropyl alcohol on your hands.

To be completely safe, let Kentucky Fried Chicken or any other restaurant cook the chicken for you.

Therefore, KFC and other such places are actually the safest way to eat chicken.

More Cooking Chicken Articles

Posted in: Cooking Chicken | Comments(0)

Best Methods of Cooking Chicken

Before we begin, do you know why does chicken have to be thoroughly cooked, while steaks can be served rare or medium rare? The answer lies in the physiology of the chicken. The meat is less dense than beef, which allows bacteria to travel throughout the muscle. And the way chicken is processed spreads bacteria. Finally, a chicken’s skin is deeply crenellated, and removing the feathers forces bacteria into the crevices and into the meat. For more details go to: www.bread-bakers-assistant.com so cook the chicken to a safe internal temperature and your food will always be safe.
So buy yourself a reliable meat thermometer and get ready to always make moist, tender, and juicy boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

Any of these methods will result in juicy, moist, and tender chicken breasts. Follow the instructions carefully with a meat thermometer in your hand and you will always have success.

You can season the chicken with lots of ingredients in these cooking methods.

Brining
Brining pulls water into the chicken flesh and helps flavor it too.
To brine boneless, skinless chicken breasts, use a large bowl and mix 4 cups of water with 3 Tbsp. of salt and 2 Tbsp. of sugar, if desired, and stir until the salt and sugar dissolves. Add the thawed chicken breasts to this mixture, cover, and refrigerate for one hour. When ready to cook, remove the chicken from the brine, rinse under cold running water, and cook according to one of the following methods.

You can brine frozen breasts as well. Mix up the brine solution and add the frozen boneless skinless breasts. Place in the refrigerator, covered, and let stand overnight until the chicken thaws. Rinse well under cold running water, pat dry, and cook.

Poaching
To poach boneless, skinless chicken breasts, place them in a large skillet and add 1-2 cups of water or chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and cook for 9-14 minutes until chicken reaches 160 degrees F. about 15 minutes. You can also poach in the oven. Place chicken in a single layer in a roasting pan. You can add lemon slices, peppercorns, or any other spices or herbs. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil and immediately pour over chicken. Cover and bake at 400 degrees F for 20-35 minutes, checking for an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.

Microwave
It can be risky cooking chicken in the microwave oven because the oven cooks unevenly. The same piece of chicken can be several different temperatures at the same time! If you have healthy people over the age of 5 in your household, this is an easy method for microwaving chicken. Place boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a glass dish with the thin side of the breasts in the center. Pour 3/4 cup buttermilk over the chicken, sprinkle with herbs and spices of your choice, cover plate with plastic wrap, and cook on high for 3 minutes. For help visit: www.tailgating-recipe.com Check the chicken, and then cook for 2 minutes longer. Rearrange the chicken using tongs, cover again, and microwave for 3-5 minutes longer until internal temp is 160 degrees F. Discard buttermilk mixture.

Crock-pot
The crock-pot is a wonderful way to cook chicken as long as it is not overcooked. For fresh chicken breasts, stack the chicken in the crock-pot, add 1/2 cup water or chicken broth, cover, and cook on low for 5-6 hours, rearranging once during cooking time. For frozen chicken breasts, arrange in crock-pot, add 1/2 cup chicken broth or water, cover, and cook on low for 8-9 hours, rearranging once during cooking time.

Sautaeing
This dry heat method is quick and easy. If you pound the breasts thin, they will cook for about 2-3 minutes a side over high heat. Unpounded breasts take a bit longer to cook; about 4-5 minutes per side. Coat a skillet with olive oil, heat over high heat, add breasts, cook for 4 minutes without moving them, then turn and finish cooking.

Pressure cooker
This is a moist heat method of cooking. Add thawed chicken breasts to the cooker add sliced onions and lemons for flavor along with 1/2 cup water, cover and lock the cooker, and bring the pressure up to high. Cook for 12 minutes, release pressure, and check internal temperature. You can cover, bring pressure back up, and cook for 2-3 minutes longer if necessary.

With these methods of cooking chicken, you should be able to dish out a variety of mouth-watering chicken dishes from now on.

Find More Cooking Chicken Articles

Posted in: Cooking Chicken | Comments(0)

How To Cook Chicken Legs on the Grill

Grilled chicken legs are not only a delicious summer meal, but they are also economical as legs are one of the cheapest parts of the chicken. Just because they are cheap, does not mean they have to lack in flavor. Actually, the dark meat of poultry has more flavor as it contains more fat.

One of the biggest problems grilling enthusiasts face however is with cooking times and temperatures. One of the most frequently asked questions is: how long do you grill chicken legs?

It really isn’t possible to give an exact answer to this question as it really depends on the type of grill you are using, the grilling method and how big the chicken legs are.

It really is an excellent idea to invest in a good quality cooking thermometer. I personally own a voice alert electronic thermometer. It really is a fantastic little cooking gadget and I would be lost without it. It is extremely accurate and eliminates all guessing, and guessing is not an option when cooking meat, especially chicken.

CHICKEN GRILLING METHODS

Boil the Chicken Legs First

The goal with this method is to cook the meat all the way through before it goes on the grill. This greatly reduces the risk of any food born illnesses and also cuts down the grilling time significantly. The downside to this method is a serious lack of flavor. Since you will be cooking the meat on the grill for a much shorter period of time, the meat will not have a chance to pick up that delicious grilled flavor.

Marinate Then Grill

Marinating your chicken legs first is always a good idea. Not only does it give your food a fantastic flavor, but it also keeps the meat moist during the cooking process. For the best results, marinate the chicken over night. Below is an excellent marinade that I use often and it is quite versatile. It works well with seafood like shrimp and scallops as well.

Citrus Herb Marinade

Ingredients:

4 Chicken Legs

1/4 Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 1/2 Tablespoons of Fresh Lemon Juice

1 1/2 Tablespoons Fresh Orange Juice

1/3 Cup of Freshly Chopped Parsley

1/3 Cup Freshly Chopped Cilantro

2 Cloves of Garlic Minced

1 Teaspoon of Salt

1/4 Teaspoon of Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

Directions:

In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients except the chicken legs. Add chicken to the bowl with the marinade and toss to coat. Refrigerate for several hours, over night if possible.

LETS GET GRILLING

I have found that the best method for cooking chicken legs on the grill is to first sear the meat and then finish the cooking process over indirect heat. The result is a nice moist chicken leg with a delightfully crispy skin.

Step 1: Remove chicken from marinade and rinse. This is to remove any ingredients from the marinade that are stuck to the chicken. If left on, this can burn. Coat the chicken with some oil to prevent it from sticking to the grill.

Step 2: Clean the grill. The best method for cleaning a grill is to turn the grill up high and allow the heat to burn off any grease and grime. Use your grill brush to scrape the grates clean. For charcoal grills, just light up the charcoal and allow the fire to heat up the grates and scrape the grates clean.

Step 3: Heat the Grill. We are going to set up our grill for the searing/indirect cooking method. For gas grills, this is pretty easy. All you do is turn one burner up high and leave the others off. For charcoal grills, it is a little more involved, but not rocket science. All you do once your charcoal is ready, is push all of your charcoal over to one side leaving half of the grill without charcoal. The side with charcoal is for searing and the other side is for the indirect cooking.

Step 4: Begin Cooking. Once your grill is good and hot, go ahead and put your chicken legs on the hot part of the grill and sear on all sides. Only sear your legs for a few minutes per side. You are looking for a nice sear, so avoid burning the skin. After you sear them, go ahead and move them on over to the cool side of the grill and cover.

Let them cook for a good 20 minutes and then get out your basting sauce. If you used the citrus herb marinade from above, try and find a thick basting sauce that compliments the citrus flavors. Baste the legs on all sides and then cover. After another 20 minutes or so, using your thermometer, go ahead and check to see if the legs are done. You are looking for an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

Once the legs are done, If they aren’t as crispy as you like, put them on the hot side of the grill again for a few minutes before removing them from the grill.

Enjoy!

Posted in: Cooking Chicken | Comments(0)

Safely Cooking Chicken Properly and Easily

Cooking chicken safely is essential, especially with chicken because it can do more harm than lamd meat, for instance. It can do more harm because within the raw chicken harmful, bacteria can live and the meat therefore needs to be cooked correctly. Chicken is a popular and cheap way of making meals either for starters, main courses or for light snacks or lunches. If the meat hasn’t been cooked properly then it is unsafe, otherwise it is perfectly fine to eat.

The article below give tips about cooking chicken safely, chicken thawing, and defrosting chicken. Basic food safety tips for working with chicken include:

- Washing your hands thoroughly with warm soapy water before handling poultry, whether it’s raw or cooked.
- Washing your hands thoroughly again, after you’ve handled raw or cooked poultry.
- Using different kitchen equipment for cooked and raw poultry, such as chopping boards, knives, plates and bowls.
- Cleaning all your equipment and work surfaces thoroughly, including knives or and other utensils used, chopping boards and kitchen worktops.

If the poultry you want to cook is frozen, you must defrost it thoroughly before you cook it. If you cook poultry before it’s properly thawed, it may not be cooked thoroughly throughout the chicken and bacteria that cause food poisoning could possibly survive the cooking process.

When thawing a hole bird, you should allow plenty of time. It will take a lot longer for a whole bird that for a part of it. Smaller parts could simply be defrosted in the microwave.

When chicken thawing occurs, a lot of liquid will leak out from it. This liquid shouldn’t be allowed to spread to other foods or cooking equipment. If it does then these will need to be washed.

Defrosting chicken and cooking times differ with chicken and cooking method or, for example, with oven type. Cooking times should be available on the label. To check if it’s cooked, pierce the thickest part of the bird’s legs with a clean skewer or knife. The thickest part is usually between the drumstick and the thigh.

Check the colour of the juices that come out. If the bird is cooked, the juices will be clear, not red or pink. If any of the juices are not clear, or any part of the meat is pink then the chicken hasn’t been cooked properly and it needs to be done for a bit longer.

Cooking chicken safely isn’t hard; you just need to pay attention to the little details such as chicken thawing, the washing of equipment and hands and checking it before eating.

Posted in: Cooking Chicken | Comments(0)

Cooking Chicken Safely and Easily

When dealing with chicken for meals, then cooking chicken safely is very important because of the harmful bacteria that live within and throughout the chicken meat. If the chicken isn’t cooked properly then the bacteria can lead to food poisoning for whoever is eating it.It is therefore important to cook it properly. Chicken is a popular and cheap method of getting together a great main course, starter, soup, salad, lunch or snack. It is very safe to eat it, unless it hasn’t been cooked as it should be and you end up eating the raw, pink meat where the bacterian live.

The article below give tips about cooking chicken safely, chicken thawing, and defrosting chicken. Basic food safety tips for working with chicken include:

- Washing your hands thoroughly with warm soapy water before handling poultry, whether it’s raw or cooked.
- Washing your hands thoroughly again, after you’ve handled raw or cooked poultry.
- Using different kitchen equipment for cooked and raw poultry, such as chopping boards, knives, plates and bowls.
- Cleaning all your equipment and work surfaces thoroughly, including knives or and other utensils used, chopping boards and kitchen worktops.

When cooking chicken safely, it must be thoroughly defrosted throughout before cooking has commenced. If an attempt is made to cook the meat that hasn’t thawed properly, then it probably won’t cook correctly throughout the whole chicken. Food poisoning is therefore still likely to occur.

With a whole frozen bird, such as turkey or chicken, allow plenty of time for it to thaw. The larger the bird, the longer it will take to defrost. For a chicken fillet, or breast, for example, it could easily be defrosted in the microwave.

When you thaw frozen poultry, lots of liquid comes out. The liquid spreads bacteria to anything it touches, including other food, plates and work surfaces, as well as your hands. So good hygiene is very important.

With each chicken and cooking method, times for defrosting chicken, or cooking chicken, will differ. Cooking times for whole birds should always be available on the label. When checking if the bird has cooked properly throughout, just cut open the thickest part of the bird with a clean knife. Between the drunstick and thigh is uaually the thickest part.

The colour of the juices are a clear indicator to see if the meat has been cooked properly. If it runs clear then it has been cooked properly but if any of it has a pink or red colour, or the meat is still a bit coloured, then it needs to be cooked for a bit longer.

Cooking chicken safely is very easy. Just make sure that the chicken thawing has been given enough time, all the equipment and your hands have been washed accordingly and that the chicken had been cooked thoroughly.

Posted in: Cooking Chicken | Comments(0)