How do YOU cook your boneless chicken breast???

[lukenick1]

I have yet to not over cook it. My chicken is always dry!!! Help. How do you cook it??

 

[luvmy3]

If I'm just grilling it I put some olive oil in a bowl and sprinkle some spice blend in it and let it sitt for awhile. I butterfly cut the chicken so that the thicker part of the breast is the same thickness as the other end, and poke it with a fork a few times on each side, and then brush both sides with the oil/spice. I grill it on med-high for about 15 minutes. The key is to let it rest after you cook it so that the juices redistribute. If you cut it right off the heat (no matter how its cooked) all the juices will come out and leave it dry.

 

[kimmar067]

I have yet to not over cook it. My chicken is always dry!!! Help....

.....do you cook it in a pan on the stove, or grill it??

 

[lukenick1]

.....do you cook it in a pan on the stove, or grill it??

NO matter what I do.......oven baking, crock pot, grilling, pan fry, etc. I always over cook it.

 

[luvmy3]

NO matter what I do.......oven baking, crock pot, grilling, pan fry, etc. I always over cook it.

You could cook it for less time, or lower the heat and cook it the same.

 

[onelilspark]

I dredge it in some flour (with spices) before sauteeing it...or egg then breadcrumbs. I always coat it.

Some other tips:
-buy fresh, I try not to freeze it. There's only 2 of us though, I can imagine buying the bulk packs is more economical for a family.
-use the thinner breasts, or tenderize the breasts so they're the same thickness throughout.
-I'll cut it into smaller, bite-sized pieces when I have trouble getting them all the same thickness. This helps cook the chicken faster and it's easer to control a 2" piece of chicken than an entire breast.
-practice makes perfect

 

[JerseyJanice]

I've never had good results from a crock-pot recipe using boneless, skinless breasts. I have a few using boneless, skinless thighs that are good; the dark meat can hold up to all day cooking. White can't.

Boneless, skinless breasts come out good when breaded and fried. You can do a lot with those--serve them plain, make chicken parm by topping the fried filets with tomato and mozzarella and baking them. You can top the fried breast with ham and swiss cheese, then bake for an easy chicken cordon bleu. (Heat up a can of chicken gravy and serve that with it.)

They're usually pretty good marinated and grilled. Don't leave them in the marinade too long though; it will kill the meat. Lawry's marinades are really good; I haven't found a flavor we don't like. Put them in a big ZipLock bag with any Lawry's and leave them in the fridge for a half hour or so, then grill them.

Campbell's has a recipe on their website for boneless chicken baked with Minute rice and cream of mushroom soup. That's a good one!

Good luck!

 

[nashville_minnie]

we use a George Foreman & it always comes out great!!

we always buy the thinner ones or the ones cut as "tenders", because the thick thick ones are too hard to work with.

 

[kimmar067]

NO matter what I do.......oven baking, crock pot, grilling, pan fry, etc. I always over cook it.

...when the chicken is sliced very thin, it needs minimal cooking time....personally, I would NEVER cook it in a crock-pot, but that's just ME....as for cooking it on the grill, 5 minutes on one side (lowest flame, higher rack), turn, and grill for 3 0r 4 minutes more - THAT'S IT! As a previous poster said, let it cool for a few minutes before slicing it. Here's something you can try (if you like a 'Mexican-style' tasting dinner) :

Drain and empty 2 small cans of sliced chilies into a layer in a Pyrex lasagna-type dish. Season boneless chicken breasts with 2 cloves chopped garlic, salt, pepper (or ceyenne pepper), chili powder, dash of hot sauce, and the juice of one small lime (you can do this ahead of time and let it marinade for an hour) and place on top of chilies, add one small can of drained, black beans (I usually use Goya) and 'sprinkle' or distribute over entire layer of chicken. Bake for about 20 minutes in 375-degree preheated oven. Add one 2-cup pkg of shredded sharp cheddar cheese over top of chicken and beans and place in oven. Let cheese melt, about 5 minutes. Serve with warmed tortilla 'shells' (those flat ones - not the hard, crunchy ones) and taco fixins' (sour cream, salsa, chopped red onions, guacamole, shredded lettuce, and extra shredded cheddar cheese). Everyone can make their own fajitas! Sometimes I serve it with white rice on the side, if anyone doesn't want to make a fajita....

 

[MM27]

I like my chicken cut thin, so you have to really watch it because it cooks fast. I marinade with Grill Mates Tomato Garlic Basil Marinade
You use 1/2 cup of olive oil, 1/2 cup water and some white vinegar with a packet of the marinade. In the summer I grill them, but otherwise I cook in my cast iron skillet. Comes out great.

 

[Jeafl]

I never have luck with it either, so we mostly do "stuff" with it. One favorite is Easy Chicken Enchiladas.

Poach the chicken in water until tender, cut in small pieces and set aside. Then mix 1 carton of sour cream, a few chopped green onions and a bag of shredded cheese and add to the chicken. Take flour tortillas and put the mixture down the center, roll up and put in a 9x13 glass dish. Pour a jar of salsa over the top and bake about 40 minutes at 350.

Always a crowd favorite!

 

[familyS]

Marinate and pan fry

Marinate and grill

Marinate and broil

Basically- don't forget to marinate

 

[sunlover13]

Marinate it in Caesar dressing for at least an hour. I will even marinate mine overnight if I remember.

This holds in the moisture very well.

A friend of mine even coats his park chops in Caesar dressing. I haven't tried that yet.

Got this from a Kraft recipe online for BBQ chicken.

We will grill outside or even use the George Foreman in the winter.

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

standard baking rule for me is 375º for 20-25 minutes.

I like boneless skinless thighs with Stubbs chicken marinade, I throw them in a ziploc bag in the morning and let them soak up the marinade

I also do lemon herb chicken
Melt 3 tablespoons of butter
add 6 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 teaspoon dry basil
1 teaspoon dry oregano
package of boneless skinless breast

pour over chicken and bake for 25 minutes on 375. I use the liquid from the pan to add flavor to the rice and pour a little over the chicken before we eat it.

 

[lukenick1]

Marinate it in Caesar dressing for at least an hour. I will even marinate mine overnight if I remember.

This holds in the moisture very well.

A friend of mine even coats his park chops in Caesar dressing. I haven't tried that yet.

Got this from a Kraft recipe online for BBQ chicken.

We will grill outside or even use the George Foreman in the winter.

Which Caesar dressing do you recommend??
I will definitely have to get some marinades....

I will have to try these ideas.....I think like some of you have said maybe thin cut or pounding them thin will be my best bet. At least i won't be paranoid that they are not cooked enough and over cook them. I love chicken parm but hate the smoke it makes in my house when frying them in Olive oil. Any suggestions to keep the smoke stench out???

 

[sunlover13]

Which Caesar dressing do you recommend??
I will definitely have to get some marinades....

I will have to try these ideas.....I think like some of you have said maybe thin cut or pounding them thin will be my best bet. At least i won't be paranoid that they are not cooked enough and over cook them. I love chicken parm but hate the smoke it makes in my house when frying them in Olive oil. Any suggestions to keep the smoke stench out???

I use Kraft Caesar dressing.

Check out Kraftfoods.com. They have some great recipes.

My two favorites are the marinade in Caesar dressing, then just grill & add BBQ sauce at the end.

The other one is Kraft sun dried tomato salad dressing as a marinade overnight.

I've also used Wishbone Italian salad dressing as a marinade.

Caesar / BBQ is my favorite though. The Caesar dressing keeps the chicken moist.

 

[Callie]

Italian dressing used to coat them, and then grilled. Super yummy!

 

[Minnie]

Frozen

Though it takes longer to cook, I find that when cooked from the frozen state it doesn't dry out

 

[mumom95]

I have yet to not over cook it. My chicken is always dry!!! Help. How do you cook it??

I have found the bagged Tyson chicken (where each piece is individually frozen before placed in the bag) is much juicier than other chicken. I think they inject it with juices. It does contain more sodium this way I think, but my chicken very rarely comes out dry (unless I way over cook it). And I'm not a good cook by any stretch of the imagination.

Also, I always thaw my chicken completely before cooking. My MIL will always say "you can start with frozen meat, just cook it a little longer" and her chicken is almost always dry.

 

[MIGrandma]

We had chicken breasts just last week. They were quite thick and I did nothing to really "prepare" them. I heated a little olive oil in the pan, put the breasts in the pan, sprinkled them with Mrs. Dash, a little seasoning salt, and pepper. Covered them, let them cook maybe 10 minutes, just until the bottoms started to turn white.

Uncovered, turned them over, again sprinkled with Mrs. Dash, seasoning salt and pepper. Covered them back up and cooked them about 10 minutes more. Took them off the heat, let them sit about 10 minutes for the juices to settle.

They were not dry at all, very tender and juicy. And a very simple, yet tasty, way to cook them.