Dry Chicken.

oHUTCHYo

oHUTCHYo

oHUTCHYo

Associate
Joined
7 Jun 2005
Posts
2,428
Location
North East
Thread title purposely as dull as the topic :p

I eat a lot of chicken, primarily for the protein injection for my weight lifting.

I tend to buy £25 worth of breasts from a local butchers and freeze them. I tend to oven cook them the night before ready for my lunch at work. Thing is, they are so terribly dry. I tend to put some spices on to liven them up, though it obviosuly does nothing for the texture.

Has anyone any tips for cooking chicken breast from frozen and keeping them moist? Is poaching safe, maybe microwaving? Bear in mind they will be refrigerated from 8pm until 1pm the next day. Cant cook it fresh.
 
You could get chicken thigh instead. Less likely to dry out.

Also, cook for less time? Food will continue to cook for some time after you take away the heat source so you are probably overdoing them.
 
You are probably just well over cooking them, cooking from frozen doesn't help although perfectly safe. It'll mean longer cooking times.

Every day stick some in the fridge too cook the next day.


Absolutely nothing wrong with poaching them, perfectly safe. Simmer in some stock and what ever flavour you want to add more taste.
 
combination of over cooking and cooking from frozen.

Also I used to do a lot of chicken eating in the days when I was a bigger gym monster - I roasted the chicken thighs wrapped in tin foil and just baste regularly, and just don't over cook them - stays moist that way. Storing them in the fridge will dry it out though so be aware. If you want to "re-moisten" a quick blast in the uwave works well.
 
The reason not cooking from frozen is your core temp is way off and the outer will cook a lot quicker than your core. You end up with dry horrible chicken.
 
Cheers gents. Think I might have to change my preference from breast to thigh :D

It's honestly not laziness, its due to me buying bulk (hence freezing) and no cooking facilities at work (hence cook the night before).
 
Get it out the day before and leave in the fridge. Should then have the day to defrost, then cook that night for the next day.

I still wouldn't cook thigh from frozen, just plan it out a bit more.
 
G4ORCE said:
It's honestly not laziness, its due to me buying bulk (hence freezing) and no cooking facilities at work (hence cook the night before).
Click to expand...

but why cook frozen. Take out the day before, place in sandwich bag and place in fridge, day two cook, day three eat.

Beaten like a cheap maid.
 
As already said, cooking from frozen won't help, but if you're not averse to a little extra sodium then I find brining them is a great way to keep them tender if you're going to eat them cold after they have been cooked.

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_do_you_brine_chicken_breasts
The sugar is optional as well, so you don't need to include that.

Lean muscle tissue like chicken breast meat will tighten up and expel moisture at higher temperatures too, so you could think of investing in a meat thermometer to make sure you don't overcook them.
 
It's not dry when I cook it in foil - straight from freezer, make a parcel out of foil (so there's some room in there) and put one drop of oil on it, along with a few herbs. Cook at 200c for 45 minutes.

I guess it steams, certainly keeps the moisture inside the foil (always sitting in a pool of it's own water). Better (not supermarket) meat may not have as much water but you could always add a splash.

If you can defrost though I'd recommend marinading in yoghurt+herbs for a day before cooking, it'll just taste nicer.
 
Frozen meat in general is going to be drier regardless of whether or not you thaw it in advance.

Chicken is about 65% water, and the act of turning the bound water into ice crystals can release it from proteins of the meat, so when it is thawed it will flow away a lot easier.
 
lookitsjonno said:
never knew you could cook chicken breast from frozen, can you cook thighs from frozen? chicken breasts are for girls.
Click to expand...

you can cook anything from frozen. it just needs more time and you get a greater difference in temp. meaning outside tends to over cook and inside under cook. but as long as it reaches safe temps all the way through. theres no safety issue.

when people say cooking from frozen is unsafe. what they really mean. is dumb people undercook the middel and get food poisoning. not that food posioning is common any more.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom