Free – food and drink recipes

When cooking chicken breast meat, it is always a task to ensure the meat ends up tender, soft, succulent, juicy and delicious. Chicken breast meat is probably the toughest part of the chicken and not as tender as the drumstick and yet, it is the healthiest as it has the least fat and is mostly lean meat once you remove the skin. The trick to cooking chicken breast meat is in the marinade and the cooking technique.

Say, you have a family recipe for chicken recipe but you are trying it out for the first time. However, you left it on the stove for too long and your chicken ended up practically dry and stringy. There was nothing wrong with the recipe but the duration of the cooking time. Chicken breast meat must not be overcooked or else it will dry out and neither should it be uncooked or else it’d be too raw for anyone’s taste!

Whether you want to bake the breast meat, roast it, stir fry it or deep fry it, the marinade for the meat is also quite important as it could serve to tenderize it and give it flavours. Many would resort to the commercial bottled tenderizer, most often used for steaks, to rub it on the chicken to soften the meat. However, the more natural way is to use apple juice and marinade the chicken meat overnight in the juice. It will tenderize the chicken and at the same time give it a nice gentle apple flavour.

Now, if you are thinking of deep-frying the chicken for some crunchy chicken fingers, you could also choose to use buttermilk as marinade. Buttermilk is also another natural tenderizer. Next, we talk about how you cook the chicken. When you are grilling it or baking it in the oven, remember to keep the temperature at moderate and set the cooking time to shorter periods. All you need to do is to pop the chicken in and set it at maybe, 15 minutes cooking time and then check on it. If it is cooked by then, remove from the oven. The cooking time varies according to the size and amount of chicken you are cooking.

Chicken breast meat also tastes great when stir-fried. The best way is to slice the meat into thin, small pieces. This is to make sure the chicken cooks more thoroughly. Here’s a simple ‘Stir-fried Mushrooms Chicken Recipe’ I can share with you. You start by seasoning the chicken with some soy sauce and pepper. Then you heat up the wok with some cooking oil and sautee some diced garlic till fragrant. Next, add in sliced brown mushrooms and sautee for another minute. Finally, add in the chicken meat and then you let it cook by stir frying it for another 3 minutes or so. The chicken is cooked when the juices run clear and it is no longer reddish in color. Remove from heat immediately when cooked.

Although the chicken breast meat could prove to be a challenge to cook, it is low in fat, packed with proteins and is great for lunch and dinner. It suits those on a diet and those watching their weight very well and that’s not all, it is pretty versatile. Chicken breast meat can be cooked any way you like and as long as it is done correctly, it will be tasty, healthy and best of all, low in fat!

One of the most common and special methods of preparing foods, baking is widely used today because it produces healthy, nutritious, as well as savory dishes. Two delicious and easy-to-prepare baked dishes that everyone must try at their homes are Baked Ham and Baked Chicken. By learning the simple steps in making these wonderful and delicious baked dishes, people can surely serve palatable meals to their loved ones and guests.

Learning the Procedures in Baking Ham

The key ingredients in preparing this baked dish are ham and glaze. People can choose from the three kinds of glaze, namely honey and brown sugar glaze, fruit glaze, as well as honey and maple glaze. Additionally, it is important to make sure that the utensils that they need for this recipe, which are roasting pan, meat thermometer, foil, sealable plastic bag, and glazing bag, are all clean.

For those who have frozen hams, they can thaw the meat that they will use by putting it inside a refrigerator or by placing it in a container filled with cold water. After thawing the ham, use the foil to cover the top of the roasting pan. Put the ham in the roasting pan and place the pan inside the oven that was preheated to 325 degrees until the upper portion of the meat is half cooked. Remove the meat from the oven and flip the ham to bake the other portions. Glaze the meat to enhance its taste and aroma. With the use of meat thermometer, regularly check the ham’s internal temperature to avoid the meat from being overcooked. When the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees, the ham is now safe to eat.

Following Easy Steps in Baking Chicken

The main ingredients used in preparing this special dish are chicken breasts or whole chicken, olive oil, marinade, salt, and pepper. Put the meat in a clean sink and rinse it. Use olive oil to coat both sides of chicken. Drizzle salt and pepper to add taste to the meat. Place the chicken in a roasting pan and put it in an oven preheated to 350 degrees for about one and a half hour. Sprinkle the chicken with marinade or dried herbs like thyme, oregano, and rosemary. Use a meat thermometer to know if the chicken is ready to eat. If the chicken is well done, let it cool down for at most 15 minutes and serve immediately.

Make sure that meats used in these baked dishes are well cooked before removing them from the oven because uncooked meat can cause food poisoning. Furthermore, it is important to make sure that all the cooking utensils that will be used in preparing these baked dishes are clean. In this way, everyone can be sure that the meats are safe from food contamination.

Baked dishes are easy and simple to prepare. By following the procedures, people can surely make delicious, healthy, and savory dishes. Before serving the sumptuous baked dishes featured, it is best to garnish it with dried herbs like celery and parsley to make them more luring and enticing.