We’re making it easy for you to keep your resolutions with a few tips, techniques and ingredients that will aid you in chicken preparation.
Chicken Basics
Chicken is an excellent source of protein, and a good to fair source for niacin and iron. White meat and chicken without skin have fewer calories.
- When watching calories, fat and/or cholesterol remove the skin and any pockets of fat that are visible on the chicken. Using boneless, skinless chicken breasts cuts down on added fat.
- Boxes of individually packaged and quick-frozen chicken breasts can be found in the freezer section of most grocery stores and are convenient to have on hand when you need to get dinner on the table in a hurry.
- The Food Guide Pyramid considers a serving of chicken (cooked) to be 3 ounces. Three ounces of cooked, skinless white meat contains 147 calories, 4 grams fat and 72 milligrams cholesterol. The same amount of dark meat has 174 calories, 8 grams fat and 79 milligrams cholesterol.
- Store chicken in the coldest part of the refrigerator (40˚F or below). Raw chicken can be refrigerated for up to 2 days, cooked poultry up to 3 days.
- When freezing chicken, seal it airtight in a freezer-proof plastic bag or foil. Freeze uncooked chicken for up to 6 months; cooked chicken for up to 3 months for optimum tenderness.
- Thaw frozen chicken in the refrigerator and allow about 5 hours per pound. Thawing at room temperature means you run the risk of bacteria formation.
- To thaw frozen chicken (still in its freezer wrapping) quickly and safely by placing it in a large bowl of cold water. Allow 30 minutes per pound and change the water every 30 minutes.
- For tender results, cook boneless chicken to an internal temperature of 170˚F, bone-in chicken to 180˚F. If you do not have a thermometer, chicken should no longer be pink when sliced.
Recipe Revamp
- Use chicken or vegetable broth instead of fat when cooking chicken. Broth is commonly found available as 99% to 100% fat-free.
- Use vegetable cooking spray instead of oil or butter to sauté chicken or vegetables instead of frying in fat.
- Reduced-fat sour cream, low-fat yogurt, or evaporated skimmed milk can be replaced for higher fat cream in some recipes.
- Using more spices, blends and herbs rather than fat is an excellent way to enhance flavor when lowering the fat and salt in recipes.
- Low-fat cooking methods for chicken consist of baking, broiling, simmering, grilling, or roasting. Stir-frying is fine if using only a small amount of oil.
