Introduction to Cooking Chicken
Chicken is a favorite dish and a staple all around the world. Whether
they are dining on country style fried chicken, Chinese stir fried
chicken, chicken cacciatore or chicken and dumplings, you’ll often find
it being served in homes just about everywhere.
The good news is that chicken is actually healthy for you. If you bake
it, broil it or grill it without the skin, it’s low in calories,
particularly the chicken breast (the white meat has less calories than
the dark meat). And of course, it’s loaded with protein.
Even more good news is that chicken is easy to cook. Of course, there
are plenty of complex and gourmet chicken recipes if you choose to go
that route, but you can also keep it as simple as seasoning it and
baking it in the oven.
The price of chicken goes up and down like everything else, but more
often than not you’ll find the chicken is less expensive than steak and
many types of fish. And it’s not hard to find something to go with your
chicken because pretty much everything goes with chicken: all types of
potatoes, rice, noodles, salad and most all vegetables, and even
stuffing will compliment and complete your chicken dinner.
While there are cultures that use all parts of the chicken, most use the
legs, thighs, breasts and wings. Some use the neck for flavoring a soup
or a broth.
Some farmers pluck and clean their own chicken. Some countries sell
trimmed chickens in the marketplace, and in others you will find whole
or cut-up chickens in the refrigerated meat section.
Whole chickens and cut-up chickens may also include the livers, gizzards
and heart. While many turn their noses up at this, people in the
Midwestern and southern United States love fried chicken livers and
gizzards. They also make good trimmings for country gravy.
Precautions When Cooking Chicken
First of all, make sure you choose chicken that is nice and pink and not
dark and shriveled up. Make sure it doesn’t have any smell to it. If was
previously frozen and now thawed, it’s best to not refreeze it, but to
use it immediately.
If it is a frozen chicken, thaw it in the refrigerator for a couple days
or thaw it in cold water for several hours. Always be sure to wash your
hands and the counter or cutting board with warm soapy water after
handling the chicken.
When cooking the chicken, you have to have a good balance. Cook it too
much and it will be tough and dry (especially the breasts). If you don’t
cook it long enough, it may not be done enough and contain bacteria. If
you chicken is bleeding after you’ve cooked it, it’s not cooked
thoroughly enough. One good way to test it is to poke it with a fork. If
the juices run out clear, the chicken is probably done.
With all of the many ways you can cook chicken, including
slow
cookers you could probably make
it different every time and never have it the same way twice. And with
all of the health benefits, it kind of makes chicken sound like a good
dish for dinner tonight, doesn’t it?
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