How to make oven cooked chicken breast moist?

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13

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  • lovetowrite73
    lovetowrite73 Posts: 1,244 Member
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    My new favorite way to cook chicken breasts: put in nonstick pan (or spray with a little nonstick spray), season with taco seasoning (I make my own), pour salsa over it and top with cheese. Bake in 375-degree oven for 20-25 minutes. Perfection.
  • 52cardpickup
    52cardpickup Posts: 379 Member
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    glevinso wrote: »
    dbmata wrote: »
    Skyz4dayz wrote: »
    JoRocka wrote: »
    Don't over cook it?

    How helpful of you! HERE IS YOUR GOLD STAR!
    When you learn to cook, you'll learn it's good advice.

    Reminds me of my least favorite chef instructor:

    "How long do I bake it for?"
    "UNTIL IT'S EFFING DONE!"

    D:

    He is very right. You cook it until it's done. Why worry about time? Ambient temperature, oven variations, even your elevation above sea level will affect the TIME it takes to cook something. It's cooked when it reaches the right temperature. Hard to say how long that takes, everything in a cookbook talking about time is only an approximation.

    I was obviously asking for an estimate, not an exact time. Should I come and check on it in 5 minutes, or is it going to take more like 25-35?

    He was just being jerk about semantics.
  • healthygreek
    healthygreek Posts: 2,137 Member
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    I put the juice of one lime in a large Baggie along with olive oil, country Dijon, tomato paste, chopped onion and garlic, a little water, Sriracha, salt/pepper and mix well. I add chicken breasts or thighs or both and mix well and refrigerate for a few hours.
    I then bake in a 350' oven in a baking pan with the marinade for 45-50 minutes. Comes out amazing every time! Juicy and delicious.
  • aekeron
    aekeron Posts: 3 Member
    edited January 2015
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    *removed the main piece of evidence of my inability to read*
  • PRMinx
    PRMinx Posts: 4,585 Member
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    aekeron wrote: »
    The "cook it until it's done" rhetoric is great if you have no interest in making the most of the food you cook. If you don't care about taste, texture, etc then yes, blast it to hell. If you want to enjoy the food you eat then pay attention to the temperature of the meat you're cooking and your seasoning above all else.

    I think you missed the point of the "cook it until it's done" posts here...may want to read again.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    I bake chicken breasts in the oven all the time...they cook through in about 15-20 minutes. You want a higher temperature and less cooking time. I usually set my temp to about 450* I couldn't imagine baking a chicken breast for an entire hour...a whole chicken, yes...but not a stand alone breast.

  • aekeron
    aekeron Posts: 3 Member
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    PRMinx wrote: »
    aekeron wrote: »
    The "cook it until it's done" rhetoric is great if you have no interest in making the most of the food you cook. If you don't care about taste, texture, etc then yes, blast it to hell. If you want to enjoy the food you eat then pay attention to the temperature of the meat you're cooking and your seasoning above all else.

    I think you missed the point of the "cook it until it's done" posts here...may want to read again.

    You're actually right. I clearly need to buy some glasses :(
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
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    glevinso wrote: »
    dbmata wrote: »
    Here's a tip, don't cook by time, cook by doneness, bake to about 150, and you're good to go, well, at least in better shape.

    Yesterday I cooked some chicken breasts at 140F for 10 hours in a water bath, then seared one up for lunch today. It was amazingly juicy and tender.

    You don't find the chicken is too... gelatinous at that temp? I agree there is no real reason to cook it to death, and the water bath method allows for lower fully-cooked temps. But 140 seems like it would still be a bit... jelly-like? I may be wrong and at 140 its perfect.

    I'm going to try it at 145 and see, out of curiousity, but no, I found them to be quite tender, and it was good.
  • FrozenTundra511
    FrozenTundra511 Posts: 206 Member
    edited January 2015
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    www.poultrypal.com - Use a darker beer.

    (For whole chickens)

    You're welcome. :D
  • Chezzie84
    Chezzie84 Posts: 873 Member
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    I wrap mine in tin foil. The juices from the chicken itself keep it moist. Plus only cook for around 30 minutes. Then cut it in half, if it's pink in the middle, cook for a bit longer.If it's not then its good to go.
  • troutrouter
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    If you are not on a low sodium diet, put the chicken in a brine overnight. If you are on a low sodium diet, like me, then use a thermometer and remove it when it hits 160 for breasts and 175 for thighs.
  • Ja_ja_jakeya
    Ja_ja_jakeya Posts: 88 Member
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    You're cooking for too long! Also doing a brine will always produce a moist chicken! I use a little brown sugar and salt with cold water ( warm water will feed bacteria) and I'll soak the chicken when I leave for work in the morning and cook when i get home! It's always tender and moist :)
  • Alluminati
    Alluminati Posts: 6,208 Member
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    If you're using a convection oven, then one hour is way too long for breasesests.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,446 Member
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    Boneless/skinless tends to go dry without special tricks that I can't be bothered with. You could cook w bone in skin on and then take the skin off. You'll get a bit more fat, probably, but not a huge amount more, plus, it will be edible.

    For bone-in/skin-on, I tried this recipe and found the timing/temp to lead to a really great piece of bird.

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Pour the vegetable oil into a 9x13 inch baking dish.
    Place the chicken pieces skin-side up into the baking dish. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour 20 minutes, until no longer pink near the bone. Turn the oven on to broil, and cook until the skin crisps, 2 to 5 minutes.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,951 Member
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    tomatoey wrote: »
    Boneless/skinless tends to go dry without special tricks that I can't be bothered with.
    Totally, I know how tricky those thermometers can be.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,446 Member
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    dbmata wrote: »
    tomatoey wrote: »
    Boneless/skinless tends to go dry without special tricks that I can't be bothered with.
    Totally, I know how tricky those thermometers can be.

    Rude!
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
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    jjasmelon wrote: »
    I'll be using a bit of butter and thyme, but when i always oven cook it for about an hour chicken seems quite dry. I have a fan oven. Tips please

    I don't have a fan oven. For my regular oven, I might reduce the temperature or the cooking time. I might add some liquid to the dish as well...like 1 c water.
  • dramaqueen45
    dramaqueen45 Posts: 1,009 Member
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    Marinate in all day in the refrigerator first in either BBQ sauce or low fat Italian dressing.
  • La5Vega5Girl
    La5Vega5Girl Posts: 709 Member
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    i coat my chicken breasts in mayo and they are very moist :smile: