Cooking chicken breast with no oil

thewindandthework

I have recently started tracking my macros instead of just my calories, and finding that my fat tends to be high and my protein low. So I'm adding more meat into my life after years of eating very, very little of it. I'm a good cook, but clueless about meat.

What's your favorite way to cook skinless boneless chicken breast without any added fat?

EDIT: After several helpful comments and some consideration, I have decided to incorporate two new methods into my bag of tricks: Grilling (in a grill pan, in my case), and poaching.

Slower methods that would also work are roasting and crock pot, for those rare moments when I have some time.

PWRLFTR1

Fire up the grill

thewindandthework

I can't have a real grill but I have been considering a grill pan for my stove for a while. That's a good idea!

RunsWithBees

You can boil it and shred it or cut it into chunks.

cmriverside

crockpot? baked?

I don't worry about going over on fat, and I use a little butter in the cast iron skillet with chicken breast, otherwise it sticks. Meh. a gram or two of fat isn't a big deal. You can use broth, just watch for sticking.

thewindandthework

I have been skeptical about boiling, steaming, and microwave options because there's no opportunity for Maillard, but I could probably be convinced.

How is the flavor when they're boiled?

thewindandthework

Roasted makes a lot of sense to me, and it's what I do when I'm doing food prep for multiple days, but it's too slow for a weekday dinner for me. I've never even used my crockpot because I am a spontaneous cook. I'm already pushing my patience by planning two meals a day ahead of time, I don't think I could handle all three.

I'm not worried about a gram or two of fat, but 40 grams in a teaspoon of olive oil is enough to make a real difference. Even 20 in a half teaspoon would cut a sizable amount of cabbage or broccoli out of my dinner.

jordyngiulio

I second the crockpot! I also love to make it on the George Foreman grill thing - it sounds lame but chicken comes out great on there.

Panda8ach

I use coconut oil Still not great but better

thewindandthework

Thanks for your help everyone!

I do think I'm going to obtain a grill pan, since I was wanting one even in vegetarian mode, and I'm going to experiment with poaching the chicken. I think if it's not a rolling boil it shouldn't get too tough.

jgnatca

Simply not overcooking can make a big difference.

How about poaching in a little wine and stock?

thewindandthework

lol, I was already coming up with different poaching liquids. I always have wine, garlic, and a ridiculous collection of herbs and spices. Getting creative with combinations will be fun.

Commercial stock isn't really in my toolbelt for reasons of sodium and general disappointing flavor, and I don't think I'm ready to start making my own yet, but it's definitely something to consider.

dklibert

Look up Rachael Ray's recipe for poached chicken. She used bone-in skin on chicken breast, onion, garlic, carrot, celery, bay, peppercorns, herbs, lemon. It is really a great method plus you can strain and separate the broth and fat. Then you have great chicken and broth for recipes. Takes time but a great outcome.

AngryViking1970

poach it

stealthq

thewindandthework wrote: »

Thanks for your help everyone!

I do think I'm going to obtain a grill pan, since I was wanting one even in vegetarian mode, and I'm going to experiment with poaching the chicken. I think if it's not a rolling boil it shouldn't get too tough.

America's Test Kitchen and Alton Brown have excellent methods for poaching.

cwolfman13

thewindandthework wrote: »

I can't have a real grill but I have been considering a grill pan for my stove for a while. That's a good idea!

When I lived in my apartment and couldn't have a bbq grill, I had a George Foreman grill...I pretty much cooked all of my meats on that thing.

thewindandthework

I was just pricing a Foreman grill on Amazon and am seriously considering it.

wimdroid

Tried sous-vide?

piperdown44

I think pounding them down until they are about 3/8-1/2 thick, then marinade in a zip lock or dish, and a quick grill (4-5 mins) per side is the way to go after trying quite a few methods. They come out flavorful and moist. You can either serve them as is or cut into strips to add to salad.
I've used different marinades such as Italian dressing, buffalo sauce, teriyaki, chipotle, bbq, garlic and herb, etc.

BurgerLovinBulker

Fat isn't that bad....I generally eat chicken with a few strips of bacon, so the chicken is fried in the bacon fat.

Grilling is a great option. So is poaching, but I can't stand the taste.

Sous vide & a quick sear with a blow torch?
Baked with onion, garlic, & lemon?
Slow cooker with chipotle & a Mexican spice rub?
Reverse seared and smoked under a hood? Or even smoked in a smoker with a chipotle BBQ sauce.

Chicken is a great base for just about anything

Alatariel75

Panda8ach wrote: »

I use coconut oil Still not great but better

How better? Same calories, high in saturated fat, becoming widely recognised as having been totally over-hyped in recent history...

I personally don't like poached chicken breast. I tend to season and fry in a non-stick pan.

Evamutt

george froman grill

Chadxx

bray149

Grilling and crock pot are your best bet for convenience. Grilling only takes a few minutes. Good Crock-Pot with a timer can cook while you sleep.

monica859mfp

My mom's smoker.

firef1y72

Wrap in foil (or greaseproof paper) with herbs, spices, flavourings, then roast until just cooked. One of my favourites is a little chilli powder with lemon juice and sliced mixed peppers (they add moisture), by wrapping in foil it kind of steams as it bakes meaning it doesn't dry out as much especially if you add something like peppers, onions, courgettes or anything with a high water content.

firef1y72

Oh and if I'm (stir) frying I don't use oil, I've got one of those pans that doesn't need it even for eggs. So I'll slice the chicken in thin strips, season (I have a huge collection of herbs, spices and spice/herb mixes), fry quickly at a high heat and add loads of veggies. Or I'll cut in to chunks, season and make shish kebabs (with lots of veggies) to put under the grill. I eat a lot of chicken and it really doesn't have to be boring, although I will say that thigh meat is worth the few extra calories for more flavour.

Andy10725

Method one:
Steaming
Put to plate and put any spices that you want. Salt, garlic, ginger are the basic.
Steam for 7 min depending on the size

Method two:
Pan fry
What you will need. A good stainless steel pan with lid. Yup, stainless steel not the non stick cook ware. Matter of fact, avoid non stick cookware with this method if you don't want to break it.
Heat up the pan on mid high heat. Wait till the pan is super hot. You can do water droplet testing on it to test the hotness, if the droplet roll around instead of evaporating right away then it was golden.
Turn the heat to mid. Put the breast on the pan without oil. Press it down lightly to get rid of any trap air between pot n meat.
After about 2 min, the fat from the meat should have melted on the surface of the meat and make it effortless to flip over. If it's sticked on the pan then cook it longer. Don't try to force it off.
Another 2 min after u flipped it. Turn off the heat and put lid on. Let the residual heat from the pan do the rest. After 15-20 min, you should have a crazy tender breast.

randilyn2013

If you're a spontaneous cook look into a programmable pressure cooker or instant pot. I'm keto so I can't do the pasta or rice meals but raw chicken is shreddable in about 15 minutes and you can add pasta and cook for 4 more minutes and have an entire meal. Frozen chicken takes about 35 minutes. They're great for a lot of other stuff too, just cooked spaghetti squash in 15 minutes the other day.

deannalfisher

I actually do microwave chicken - I found these ready to go meals at the store (but you can also buy Ziploc steamer bags) - throw some chicken in, some vegetables (right now I'm using broccoli) and then some compressed butter (like scampi or black pepper flavored) - cook for about 6 min

kelly_stevens81

Use cooking spray, its such a small amount of oil it doesn't even count calorie wise.