Try to avoid chicken thigh...

24

Replies

  • MysteriousMerlin
    MysteriousMerlin Posts: 2,270 Member
    They're great for filling in leftover calories. I get boneless, skinless ones. Great for the grill, great for a crockpot as they don't dry out.
  • Mischievous_Rascal
    Mischievous_Rascal Posts: 1,791 Member
    Chicken thighs on the grill...my favorite meal!

    Covered in jerk sauce, served with butter soaked potatoes and roasted broccoli...

    Wait, that was last night's dinner, but I could sooooooooooo eat it again right now!
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    Just a heads up, I thought chicken thighs would be some what similar to chicken breasts in nutrition. Turns out for 200g, there are 452 calories! And that was only my first meal of the day.. it totaled to 850 calories!

    whatever entry you're looking at must include the skin. According to USDA, 4 oz (112 grams) boneless/skinless chicken thigh is 184 calories...yes, more than 4 oz of chicken breast which is around 120 but IMHO, quite worth the difference. I love the skin too, but generally discard it due to the fact that it's just fat and extra calories at that point.

    Ditto! I rarely buy chicken breast anymore. Boneless skinless thighs have a tiny bit more calories and don't tend to dry out as easily. Yum!
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
    Chicken thighs on the grill...my favorite meal!

    Covered in jerk sauce, served with butter soaked potatoes and roasted broccoli...

    Wait, that was last night's dinner, but I could sooooooooooo eat it again right now!

    *drrroooooolllllzzzzz*
  • IsaackGMOON
    IsaackGMOON Posts: 3,358 Member
    Just like eggs eat the whole bird. Ditch the skin and trim most of the fat though.
    NO.
    Ditch shells and feathers and bones. Not the skin nor the fat! That's the best part.

    I always thought the feathers were the best?! Have I been eating wrong? :grumble:
  • brower47
    brower47 Posts: 16,356 Member
    thigh meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/735/2
    100g = 119 calories

    breast meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/701/2
    100g = 110 calories

    So, tell me again what this mystical issue is of which you speak?

    Just an FYI on the true difference between dark and white meat:

    White meat is white because of the chicken's chronic lack of exercise, something to think about next time you're about to curl up in front of the TV for another I Dream of Jeannie rerun. Dark meat, which avian myologists (bird muscle scientists) refer to as "red muscle," is used for sustained activity--chiefly walking, in the case of a chicken. The dark color comes from a chemical compound in the muscle called myoglobin, which plays a key role in oxygen transport. White muscle, in contrast, is suitable only for short, ineffectual bursts of activity such as, for chickens, flying. That's why the chicken's leg meat and thigh meat are dark and its breast meat (which makes up the primary flight muscles) is white. Other birds more capable in the flight department, such as ducks and geese, have red muscle (and dark meat) throughout.

    From: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1295/why-is-white-meat-white-and-dark-meat-dark
  • amberj32
    amberj32 Posts: 663 Member
    Yeah, I had slight shock too over the weekend, but I guess it's expected since I ate the skin too. When I have chicken breasts they are boneless and skinless and lower in fat and calories. But I was BBQ'ing with family and we were on a budget. 89 cents a pound sounded a lot better than $4.99 a pound for the breasts.
  • RabbitLost
    RabbitLost Posts: 333 Member
    thigh meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/735/2
    100g = 119 calories

    breast meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/701/2
    100g = 110 calories

    So, tell me again what this mystical issue is of which you speak?

    Just an FYI on the true difference between dark and white meat:

    White meat is white because of the chicken's chronic lack of exercise, something to think about next time you're about to curl up in front of the TV for another I Dream of Jeannie rerun. Dark meat, which avian myologists (bird muscle scientists) refer to as "red muscle," is used for sustained activity--chiefly walking, in the case of a chicken. The dark color comes from a chemical compound in the muscle called myoglobin, which plays a key role in oxygen transport. White muscle, in contrast, is suitable only for short, ineffectual bursts of activity such as, for chickens, flying. That's why the chicken's leg meat and thigh meat are dark and its breast meat (which makes up the primary flight muscles) is white. Other birds more capable in the flight department, such as ducks and geese, have red muscle (and dark meat) throughout.

    From: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1295/why-is-white-meat-white-and-dark-meat-dark

    That may explain why I like the whole duck but on the leg quarters of the chicken. Thank you!
  • husseycd
    husseycd Posts: 814 Member
    I can barely stand chicken breasts. I always eat thighs. A huge thigh would be 6 oz and only about 210 calories. I get 180 calories for the same amount of chicken breast (boneless, skinless, pre-cooked, btw). Really, you're worried about so few calories? Thighs are juicy and yummy with just a little salt and pepper. Can't say the same about chicken breast.
  • brower47
    brower47 Posts: 16,356 Member
    thigh meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/735/2
    100g = 119 calories

    breast meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/701/2
    100g = 110 calories

    So, tell me again what this mystical issue is of which you speak?

    Just an FYI on the true difference between dark and white meat:

    White meat is white because of the chicken's chronic lack of exercise, something to think about next time you're about to curl up in front of the TV for another I Dream of Jeannie rerun. Dark meat, which avian myologists (bird muscle scientists) refer to as "red muscle," is used for sustained activity--chiefly walking, in the case of a chicken. The dark color comes from a chemical compound in the muscle called myoglobin, which plays a key role in oxygen transport. White muscle, in contrast, is suitable only for short, ineffectual bursts of activity such as, for chickens, flying. That's why the chicken's leg meat and thigh meat are dark and its breast meat (which makes up the primary flight muscles) is white. Other birds more capable in the flight department, such as ducks and geese, have red muscle (and dark meat) throughout.

    From: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1295/why-is-white-meat-white-and-dark-meat-dark

    That may explain why I like the whole duck but on the leg quarters of the chicken. Thank you!

    I'm the same way. Dark meat has such a superior flavor, for me anyway. I guess we like the taste of higher concentrations of myoglobin.
  • aledba
    aledba Posts: 564 Member
    thigh meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/735/2
    100g = 119 calories

    breast meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/701/2
    100g = 110 calories

    So, tell me again what this mystical issue is of which you speak?

    Just an FYI on the true difference between dark and white meat:

    White meat is white because of the chicken's chronic lack of exercise, something to think about next time you're about to curl up in front of the TV for another I Dream of Jeannie rerun. Dark meat, which avian myologists (bird muscle scientists) refer to as "red muscle," is used for sustained activity--chiefly walking, in the case of a chicken. The dark color comes from a chemical compound in the muscle called myoglobin, which plays a key role in oxygen transport. White muscle, in contrast, is suitable only for short, ineffectual bursts of activity such as, for chickens, flying. That's why the chicken's leg meat and thigh meat are dark and its breast meat (which makes up the primary flight muscles) is white. Other birds more capable in the flight department, such as ducks and geese, have red muscle (and dark meat) throughout.

    From: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1295/why-is-white-meat-white-and-dark-meat-dark
    IFL SCIENCE!!! :drinker:
  • AnninStPaul
    AnninStPaul Posts: 1,372 Member
    thigh meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/735/2
    100g = 119 calories

    breast meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/701/2
    100g = 110 calories

    So, tell me again what this mystical issue is of which you speak?


    ^^THIS. Nine more calories and a lot more flavor for half the price.
  • JazmineYoli
    JazmineYoli Posts: 547 Member
    They are very similar. I buy them all the time instead of breasts. Just buy the skinless kind.

    ETA: I buy in bulk at BJ's.
  • danimalkeys
    danimalkeys Posts: 982 Member
    I cook them bone in and skin on. Roasted in the oven or on the grill. The crispy skin is the best part. As long as it fits into your calorie count/macros for the day, go for it. I had 900+ calories worth of them the other day for dinner and they were good!
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    Just like eggs eat the whole bird. Ditch the skin and trim most of the fat though.
    NO.
    Ditch shells and feathers and bones. Not the skin nor the fat! That's the best part.

    I always thought the feathers were the best?! Have I been eating wrong? :grumble:
    You've got a lot of fiber, that's for sure :tongue:
  • mstripes
    mstripes Posts: 151 Member
    thigh meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/735/2
    100g = 119 calories

    breast meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/701/2
    100g = 110 calories

    So, tell me again what this mystical issue is of which you speak?

    Just an FYI on the true difference between dark and white meat:

    White meat is white because of the chicken's chronic lack of exercise, something to think about next time you're about to curl up in front of the TV for another I Dream of Jeannie rerun. Dark meat, which avian myologists (bird muscle scientists) refer to as "red muscle," is used for sustained activity--chiefly walking, in the case of a chicken. The dark color comes from a chemical compound in the muscle called myoglobin, which plays a key role in oxygen transport. White muscle, in contrast, is suitable only for short, ineffectual bursts of activity such as, for chickens, flying. That's why the chicken's leg meat and thigh meat are dark and its breast meat (which makes up the primary flight muscles) is white. Other birds more capable in the flight department, such as ducks and geese, have red muscle (and dark meat) throughout.

    From: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1295/why-is-white-meat-white-and-dark-meat-dark

    I'm not so sure that they are right. My meat chickens are a cornish cross and don't get much exercise at all. They are rather fun to watch. They stand up, take three step and plop down into an exhausted heap. Every part of them is well developed and from hatch ( I buy chicks that are a few days old) to harvest at near 6+ pounds in under 8 weeks. Their water is about 4 feet from their food. Every part of them that is edible, white meat, dark meat and giblets is full of flavor and if not over cooked tender and moist. FWIW I usually skin them rather than pluck so they are skinless when they go in the freezer, whole. While another breed, leghorn (rooster) cross seem to be darker meat all around and hatch to harvest was about 3.5 months with a harvest weight of about 3-3.5 pounds each for cockerals; hens are kept as egg layers. These walk around, pretty much "free range" and only fly up to roost in the rafters of their coop at night. Oh yeah, btw the best way to cook them that I have found is on my charcoal grill with indirect heat and liberally seasoned with my rib rub:paprika, black pepper, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne, and a smaller amount of cumin. I prefer the hind quarter.
  • TXRanchGirl
    TXRanchGirl Posts: 303
    skin it and eat it..really..

    thighs are alot cheaper then breasts too. you cant make killer adobo chicken with breasts..ick
  • brower47
    brower47 Posts: 16,356 Member
    thigh meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/735/2
    100g = 119 calories

    breast meat: http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/poultry-products/701/2
    100g = 110 calories

    So, tell me again what this mystical issue is of which you speak?

    Just an FYI on the true difference between dark and white meat:

    White meat is white because of the chicken's chronic lack of exercise, something to think about next time you're about to curl up in front of the TV for another I Dream of Jeannie rerun. Dark meat, which avian myologists (bird muscle scientists) refer to as "red muscle," is used for sustained activity--chiefly walking, in the case of a chicken. The dark color comes from a chemical compound in the muscle called myoglobin, which plays a key role in oxygen transport. White muscle, in contrast, is suitable only for short, ineffectual bursts of activity such as, for chickens, flying. That's why the chicken's leg meat and thigh meat are dark and its breast meat (which makes up the primary flight muscles) is white. Other birds more capable in the flight department, such as ducks and geese, have red muscle (and dark meat) throughout.

    From: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1295/why-is-white-meat-white-and-dark-meat-dark

    I'm not so sure that they are right. My meat chickens are a cornish cross and don't get much exercise at all. They are rather fun to watch. They stand up, take three step and plop down into an exhausted heap. Every part of them is well developed and from hatch ( I buy chicks that are a few days old) to harvest at near 6+ pounds in under 8 weeks. Their water is about 4 feet from their food. Every part of them that is edible, white meat, dark meat and giblets is full of flavor and if not over cooked tender and moist. FWIW I usually skin them rather than pluck so they are skinless when they go in the freezer, whole. While another breed, leghorn (rooster) cross seem to be darker meat all around and hatch to harvest was about 3.5 months with a harvest weight of about 3-3.5 pounds each for cockerals; hens are kept as egg layers. These walk around, pretty much "free range" and only fly up to roost in the rafters of their coop at night. Oh yeah, btw the best way to cook them that I have found is on my charcoal grill with indirect heat and liberally seasoned with my rib rub:paprika, black pepper, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne, and a smaller amount of cumin. I prefer the hind quarter.

    It's based on genetics, not the individual ability of each bird. I used to raise Cornish rock crosses. We had to butcher them early or they'd have a heart attack once they got too old (younger than the butcher date of our other cockerels).

    You could cage a duck and it would still be all dark meat.
  • Kitten2629
    Kitten2629 Posts: 1,358 Member


    I dunno, I kinda like beast meat.

    Meat-Beast-Burger-King.jpg

    I am very hungry now, and will sadly be disappointed with my chicken and salad when that burger looks a lot better :)
  • fallingtrees
    fallingtrees Posts: 220 Member
    Thighs are wonderful. To choke down a breast, I have to smother it in gravy or mayo, so may as well enjoy the fat in the thigh.

    I never thought of skinning the birds instead of plucking them. Seems simpler. I wonder how it affects the quality of the frozen meat--does the skin help to hold in the flavor and keep out freezer burn?
  • hill8570
    hill8570 Posts: 1,466 Member
    ...which is only 100 calories more than the equivalent chicken breast. IMHO, unless someone has utterly no sense of taste, they're worth every calorie.
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  • neandermagnon
    neandermagnon Posts: 7,436 Member
    here's me thinking that avoiding chicken thighs was something men who used to skip leg day but have now seen their errors in their way want to do... as in how squats and deadlifts are a good way to avoid chicken thighs.
  • _shannon92
    _shannon92 Posts: 33 Member
    I get the boneless/skinless ones from costco. 200g=240calories.
  • rejectuf
    rejectuf Posts: 487 Member
    I like buying chicken with bones as I normally save them and use them to make stock. Wing tips are excellent for this, actually.
  • Wenchilada
    Wenchilada Posts: 472 Member
    I prefer thigh/leg meat... always have. I got it in my head somewhere along the line, though, that breast meat is the only acceptable type to eat if you are a grownup... and am trying to un-learn that. Thighs are a little bit trickier to trim of excess fat if you buy them bone-in, but I usually buy them boneless-skinless and frozen. The flavor is better and it is much harder to render them inedible than it is for breast meat. Wish I could convince my husband to willingly eat them (I sneak them in about 50/50 sometimes when the chicken is cut-up)... he's even pickier than me, somehow, and I'm the one with Celiac. :P
  • kathie1313
    kathie1313 Posts: 20 Member
    Ever try beer can chicken off the grill???? I love the dark meat also, have for years, always tender and juicy, but have recently found that doing a whole chicken on the grill with a beer can cooker (w/beer in it, of course) the white meat comes out REALLY tender and juicy , NOT dry. Try it, you may like it!!! (as the old commercial used to say) showing my age again... :)
  • Mangopickle
    Mangopickle Posts: 1,509 Member
    Just like eggs eat the whole bird. Ditch the skin and trim most of the fat though.

    yummmmmm, schmaltz! Just gotta plan for it ;)
  • rosebette
    rosebette Posts: 1,659 Member
    I find chicken thighs more flavorful, but they have much more fat and cholesterol. I was surprised that chicken thighs have more fat than steak, and as someone watching cholesterol, I had always chosen chicken over read meat. However, I must admit I have a weakness for them, especially skin if it's crispy.
  • rushmama5
    rushmama5 Posts: 49 Member
    you really don't have to worry about fat much if you're staying away from refined foods. Try perimeter shopping. Produce, meats, a little dairy if you can tolerate it. Keep it simple