As I started my journey into cooking, I set personal goals for myself. For the first goal, I decided I wanted master cooking the most commonly eaten bird: chicken. A popular food among college students, chicken is a healthy and relatively less-expensive option for meat. What I love about chicken is how versatile the meat can be, making it an essential to learn to cook.
Starting as a novice cook, I felt the most nervous about cooking meats, mostly because when meat is undercooked it can make you pretty sick. In general, chicken should be cooked to at least 165 degrees in order to ensure it is well-done. In this blog, I will outline my favorite way to cook chicken breasts by boiling them on the stove.
Boiling the Chicken Breast:
One technique I use to ensure well-cooked chicken every time is to boil the chicken breast. This may sound strange, but it is a quick and easy way to cook the meat, especially if you are a beginner chef like myself.
In general, I personally prefer cooking chicken breasts rather than other forms of the meat. However, boiling chicken with the bone in can work as well. I usually purchase my chicken breasts from Giant Food Stores.
- To start, use a large pot big enough to fit at least one chicken breast in it. Then take the chicken breast and cover it in salt and pepper for flavoring.
- After placing the pot on the stove, place the seasoned chicken breast at the bottom of the pot.
- Then use a measuring cup to pour in 1 cup of chicken stock (or enough to cover half of the chicken breast.) Alternatively, you can use water to boil the meat in, but I personally prefer using chicken stock or both because it can provide more flavor.
- Once covered with liquid, turn the stove to a medium heat and cover the pot with a lid.
- After the liquid comes to a boil, set a timer for eight minutes. Once the timer is done, use a meat thermometer to check the temperature thickest part of the chicken. If it is not cooked completely, the chicken can continue to boil for a couple more minutes. If the meat has reached 165 degrees, it can be taken off the stove to cool.
- Once cooled, the chicken can be devoured or put aside as part of another recipe.
After the chicken is done, it can be eaten alone or used in a variety of meals. Although cooking meat can be initially anxiety-inducing, cooking chicken can be as easy as boiling water!
Alicia is Cooking 