Exploring the Versatility and Health Benefits of Chicken: Cooking Tips and Options

Chicken is one of the most versatile, healthiest easiest proteins to cook. Whether you buy the whole bird or a package of breasts, thighs, wings, or variety pack, you will never have to make the same recipe twice (unless you want to).

No matter what your favorite piece of the bird is, chicken takes some extra prep that other meats do not require. In addition to washing your hands, cutting boards, utensils, and work surfaces with warm water and soap, it is important to wash your hands and cutting boards between different cuts of raw poultry. Keep all raw meat, poultry, and eggs separate from each other in the shopping cart, bags, and in your refrigerator to avoid cross contamination.

Unlike vegetables and fruit, washing your chicken will not remove bacteria, and will actually spread the bacterial laden raw juices in your sink, countertops, and on food laying nearby. Cooking the meat to at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit (without touching the bone if bone-in) issufficient to kill any bacteria in the meat. Leftovers should go back into the refrigerator no later than two hours after cooking and will be safe to eat for an additional two or three days.

Chicken meat is divided into two types- white meat and dark meat. The breast, wing, back, and tenderloins (section of the breast) are white meat and the leanest cuts. They are called white because the bird has fewer capillaries in those muscles than the legs and thighs, which makes those pieces red (or dark).

Cooking all pieces with the skin on will help keep the chicken moist and flavorful, especially the breast which can be the driest part if not cooked correctly. The skin also provides a source of healthy fat for minimal calories (about 90 per ounce of skin). Like turkey, if you want to season the meat before cooking, pull back the skin, season, then put the skin back. Skinless chicken can be marinated up to two days before cooking.

White meat is best cooked in a sauce, broth, or stew so it doesn’t dry out. Dark meat can safely be baked, roasted, broiled, grilled, or pan fried.

If frying or grilling a whole chicken, it is important to spatchcock the chicken by removing the backbone so it can lay flat on the grill and so the whole bird can be cooked evenly in the fryer oil. The whole bird should fry in 20 minutes. Roasting or grilling the whole bird should take no more than an hour and fifteen minutes.

The most versatile and healthiest piece of the chicken to eat is the breast. With only 120 calories, two grams of fat, 26 grams of protein, and a good source of vitamins B-3 and B-6, a standard 4-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breast will bake in the oven in 20-30 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Chicken breasts are the most versatile of pieces, shredding easily once cooked for chicken salad or pulled BBQ chicken, thick enough to cut in half ¾ of the way through to stuff, or whole for an alternative to a hamburger patty on a sandwich.

Chicken thighs are the next best alternative to breast when making a casserole or one skillet dish, especially if using boneless thighs because they have more meat than the rest of the cuts. Dark meat chicken also has higher levels of iron, zinc, and vitamin C.

Chicken wings are a party classic because of their finger-food size and the ability to be spiced up or down to a variety of tastes with different rubs, sauces, and dips.

A popular way to cook any cut of chicken (and even a whole chicken) is an air fryer. This cooking method has become popular for its ability to give you a crispy outside without added fats from oils and quicker than heating up the oven.

At Bagley Farms Meat Market, we have chicken for every level cook. We have precut seasoned and unseasoned kabobs, fresh and frozen stuffed chicken breasts, plain and seasoned wings, ground chicken, whole chickens, and bulk packages of your favorite cut (breast, thighs, drumsticks). You can also mix and match your own cuts from our butcher counter and season them the way you want with our selection of local rubs, sauces, and spices.

And don’t forget! We’ll deliver within three miles of our store.