Follow Granny's Tips & Tricks for trouble-free recipe preparation.
Have chicken, will travel! If you're transporting cooked chicken, put it in an insulated container or ice chest until ready to eat.
Never leave cooked chicken at room temperature for more than two hours.
Freeze uncooked chicken if it is not to be used within two days.
Do you obey the thaw law? Never defrost chicken at room temperature. Defrost in a refrigerator at 4°C (40°F).
Avoid crowding the pan with chicken pieces as the temperature will drop and the juices will flow out instead of staying in.
If you are cooking a stew, casserole or chicken pieces in a sauce, it's best to brown your chicken first. This seals in all the juices and improves the flavour.
To ensure your chicken breast fillets don't dry out and toughen when cooked, brush them with a little oil or marinade beforehand.
To get a crispy roast chicken skin: Place the washed chicken in the refrigerator uncovered for 2 hours. The skin will dry out and will be tasty and crisp when roasted.
Do you truss? Trussing means tying the legs of a roaster together. It makes for an evenly cooked chicken and scores high on the presentation scale.
To cover or not to cover? Covered chicken takes longer to cook in the oven than uncovered chicken.
Special notice for carvers: Cutting meat across the grain will produce slices with shorter fibers, resulting in more tender pieces.
Let roasted chicken rest for 10 to 15 minutes before carving to allow juices to be distributed throughout the meat.
Leaving the skin on the chicken while cooking helps to hold in juices which increases tenderness. For a healthy option, take the skin off before serving.
Avoid freezing chicken whenever possible. It eliminates additional moisture loss during thawing and results in less tender meat.
Always cook chicken well done, not medium or rare.
To improve the flavour of poultry, rub the fowl inside and out with salt before roasting.
Do you like breaded chicken? After breading it, put it in the fridge for 30 minutes to help the bread bond to the chicken. You'll be glad you did!
The way you cook your chicken can have an impact on its health benefits. Choosing a method like barbecuing and roasting is a great start!
Making your own chicken stock is so simple! Just save your leftover chicken bones and skin in the freezer until you have enough. They don't take much room and homemade chicken stock is delicious.
If chicken is stuffed, remove stuffing to a separate container before refrigerating.
To make gravy without fat, blend a tbsp of cornstarch with a cup of room-temperature broth by shaking the two together in a tightly lidded jar. Then heat the rest of the broth in a saucepan and add the blended liquid. Simmer until thickened.
When you roast your chicken vertically, you eliminate the need to turn the bird! This helps brown the chicken more evenly and cooks chicken in less time.
When warming chicken leftovers, add a little broth or water to create some steam. Helps keep the flavour!
You shouldn't wash or rinse raw poultry before cooking. Proper cooking will destroy bacteria present in the juices.
Barbecue tip: Use tongs to turn your grilled chicken. Too many fork pierces and your zesty juices may escape.
Cooked, cut-up chicken is at its best refrigerated for no longer than 2 days.
Always use medium heat for barbecuing chicken. Try putting an aluminum foil pan under the grill to catch drips.
Use glass or plastic containers when containing marinades. Why? Vinegar and citrus acid can react with metal and change the taste altogether.
Never re-freeze raw, previously-frozen chicken. This can pose a food safety risk.
At the store, pick up your chicken, other refrigerated foods and frozen foods last. Ask the grocery clerk to pack the chicken with the frozen foods to keep the chicken colder on the way home.
If you're frying chicken and you want to lower your chances of getting burned by grease splatter, add a little salt in the frying pan before you add your chicken!
Tips & Tricks courtesy of Chicken Farmers of Canada
