5 Tips And Recipes For Healthy, Juicy Chicken Breasts

By Hilary Meyer, Associate Food Editor, EatingWell Magazine

I used to have a love-hate relationship with boneless, skinless chicken breast. On the love side, it’s a lean, healthy protein with only 142 calories and 1 gram of saturated fat per 3-ounce serving. And it cooks relatively quickly so it’s great for a weeknight meal. On the hate side, its flavor is so mild and it always seemed to be dried out from being overcooked. But all that changed when I took a moment to think about how I could make chicken breast taste better and I got creative. Now when I cook chicken breast, it’s tender, juicy and packed with flavor.

Here are my tips on how to cook the perfect, juicy chicken breast and recipes to get you started:

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By Hilary Meyer, EatingWell Associate Food Editor

EatingWell Associate Food Editor Hilary Meyer spends much of her time in the EatingWell Test Kitchen, testing and developing healthy recipes. She is a graduate of New England Culinary Institute.

More from EatingWell:

• Chicken Casserole Recipes
• 5 Things You Should Learn To Cook This Year
• Healthy Crock Pot Chicken Recipes and Healthy Slow Cooker Chicken Recipes
• How to Cook Without a Recipe

 

Follow EatingWell on Twitter: www.twitter.com/eatingwell

Comments

[HuffGeist]

10:44 PM on 05/03/2012

I usually have frozen chicken that I thaw out in a sugar salt brine. Then I marinade it in whatever marinade I've chosen in a plastic zipper bag; usually with balsamic vinegar, wine or brandy, soy, garlic, fresh ground chili powder, ect.. After a few hours, or overnight, I pound the chicken in the same bag with my handy kitchen tenderizing mallet/hammer using the smooth side to avoid punctures. It helps to leave a small opening in the bag to prevent pressure blowouts and I just fold the edge over a little to avoid escaping liquids and splashing. Sometimes I have to remove some chicken to make room if there's a lot in there, but it still works well and keeps the mess to a minimum. Then it goes in the oven or on the grill until juicy, tender, and very delicious. Grilling is a quick clean up, but oven cooking has the added benefit of having cooked juices and marinade to use for a gravy or sauce. Been doing it this way for years and I doubt I will change it any time soon.

[unitron]

09:55 AM on 04/20/2012

By the time the breast has been removed from the chicken, both it and the rest of the chicken are dead, which is pretty much the opposite of healthy.

The word that's needed here is "healthful".