Sunday, March 8, 2009

The Easiest Chicken Recipes for Novice Cooks

By KC Kudra

Many people worry about using raw chicken to make chicken recipes and it is true that there are a few things to learn about handling raw chicken. As long as you follow basic hygiene rules, however, you will be fine. You should always wash your hands after handling raw chicken and clean all the surfaces the raw chicken has touched.

Raw chicken should be stored in the refrigerator in its plastic wrap. It should not touch any other foods and it is best to keep raw meat, poultry, and fish on the lowest shelf so it does not drip on to anything else. Chicken needs to be cooked all the way through and not have any pink bits left inside. As long as you follow these basic rules, there is no reason not to start making tasty chicken recipes today!

Chicken does not cost much and is widely available. It is a low fat health food. Perhaps deep fried chicken is not as healthy as grilled chicken salad or chicken baked in a tomato sauce but chicken is wonderfully versatile and you can cook it in many different ways and pair it with hundreds of different ingredients.

Simple Chicken Dishes

If you have not done a lot of cooking or you are unfamiliar with chicken, you can begin with an easy boneless chicken dish if you like. These recipes tend to be quite simple. You can slice some chicken breast and vegetables and stir-fry them. Pour over some sauce; warm it through and you have a great meal. You can make a mouthwatering Asian stir fry by frying chicken slices and vegetables. Add some soy sauce and sesame oil and you have made a wonderful dinner. You can also add raisins, nuts, and a pinch of chili powder or anything else you think will complement the dish.

Baked chicken recipes are usually not complicated either and you can brown a boneless chicken breast, pour over a can of soup or some sauce, and bake it until it is done. Grilled chicken recipes and poached chicken recipes are equally simple unless you have to make a complicated marinade or sauce. As long as your chicken cooks for the right amount of time at the right temperature, it should come out juicy and tender.

Undercooked chicken is pink inside and is not safe to consume. Overcooked chicken is tough, stringy, and dry and is unpleasant to eat. The best way to see if your chicken has finished cooking is to cut into the thickest part and check the juices are clear and the meat is white all the way through. If so, your chicken is done.

As you become more comfortable with making chicken dishes, you might like to have a go at some trickier chicken recipes. The crockpot chicken recipes you used to find daunting will now be a breeze as you attempt new variations of chicken dishes.

You can also have a go at new ways to cook chicken, such as making a roast chicken dinner with all the trimmings, once you are comfortable with the handling of chicken and cooking easy chicken recipes.

About the Author:

No comments: