Cooking Chicken for Dummies

We all have to start somewhere, and sometimes that’s overcooking the hell out of your chicken. We've all done it.

Cooking meat is pretty scary, I won’t lie. I’m going to teach you how to perfectly cook chicken thighs (my prefered chicken cut)

Here are some tips and tricks to making my go-to way of cooking meat for salads, noodles and pasta -

1. The marinade:
   Crucial to get flavour into the chicken. It will help with overall texture, juiciness & flavour. Marinades can be as short as 30 minutes, up to 2 days in the fridge. The longer it marinades, the more flavourful your end product will be. Think about the dish you're making, what type of flavours you want to highlight and use those to create a marinade with.
   

   A typical marinade is made up of three essential components: an acid (such as vinegar, lemon, or citrus), an oil (such as olive oil or sesame oil), and a flavouring agent (such as herbs and spices). These elements work together to transform the taste and texture of your dish in different ways.
   
   

2. The prep:
   Making sure your protein is cleaned properly is important. Any ligaments or extra fat pockets should be trimmed off with a sharp knife and cleaned for a better end result. When it's cooking time, make sure that the chicken is dry on the outside and has no moisture. Leave it on a clean countertop for 15 mins after you take it out of the fridge. If there is, it will prevent step #4 from being effective.
   

3. The cut:
   In chicken, you have two types of boneless cuts. The thigh and the breast. The thigh is great for flavour because it has higher fat percentage. Higher fat doesn’t mean more calories, just more flavour. Like how a well-marbled steak can be. If you’re looking for a leaner cut of meat, the breast is an option for you. It tends to be a little drier because it has little to no fat. I personally love chicken thighs, but try experimenting with both to see which one you like!
   

4. The cook:
   Cook it on medium-high heat with the skin side facing down. Use a good amount of oil to get a good colour. Oil can always be drained off and patted dry. That’s the smoother side of boneless chicken thighs. This will ensure even coverage in the pan leading to a crispy top and a juicy middle. Exactly what we are looking for.
   

5. The rest:
   Whenever you think you are almost done cooking, about 90% of the way there, take it off the heat!! Don’t keep going because the residual heat of the pan and the meat will continue cooking, even when resting on the chopping board. This is a rookie mistake. If you leave it in a pan for too long, all that chicken juice moisture will be drawn out in the pan. Take it off a minute earlier and let it rest on a cutting board for 2-5 mins before cutting. I feel like this helps keeps the juices inside leading to a juicier inside without compromising on the crispy crust.
   
   

Sweet-Soy Marinade Recipe:

Ingredients:

• 2tbsp soy sauce

• 1 tbsp honey

• 4 tbsp sesame oil

• 2 tbsp hoisin sauce

• 2 tbsp vinegar

• pinch of salt

• pinch of pepper

• pinch of dried parsley

• 3-4tbsp garlic powder

• 2 tbsp ginger powder

• 2 tbsp onion powder

• 1 tbsp sriracha

• 2 garlic cloves crushed

• 1 sprig of herbs

• 4-6 chicken thighs

Mix all of the ingredients into a Ziploc bag, and toss vigorously until all of your meat is covered in the marinade. Let rest on the kitchen counter for 30 min to an hour before cooking. For optimal flavour, marinate overnight.

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Yogurt-Garlic Marinade

Ingredients

• 1 carton or 200g of unsweetened yogurt

• 2 tbsp mustard

• 4-6 cloves of garlic crushed

• 3-4 tbsp garlic crushed

• 3-4 tsp paprika powder

• 2-3 tsp chilli flakes

• 2-3 tbsp garlic powder

• 2 tsp salt

• pinch of pepper

• 4-6 chicken thighs

Mix all of the ingredients into a Ziploc bag, and toss vigorously until all of your meat is covered in the marinade. Let rest on the kitchen counter for 30 min to an hour before cooking. For optimal flavour, marinate overnight.

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Method -

• Add a tbsp of oil to a pan, and then put it on a medium high heat. Once the oil is shimmering and the pan is hot once you hover your hand over it, add your chicken thigh skin side down. Thats the smoother side.

• Do not move or touch the chicken once you have placed it in the pan. We are forming a crust this way due to a process in cooking called the Maillard reaction. It’s flavour central.

• After 2-3 minutes, check the edges of your chicken thighs. If the edges are starting to turn white or translucent, and the bottom in contact w the pan is looking golden, you can now flip. If the chicken isn’t tearing off the pan easily, let it cook for a bit longer, it will release when it is ready.

• Continue cooking for 2-3 minutes on the other side, adjusting the heat if things are cooking too fast. Give it another flip and assess the top to see how much longer you have to cook. If the top is looking deep golden and the inside has a slight resistance when you poke it, you should be done.

• Usually, 5-7 minutes altogether is ideal cooking time, with 5-8 mins resting time on the board. This depends on your pan, the amount of oil you use and your heat. Keep an eye on all of them.

• If you’re sceptical that it’s undercooked, use a meat thermometer. 165F or 73C is cooked through. If you don’t have one, just slice a thigh at the fattest point and see what colour the inside is. If the juices run clear, and the inside is stark white, it’s cooked!

Sooooo, to recap. Good protein really comes down to three things: 

• Don’t overcrowd or move things that have come in contact with the pan. you need it for flavour and a good crisp.

• Don’t skimp out on marination, and make sure your chicken is air-dry before cooking. Water + oil is bad.

• Let it rest after cooking. In an ideal world, 10 minutes is the best. But try to rest upto 5, it’ll keep all those juices inside.