How to cook chicken breast

Knowing how to cook chicken is a staple for anyone who is learning to cook. Not only is chicken cheap and plentiful, but there are thousands of very simple, very tasty recipes that you can make which require chicken. You can add it to a simple pasta, mix it in with your salad, or wrap it between two pieces of bread for an easy sandwich. It's simple, fast, and works in so many ways!

But of course, we all know that under-cooked chicken is a health hazard and over-cooked chicken is dry as dirt. When I was first learning to cook, I went through dozens of articles and videos with tips for cooking chicken, and burned, dried out, or under-cooked a lot of meat.

Cooking chicken in a hot skillet or frying pan is quick, but it's easy to under-cook or over-cook it as a novice. Throwing it in the oven is a simple way to ensure it's properly cooked (there are tons of resources for how long you should cook it at what heat, etc.) but it takes much longer. When I get home from work after 6:30, I don't want to be preparing my meal for an hour or more.

So what do I do to solve all of these problems?

The easiest way to cook chicken breast

I was at the grocery store earlier and saw they had a great sale on chicken breast. I bought 8 pieces for less than $20, which will last me quite a while. I usually cook all of it, since you don't want that messing around in you fridge for too long, and there's really no point in freezing it raw. Once cooked, I dice it up the way I want it and freeze it. Next time I want a quick meal, the chicken thaws out in a few minutes in a hot pan, and I can add it to pretty much anything.

So here's what I do:

1. Place your chicken on a clean cutting board, preferably plastic since it's easier to clean. Make sure it's at room temperature, since cold meat will toughen up when you add it to heat.
2. Wash your hands.
3. Season chicken as you please. Salt and pepper, I like paprika, and you can add some hot sauce or cayenne pepper. Wash your hands.
4. Heat a large skillet or saute pan to medium-high. Around 6 or 7 on the knob. Make sure you have a lid for it.
5. Once the pan is nice and hot, throw some oil to coat the bottom and place your chicken in, using a set of long tongs, laying it away from you so the hot oil does not splash in your direction. Depending on the size of your pan, you can add 4 or 5 pieces, but it's important not to crowd them since the pan looses a lot of its heat. 
6. Sear the chicken, about a minute per side, and then cook for another 30 seconds to a minute per side on the same heat.
7. Now, put a lid on the pot, turn the heat down to low (between 1 and 2) and set your timer for 10 minutes. Do not lift the lid!
8. After 10 minutes, turn the heat off all the way, and set your timer for 10 more minutes. Do not lift the lid!
9. After 10 minutes, your chicken is completely cooked, and is perfectly moist. 

This works every time. If you find your self working with some huge, Frankenstein piece of chicken breast, just add a minute between each 10 minute period. This method is also great for adding different flavours. I like to throw in a few crushed cloves of garlic and a couple of slices of lemon. You can throw in a couple of sprigs of fresh thyme or rosemary, and the flavours will infuse while the chicken steams under the lid. It's great and it only takes about 25 minutes, including prep. While you wait for the timer to beep, you can prepare your salad, clean up, take a shower, whatever!

Once your chicken is cooked, take it off the heat and leave it alone for a minute or two to rest. Then cut into the thickest part of the fattest piece and make sure it's nice and white all the way through. If you see pink, but you shouldn't, it's not done. Heat your skillet again and throw it in the hot pan for another minute or two per side.

When you're happy with your chicken, cut it up anyway you like, put each cut up breast into a single ziplock sandwich bag, and then put a few of these into a large freezer bag. Done and done. A little tip here is to spoon some of the juices from the pan into the sandwich bags with your chicken, and maybe even throwing in a garlic clove if any of them survived the cooking. 

To thaw it out, take it our of the fridge and leave it at room temperature for 15-20 minutes, and then heat as you would. Or you can just dump the frozen chicken into a pot and heat it gently on medium-low (3 or 4) until it thaws. 

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