Any professional chefs on here ???

[1tank1]

Hello. what is your favorite recipe?

I've got loads of favourite recipes but a recipe is about tastes and flavours and not the cooking/reheating method.

The original context of this thread seemed to be about meal prep/batch cooking to enable pre-cooked chicken breast to be eaten cold (or reheated) and still be moist... hence why I said that's impossible.

The secret to perfect chicken breast is to cook it and eat it `a la carte` (i.e only cook it when you're going eat it straight away) and there's various cooking methods that can achieve that level of perfection.

 

[1tank1]

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[JayOne]

How the fuck do I cook meal prep chicken breast that's juicy when cold? Or at least microwavable without getting rubbery? Tried slow cooker and oven but haven't cracked the code yet

Needs to be cooked fast not slow high heat but thorough. Check with a probe if not sure. Air Fryer is good for this.

 

[Hightower]

I've got loads of favourite recipes but a recipe is about tastes and flavours and not the cooking/reheating method.

The original context of this thread seemed to be about meal prep/batch cooking to enable pre-cooked chicken breast to be eaten cold (or reheated) and still be moist... hence why I said that's impossible.

The secret to perfect chicken breast is to cook it and eat it `a la carte` (i.e only cook it when you're going eat it straight away) and there's various cooking methods that can achieve that level of perfection.

Yes, that was the original theme. But as for me I wrote earlier, I make a grilled chicken and put it in a container and eat it in the evening and even the next day it is not dry, but juicy.

 

[Mmzz]

I've got loads of favourite recipes but a recipe is about tastes and flavours and not the cooking/reheating method.

The original context of this thread seemed to be about meal prep/batch cooking to enable pre-cooked chicken breast to be eaten cold (or reheated) and still be moist... hence why I said that's impossible.

The secret to perfect chicken breast is to cook it and eat it `a la carte` (i.e only cook it when you're going eat it straight away) and there's various cooking methods that can achieve that level of perfection.

Yes this was specifically about meal prepping chicken(aka cold), saves tons of time. I only spend about an hour cooking every 4 days, not just chicken, all my meals. I hate cooking, prefer to spend my time doing other shit. If you're eating cold chicken brining is A MUST imo, night and day difference to the texture.

Of course fresh chicken is always gonna be better, brining still helps there but it'll definitely still taste good without it. Cold chicken tastes like trash unless you brine it, try it.

Oh and if you're oven cooking(meal prep or not) make sure to pound them flat so each one gets cooked evenly. I use a small motorcycle battery over saran wrap to pound them flat, so quick. Also makes cooking times consistent, so if you get bigger cuts you don't have to worry about cooking longer, it's always the same every time.

And for seasoning I just lightly sprinkle with some cajun or creole rub before cooking and dip it in ketchup when I eat it

 

[Mmzz]

Yes, that was the original theme. But as for me I wrote earlier, I make a grilled chicken and put it in a container and eat it in the evening and even the next day it is not dry, but juicy.

Maybe the next day thing matters. I usually cook for like 5 days at a time and everything I tried before wasn't good. Tried boiling, broiling, and oven but not grilling because I don't wanna smoke up the house and you gotta supervise grilling.

Well I used to grill when I ate it fresh every night, but not for meal prep. It used to take an extra 45 mins everyday, tasted great but got old real quick.

There something so satisfying about just grapping a container whenever you're hungry instead of waiting to cook it first

 

[Hightower]

Maybe the next day thing matters. I usually cook for like 5 days at a time and everything I tried before wasn't good. Tried boiling, broiling, and oven but not grilling because I don't wanna smoke up the house and you gotta supervise grilling.

Well I used to grill when I ate it fresh every night, but not for meal prep. It used to take an extra 45 mins everyday, tasted great but got old real quick.

There something so satisfying about just grapping a container whenever you're hungry instead of waiting to cook it first

That's right, the grill changes the taste of food very well. I can't imagine my life without a grill. And when I cooked, I got bored with food, and the grill has been ready for 5 years to eat the same thing.

 

[1tank1]

Yes this was specifically about meal prepping chicken(aka cold), saves tons of time. I only spend about an hour cooking every 4 days, not just chicken, all my meals. I hate cooking, prefer to spend my time doing other shit. If you're eating cold chicken brining is A MUST imo, night and day difference to the texture.

Of course fresh chicken is always gonna be better, brining still helps there but it'll definitely still taste good without it. Cold chicken tastes like trash unless you brine it, try it.

Oh and if you're oven cooking(meal prep or not) make sure to pound them flat so each one gets cooked evenly. I use a small motorcycle battery over saran wrap to pound them flat, so quick. Also makes cooking times consistent, so if you get bigger cuts you don't have to worry about cooking longer, it's always the same every time.

And for seasoning I just lightly sprinkle with some cajun or creole rub before cooking and dip it in ketchup when I eat it

With reference to brining.

I don't wanna get overly picky and scientific coz in terms of meat proteins `brining` denatures proteins and destroys/breaks them down very quickly but I'm being very fussy and cheffy saying that .

If eat a chicken breast I want it to be plump and juicy with the texture of meat/muscle fibre and not so denatured that it literally doesn't even need chewing anymore coz the salt/enzymes/osmosis have denatured the protein/muscle fibres.

The texture will change with liquid brining (and also with marinading in oils too) but only because you are altering the composition/structure of the proteins in the muscle fibre. I'm not saying you shouldn't do it though if you like eating chicken breast pieces that are similar in texture to the body composition of a slug but eating thigh meat will be more natural in the mouth and dropping dry breast pieces into a warm stock/broth/sauce is more palatable than brining.

 

[Hightower]

With reference to brining.

I don't wanna get overly picky and scientific coz in terms of meat proteins `brining` denatures proteins and destroys/breaks them down very quickly but I'm being very fussy and cheffy saying that .

If eat a chicken breast I want it to be plump and juicy with the texture of meat/muscle fibre and not so denatured that it literally doesn't even need chewing anymore coz the salt/enzymes/osmosis have denatured the protein/muscle fibres.

The texture will change with liquid brining (and also with marinading in oils too) but only because you are altering the composition/structure of the proteins in the muscle fibre. I'm not saying you shouldn't do it though if you like eating chicken breast pieces that are similar in texture to the body composition of a slug but eating thigh meat will be more natural in the mouth and dropping dry breast pieces into a warm stock/broth/sauce is more palatable than brining.

I read it and immediately got sick of eating. Of course you are right in theory. But the main thing for me is delicious. If it's tasty, then it's delicious. If you really bother, it can go crazy. But everyone decides for himself.

 

[Mmzz]

With reference to brining.

I don't wanna get overly picky and scientific coz in terms of meat proteins `brining` denatures proteins and destroys/breaks them down very quickly but I'm being very fussy and cheffy saying that .

If eat a chicken breast I want it to be plump and juicy with the texture of meat/muscle fibre and not so denatured that it literally doesn't even need chewing anymore coz the salt/enzymes/osmosis have denatured the protein/muscle fibres.

The texture will change with liquid brining (and also with marinading in oils too) but only because you are altering the composition/structure of the proteins in the muscle fibre. I'm not saying you shouldn't do it though if you like eating chicken breast pieces that are similar in texture to the body composition of a slug but eating thigh meat will be more natural in the mouth and dropping dry breast pieces into a warm stock/broth/sauce is more palatable than brining.

You obviously haven't tried brining if that's what you think of it. The texture is not like you describe it AT ALL, to describe it as a slug is just wrong, it's absolutely nothing like that. Chicken breast that's brined is better in every way, even you would like it.

Basically unbrined chicken squeezes out more moisture when it's cooked and brined holds onto it. To get the same juiciness unbrined you'd have to cook it less. If you're eating it fresh this isn't a big deal but if you're eating it cold then that undercooking ends up being rubbery. Brining lets you fully cook it while also retaining moisture.

 

[Hightower]

You obviously haven't tried brining if that's what you think of it. The texture is not like you describe it AT ALL, to describe it as a slug is just wrong, it's absolutely nothing like that. Chicken breast that's brined is better in every way, even you would like it.

Basically unbrined chicken squeezes out more moisture when it's cooked and brined holds onto it. To get the same juiciness unbrined you'd have to cook it less. If you're eating it fresh this isn't a big deal but if you're eating it cold then that undercooking ends up being rubbery. Brining lets you fully cook it while also retaining moisture.

You are absolutely right when we eat not only cooked chicken, only brine helps out and the chicken is licking your fingers.

 

[1tank1]

You obviously haven't tried brining if that's what you think of it. The texture is not like you describe it AT ALL, to describe it as a slug is just wrong, it's absolutely nothing like that. Chicken breast that's brined is better in every way, even you would like it.

Basically unbrined chicken squeezes out more moisture when it's cooked and brined holds onto it. To get the same juiciness unbrined you'd have to cook it less. If you're eating it fresh this isn't a big deal but if you're eating it cold then that undercooking ends up being rubbery. Brining lets you fully cook it while also retaining moisture.

Well I'll admit I've never had a reason to brine chicken breasts so if it works for your palate and meal prep, that's cool.

I marinade plenty of meats in summer but that's only really to add more flavour, tenderise, and assist in cooking using harsh heat methods like BBQs.

If I need to eat or reheat cold chicken it will almost always be thigh and carcass flesh and if it's breast I will just slice it really really thinly and drop it in to a warm stock/sauce for a few minutes.

The only time I ever really eat cold breast is when I'm using it for a sandwich anyway tbh so dryness isn't really that noticeble with Lettuce/Salad/Mayo/Salad Cream/Chutney/Dressings etc.

 

[Hightower]

I still often put the cold breast that I didn’t have time to eat in the salad. It works great with vegetables. Cucumber, tomato, paprika, lettuce, onion, garlic, salt and pepper.