Chicken is an extremely versatile, delicious meat that just gets better when warmer weather lets you fire up the grill. Almost all of us are ready for a change from the meals we have been making all winter, so the ability to grill is usually pretty welcome. No matter whether you like charcoal or prefer gas, some things about good grilled chicken always hold true.
Birds that have been grilled well have a crisp, burnished skin, and are never burnt on the outside or raw on the inside. The meat is moist and juicy, and the flavor will be lightly tinged with smoke. Do not expect good grilled meat to be underdone in the middle or dry. Having trouble attaining this ideal? Here are a few tips that could help you fix the problem.
There are a number of ways to cook recipes for grilled chicken, using different cuts, different spices, and various marinades and brines. No matter what kind of recipes you use, you can be creative and adapt them for fantastic results. All you really need to do is pay attention to a few basic rules to get the best grilled results every time.
The grill temperature and cooking time are going to be affected by the kind of meat you are cooking. Different pieces need different time and heat to avoid drying out. Remember that, as a lean meat, it is less forgiving of high temperatures than pork or beef, which are protected by their high fat content.
You will need to pay attention to the internal temperature of your chicken, since it is prone to drying out quickly at temperatures above the recommended minimum of a hundred and sixty five degrees set by the US Department of Agriculture. If you keep an instant read meat thermometer close at hand when grilling, you will have a much better time. This is particularly important if you are using meat with bones in it or cooking whole birds, which can be unpredictable.
You might need a few tries to figure out the timing for the perfect grilled chicken, but there are so many fantastic grilling chicken breast recipes and recipes for other parts of the bird that you will still have some great meals while you’re working it out. This is a learning process you will really be able to sink your teeth into once you have mastered it.
If you are grilling the whole bird, it may be a good idea to butterfly your bird. This flattening process allows it to cook evenly throughout, and works best when the bird is between three and four pounds. Just remove the backbone by cutting on either side with sharp shears, then press on the breastbone to flatten the bird.
Of course, people who do not want to deal with butterflying or cooking bone-in meat have other options. Boneless parts like breasts and thighs cook evenly on the grill with a minimum of fuss. All you need to remember is that they are thin and consistent in a way that makes it easy to overcook them. Watching them carefully is all you need to do to get the best grilled chicken possible.
There are no secrets when it comes to cooking chicken breast but there are some tips that it is handy to know about. Tips such as how to cook chicken recipes for moist boneless chicken breast results and how to make sure chicken is cooked through are vital cooking knowledge.