Chicken breasts are very popular ingredients in the food & beverage industry. Chicken is an easy-to-prepare meat with high nutritional value. Check out our chicken breast ideas and find out why you should include poultry in your menu, both at home and in a restaurant.
Chicken breasts are very popular ingredients in the food & beverage industry. Chicken is an easy-to-prepare meat with high nutritional value. Check out our chicken breast ideas and find out why you should include poultry in your menu, both at home and in a restaurant.
How to prepare chicken breast?
Chicken breast is low in cholesterol and is one of the leanest and low-calorie meats. For this reason, it can be part of a diet for people struggling with eating disorders, and is also recommended for people trying to stay in shape and frequently working out. It has a high protein content and is a source of vitamin B as well as minerals, such as potassium, magnesium and iron.
Poultry is easy to prepare and can be served in many ways. Chicken breast fillets can be fried, baked, boiled or steamed. Read on to discover chicken breast recipes for the perfect dinner.
1. Fried chicken breast recipes
One of the most popular recipes for chicken breast is in a breaded coating, prepared in a very similar way to a German schnitzel. In order to prepare chicken breast this way you will need:
- eggs,
- milk,
- breadcrumbs,
- butter, olive oil (or other oil)
- salt,
- pepper.
Wash the meat, dry it and remove any remaining fat. If the chicken breast is large, cut it into smaller pieces. Slightly crush the larger pieces with a pestle. Crack an egg into a bowl, beat it and add 2-3 tablespoons of milk. Sprinkle the chicken breast with salt and pepper and dip it into the egg and milk. The next step is to coat the meat in breadcrumbs. Heat the butter or oil in a frying pan and then fry the chicken for a few minutes on each side until it is golden brown.
The above recipe is probably the easiest way to prepare chicken breast. If you are looking for a more sophisticated dish, why not prepare a honey and mustard breast fillet. You will need the following ingredients:
- a chicken breast,
- 2-3 tablespoons of honey,
- 2-3 tablespoons of mustard,
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil (or other oil)
- a lemon,
- 2 teaspoons each of sweet and hot pepper,
- spices to taste – such as coriander or basil.
Start off by preparing the marinade. Squeeze lemon juice into a bowl, add the honey, mustard, olive oil, paprika and a pinch of spices. Place the chicken breast in a bowl and put it in a fridge for at least half an hour. When the meat is marinated, fry it on both sides. You can serve chicken breast with potatoes with dill, or a cherry tomato and spinach salad.
2. Baked chicken breast recipe
Baked nuggets will be great both for dinner and as a snack. To make crispy chicken pieces you will need:
- chicken breasts,
- 4 cups of corn flakes,
- a glass of milk,
- half a cup of wheat flour,
- eggs,
- a few teaspoons of sweet and hot pepper powder,
- olive oil.
Cut the chicken breasts into pieces several centimetres long. Then crush the corn flakes using your hands, a pestle or a blender. Blend the milk, flour, egg and spices together. Dip the chicken breast pieces in the prepared mass and then coat them in the crushed corn flakes.
Put the meat on a baking sheet covered with baking paper and brush each slice with olive oil. Put the prepared breasts in an oven preheated to approx. 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-20 minutes. Turn over the nuggets after around 10 minutes so that they brown evenly on each side.
3. Boiled chicken breast
Boiled chicken breast is especially recommended for people on a diet or with digestive problems. To make the meat more tender and juicy, you can prepare it in milk.
You’ll need:
- chicken breasts,
- one or two litres of milk,
- salt,
- pepper,
- Herbes de Provence, turmeric, curry or other spices that will give the meat more flavour.
After washing and cleaning the meat, rub it in salt, pepper and the other spices. Then boil the milk, which should be enough to completely cover the chicken breast. Put the chicken breast in the hot milk and cook for 1-2 minutes. Turn off the burner and wrap the pot together with the lid in a towel or blanket. Keep the dish in a warm place for 2-3 hours. After this time, the chicken breast should be ready.
4. Steamed chicken breast
Steaming is an ideal method for people trying to stay in shape. Poultry prepared in this way keeps all the valuable vitamins and minerals. You do not need to use any fat or salt, as it will come out naturally from the meat during cooking.
To prepare steamed chicken breast you will need:
- a chicken breast,
- herbs, for example Herbes de Provence,
- fresh or frozen vegetables: broccoli, carrots, courgette, beans or whatever else you like.
Cut the chicken breast into small pieces, all about the same size. Rub the meat in the herbs and put it in the fridge for about two hours. You can then wash, peel and cut the vegetables. Heat some water in a pot or steamer. Place the meat on the top tray and the vegetables on the bottom tray. If your equipment only has one level, try to arrange the ingredients evenly over the entire surface and with as little contact as possible. Steam the ingredients for 30-40 minutes.
Chicken breast on a restaurant menu
Chicken breasts can be used for a wide variety of dishes. They will work well in both a food truck, for example added to burritos, and in a restaurant offered as crispy chicken or as more exquisite dish prepared using the sous-vide vacuum cooking method.
Chicken breast fillets are also a good idea for economic reasons, as being a relatively cheap meat it will help you keep your food cost at a sensible level.
When choosing your chicken breast supplier, pay attention to more than just the price per kilogramme. Food safety and quality are also important factors, so try to buy meat that is certified against food safety standards by international and consumer organisations. Such certificates include, among others, QAFP, which stands for Quality Assurance for Food Products.
The production of certified poultry is controlled at every stage. Farmers who wish to receive such quality certificates must comply with feed and infrastructure standards. The meat is also tested from other angles, for example for Salmonella.
Chicken breasts must also be properly stored. It is important that you not only keep it cold, but also to keep it separate from other products. Vacuum packing will protect chicken breasts against bacteria and mould, as well as help them keep their taste and nutritional value, and also moisture.
Freshness can also be prolonged in other ways. Some interestingfood preservation methods include: smoking and curing in jars.
If you want to add chicken breast ideas to your restaurant menu, make sure you have the right drinks to emphasise the taste of the dishes. Types of wines that go well with poultry include expressive white wines such as Rieslings, which will go especially well with fried chicken breasts. Light wines, such as Chardonnay, may be better suited to baked or grilled chicken dishes.
When adding chicken breast to your menu, pay attention to the additional ingredients. These are important for decorating the plates on which the chicken dishes will be served.
What do you need to prepare chicken breasts?
You will need some basic kitchen utensils to prepare chicken breast recipes. This applies both to cooking at home and in restaurants.
Good knives will be necessary for preparing all types of chicken dishes. Knives with long blades will help you speed up separating the fat from the meat or cutting it into strips or cubes. If a restaurant chef needs to prepare whole chickens, including cutting out the breasts, it would be a good idea to get a poultry boning knife, which is used to separate the meat from the bone.
The basic piece of equipment for frying chicken breasts is a pan. You can choose from many different types, but it is best to focus on good quality products, which will be more durable in the long run. These include cast iron and stainless steel pans. Specialised cookware, such as grill pans, are also worth considering.
If you want to prepare chicken breast dishes at home, a standard gas or electric oven will do, while a convection oven will be better in a restaurant. In addition to standard cooking methods, this type of equipment sometimes also has a steam function, which lets you prepare juicy meat.
If you are after classic steaming, you could use a steamer-type pot that you put on the burner, or use an electric steamer. You could also use a strainer, an insert or a bamboo container. These types of accessories can be put in or used on an ordinary pot, with boiling water inside.
What catering equipment will come in useful? A sous-vide chicken breast dish will require special vacuum cooking equipment, while electric meat tenderizers will speed up meat preparation.
Chicken breast ideas – summary
Chicken breast is an ingredient with which you can quickly and easily prepare various dinner dishes or snacks. It can be the basic ingredient of a dish or an addition, for example, to complement a spaghetti dish. Remember to make sure that the chicken breast has the appropriate certificates before choosing it.
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