help! mom didn't teach me how...

[BreakfastSurreal]

OK so far I have been buying precut frozen chicken breast strips...but...I REALLY want to learn how to make some yummy chicken dishes...my only problem...I have no clue what to do with raw chicken...it kind of grosses me out, I bought it one time and I got really confused, I was making terriyaki chicken for my bf, but I had no idea what to do with it. I got skinless boneless breast meat, and there was this white...thing in it..maybe a tendon? I didn't know whether to cut it out or leave it in...and are you supposed to cut the film off the chicken if its boneless skinless? I am sorry I am SO clueless...but I am interested in making stuffed chicken breasts...like chicken cordon bleu without the breading...so can someone tell me how to handle a raw chicken? hehe thanks sorry for my stupidity.

[not2late]

Re: help! mom didn't teach me how...

OK so far I have been buying precut frozen chicken breast strips...but...I REALLY want to learn how to make some yummy chicken dishes...my only problem...I have no clue what to do with raw chicken...it kind of grosses me out, I bought it one time and I got really confused, I was making terriyaki chicken for my bf, but I had no idea what to do with it. I got skinless boneless breast meat, and there was this white...thing in it..maybe a tendon? I didn't know whether to cut it out or leave it in...and are you supposed to cut the film off the chicken if its boneless skinless? I am sorry I am SO clueless...but I am interested in making stuffed chicken breasts...like chicken cordon bleu without the breading...so can someone tell me how to handle a raw chicken? hehe thanks sorry for my stupidity.

The white part was probably the tendon (which is edible) or some fat (which is edible too).


There's a couple of ways to prepare raw chicken breast. I suggest brining it. Brining will help the breast retain moisture so it won't dry out completely if you over cook it. To brine the chicken breasts, put the breasts into a large plastic ziplock bag. Combine about a quart of water with 1 teaspoon salt. Pour that salt water mixture into the bag with the chicken, seal the bag, and put it in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 hours. I usually do this before I leave for work in the morning and by the time I get home, the chickens are brined and ready to prepare.

Before cooking the chicken, remove them from the brining liquid and rinse them thoroughly to remove any excess salt. You can grill the whole chicken breasts. Or you can slice the breast into strips to sautee or bake.

If you want to stirfry chicken breasts, skip the brining. Instead, cut the chicken breast into thin strips (about 1/4 inch strips). Put them in a bowl and mix them with alittle oil, salt and pepper. If you want and Asian flavor to this, add soy sauce instead of salt, ginger, and some toasted sesame
oil. Let this marinate overnight, covered in the refrigerator.


Be sure to thoroughly clean any knives, cutting boards and the like that the raw chicken comes in contact with in order to avoid cross contamination and food poisoning. I use a 1 part bleach (like Clorox) to 3 parts water solution to clean up.

[BreakfastSurreal]

ooo thank you! So there is nothing I have to cut off of boneless skinless breasts then right? They just look so scary and intimidating when they aren't cooked and some parts of it are hard to imagine as being edible! hehe

[not2late]

ooo thank you! So there is nothing I have to cut off of boneless skinless breasts then right? They just look so scary and intimidating when they aren't cooked and some parts of it are hard to imagine as being edible! hehe

The bones are the only thing you'll have to eat around. Since they are boneless and skinless, you won't have to worry about the bones. You can trim the fat off if you like, but that's not really necessary.

Sometimes I trim them to make them look "nicer", but again, that's not really necessary.


Take a look around the Main Dishes forum in the Recipe section. There are some nice recipes for stuffed chicken breasts there.

[FightingTheFight]

The white part was probably the tendon (which is edible

mmm...theres nothing like that chewy delight!

[BreakfastSurreal]

The white part was probably the tendon (which is edible

mmm...theres nothing like that chewy delight!

eww...i dunno just seeing it before its cooked makes me not want to eat it when it is cooked...is there any way to get it out? or does just blend in with the rest of the chicken once cooked? gah im such a noob in the kitchen! lol

[Elizellen]

eww...i dunno just seeing it before its cooked makes me not want to eat it when it is cooked...is there any way to get it out?

You can always snip it off with kichen scissors if you like.