Chicken breast is a wonderful healthy protein, but it so often dry and tasteless that many people shy away from it. Getting chicken breasts perfectly cooked, however, requires little time and not much in the way of special equipment–all you really need is an instant read thermometer and some parchment paper.
Th technique is simple, preheat an oven (whether regular or toaster oven doesn’t matter) to 325 degrees. On an oven safe pan with a lip, place a piece of parchment paper folded in half. Place one half boneless chicken breast up near the fold and drizzle with a bit of oil (olive or canola).
Then you can add any flavorings you choose, depending on how you plan to use the chicken–garlic, ginger, and some soy sauce for rice bowls; basil, thyme, salt, and pepper for chicken salad; oregano and ancho chile powder for chili or tacos; paint with harissa–the possibilities are endless. Then fold the top over and seal the edges by rolling and crimping them into a packet. If you are making several breasts the packets can all be arranged in a single layer in one pan.
Bake in the preheated oven for 12 to 30 minutes depending on the thickness of the breast. This is where the instant read thermometer comes in. After 10 or so minutes poke the thermometer right through the parchment into the thickest part of the chicken breast. You want the thermometer to read 165 degrees, check periodically until you get to 165. As soon as you reach that reading in the thickest part, pull the packet out of the oven and CAREFULLY open it from the center to allow steam to escape and cooking to stop.
There will be flavorful juice in the packet along with the perfectly cooked breast. If you are making something that can use this liquid, remove the breast from the packet and carefully pour the chicken jus into your dish. If you are not using the breast meat immediately, let it cool to room temperature, wrap tightly and store in the refrigerator.
BONUS
If you are like me and love crispy chicken skin, but are not a fan of the flabby bits, this method can do double duty cooking the skin along with the chicken. All you need is another pice of parchment and pans that will nest one on top of the other (they don’t have to be a perfect fit).
Start cooking the chicken skin about half an hour before the chicken breast. Again, fold a piece of parchment in half. Using a knife, scrape away any large bits of fat from the underside of the skin and spread it out across the bottom half of the parchment.
Fold the top half over the skin and place the pan you will use later to cook the chicken breast on top of the parchment and place in the oven. When it is time to add the chicken breast, remove the top pan and check that the skin is most of the way to done. Close the parchment back over the skin, and add the chicken breast packet to the hot pan and return to the oven for both the complete cooking.
NOTE: you can substitute aluminum foil for parchment if none of the ingredients you are putting on the chicken contains acid. Acidic ingredients, like tomato paste or vinegar, don’t work well in direct contact with aluminum.
cooking for my daughters 