Thread: Unbrined Chicken Breasts

On Apr 20, 12:58*pm, Sqwertz <swe...@cluemail.compost> wrote:
> This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
> breasts without first brining them.
Were those unseasoned breasts to have been my mistake I would mix some
of the meat into salt & pepper seasoned mayo and pickle relish for a
few sandwiches, then freeze the rest for another day's adding into a
spicy soup or pasta salad. I often wonder at my daughter's family
want only of the tasteless chicken breast meat, and not the far more
flavorful thigh meat. Any time we gather for a picnic sort of eats, I
always volunteer to bring the chicken so as to be sure not all is
breast meat.
....Picky

On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 13:12:57 -0700 (PDT), JeanineAlyse wrote:

> On Apr 20, 12:58*pm, Sqwertz <swe...@cluemail.compost> wrote:
>> This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
>> breasts without first brining them.
>
> Were those unseasoned breasts to have been my mistake I would mix some
> of the meat into salt & pepper seasoned mayo and pickle relish for a
> few sandwiches, then freeze the rest for another day's adding into a
> spicy soup or pasta salad.

3 of the breasts just became a chicken, bacon, and bleu salad (with
green onion, celery, mayo, mustard, pepper). Never made that
combination before and it seems to have worked pretty well.

I have avocado and 3 kinds of lettuce (a first my house). So I could
make cobb salad sandwiches.

-sw

"Sqwertz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
> This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
> breasts without first brining them.
>
> Talk about terrible! Ugh. I took one unseasoned bite and I was
> shaking the salt shaker into my mouth.
>
> Friends don't let friends forget to brine. I guess I better make some
> chicken salad. But not 5 breasts worth.
>
> -sw
>
So you're not worried about your blood pressure.
Graham

On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:46:04 -0600, graham wrote:

> "Sqwertz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]..
>> This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
>> breasts without first brining them.
>>
>> Talk about terrible! Ugh. I took one unseasoned bite and I was
>> shaking the salt shaker into my mouth.
>>
>> Friends don't let friends forget to brine. I guess I better make some
>> chicken salad. But not 5 breasts worth.
>>
> So you're not worried about your blood pressure.
> Graham

<yawn> Do you go door to door preaching, too?

-sw

On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:46:04 -0600, "graham" <[email protected]> wrote:

>
> "Sqwertz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]..
> > This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
> > breasts without first brining them.
> >
> > Talk about terrible! Ugh. I took one unseasoned bite and I was
> > shaking the salt shaker into my mouth.
> >
> > Friends don't let friends forget to brine. I guess I better make some
> > chicken salad. But not 5 breasts worth.
> >
> > -sw
> >
> So you're not worried about your blood pressure.

For me, it's the opposite. One bite of brined meat and I wonder what
I was thinking to do that. Might as well buy it prebrined and skip
the work.

--

Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground.

On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 14:58:05 -0500, Sqwertz <[email protected]>
wrote:

>This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
>breasts without first brining them.
>
>Talk about terrible! Ugh. I took one unseasoned bite and I was
>shaking the salt shaker into my mouth.
>
>Friends don't let friends forget to brine. I guess I better make some
>chicken salad. But not 5 breasts worth.
>
>-sw

try soaking them in buttermilk next time. It gets rid of the nasty
taste and leaves them really juicy. (They don't taste like
buttermilk) Even as little as one hour will make a difference.
Janet US

On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 17:52:15 -0600, Janet Bostwick
<[email protected]> wrote:

> On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 14:58:05 -0500, Sqwertz <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
> >This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
> >breasts without first brining them.
> >
> >Talk about terrible! Ugh. I took one unseasoned bite and I was
> >shaking the salt shaker into my mouth.
> >
> >Friends don't let friends forget to brine. I guess I better make some
> >chicken salad. But not 5 breasts worth.
> >
> >-sw
>
> try soaking them in buttermilk next time. It gets rid of the nasty
> taste and leaves them really juicy. (They don't taste like
> buttermilk) Even as little as one hour will make a difference.
> Janet US

I just ran across this recipe a little while ago.
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/gril...0000000222853/

--

Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground.

"Sqwertz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]..
> This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
> breasts without first brining them.
>
> Talk about terrible! Ugh. I took one unseasoned bite and I was
> shaking the salt shaker into my mouth.
>
> Friends don't let friends forget to brine. I guess I better make some
> chicken salad. But not 5 breasts worth.
>
> -sw


(sigh) You should know by now chicken breasts are pretty boring. You
didn't mention what recipe you used, but pretty much everything is boring
without salt. There's a reason salt used to be traded like gold

Jill

I offer up this recipe: Baked Sesame Chicken Tenders

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Maries-...ke/Detail.aspx

With some mods:

I only use chicken tenders
I use vegetable oil in place of butter (take your pick)
Oven temp: 350°F
Use parchment paper in a pan instead of a greased pan. Makes clean-up a
breeze.
Flip every ten minutes, three times or to done.

At the recipe page, my photo of the dish is the one piled up on a paper
plated with red (hot) and green (mild) salsas, for dipping.

Enjoy,

Andy

On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 20:20:59 -0400, jmcquown wrote:

> "Sqwertz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]..
>> This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
>> breasts without first brining them.
>>
>> Talk about terrible! Ugh. I took one unseasoned bite and I was
>> shaking the salt shaker into my mouth.
>>
>> Friends don't let friends forget to brine. I guess I better make some
>> chicken salad. But not 5 breasts worth.
>>
>> -sw
>
> (sigh) You should know by now chicken breasts are pretty boring. You
> didn't mention what recipe you used

Yes I did - "Baked". Convection Roasted, actually, at 400F.

Baked chicken without any other qualifiers usually just means it was
sprinkled with a herb or two and salted, and simply baked. Doesn't
it? In my case I sprinkled them inside the skin and out with salt,
special high flavor yeast, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, mellow
toasted onion, onion powder, orange powder, soy flour, celery leaf
powder, celery root powder, garlic powder, dill, kelp, Indian curry,
horseradish, ripe white pepper, orange and lemon peel, summer savory,
mustard flower, sweet green and red peppers, parsley flakes, tarragon,
rosehips, saffron, mushroom powder, parsley powder, spinach powder,
tomato powder, sweet Hungarian paprika, celery powder, cayenne pepper,
plus a delightful herbal bouquet of the best Greek oregano, French
sweet basil, French marjoram, French rosemary, and Spanish thyme.

-sw

"Sqwertz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:cypyd3at83d3$.[email protected]..
> On Wed, 20 Apr 2011 20:20:59 -0400, jmcquown wrote:
>
>> "Sqwertz" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>> news:[email protected]..
>>> This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
>>> breasts without first brining them.
>>>
>>> Talk about terrible! Ugh. I took one unseasoned bite and I was
>>> shaking the salt shaker into my mouth.
>>>
>>> Friends don't let friends forget to brine. I guess I better make some
>>> chicken salad. But not 5 breasts worth.
>>>
>>> -sw
>>
>> (sigh) You should know by now chicken breasts are pretty boring. You
>> didn't mention what recipe you used
>
> Yes I did - "Baked". Convection Roasted, actually, at 400F.
>
> Baked chicken without any other qualifiers usually just means it was
> sprinkled with a herb or two and salted, and simply baked. Doesn't
> it? In my case I sprinkled them inside the skin and out with salt,
> special high flavor yeast, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, mellow
> toasted onion, onion powder, orange powder, soy flour, celery leaf
> powder, celery root powder, garlic powder, dill, kelp, Indian curry,
> horseradish, ripe white pepper, orange and lemon peel, summer savory,
> mustard flower, sweet green and red peppers, parsley flakes, tarragon,
> rosehips, saffron, mushroom powder, parsley powder, spinach powder,
> tomato powder, sweet Hungarian paprika, celery powder, cayenne pepper,
> plus a delightful herbal bouquet of the best Greek oregano, French
> sweet basil, French marjoram, French rosemary, and Spanish thyme.
>
> -sw


That doesn't sound like it should have been boring. Why did you have to add
something to it? (I've never brined a chicken in my life, but then again,
chicken isn't on my top 10 list unless it's in soup or chicken & dumplings.)

Jill

On Apr 20, 4:12*pm, JeanineAlyse <Picky...@msn.com> wrote:
> On Apr 20, 12:58*pm, Sqwertz <swe...@cluemail.compost> wrote:> This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
> > breasts without first brining them.
>
> Were those unseasoned breasts to have been my mistake I would mix some
> of the meat into salt & pepper seasoned mayo and pickle relish for a
> few sandwiches, then freeze the rest for another day's adding into a
> spicy soup or pasta salad. *I often wonder at my daughter's family
> want only of the tasteless chicken breast meat, and not the far more
> flavorful thigh meat. *

Tastes vary. I prefer breast meat. Thigh meat has a slimy
mouthfeel that I don't like.

Granted, it requires more attentiveness to cook breast
meat so that it remains moist, but it's worth the effort
for me.

>Any time we gather for a picnic sort of eats, I
> always volunteer to bring the chicken so as to be sure not all is
> breast meat.
> ...Picky

Also picky.

Cindy Hamilton

On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 06:38:36 -0700 (PDT) in rec.food.cooking, Cindy
Hamilton <[email protected]> wrote,
>Tastes vary. I prefer breast meat. Thigh meat has a slimy
>mouthfeel that I don't like.
>
>Granted, it requires more attentiveness to cook breast
>meat so that it remains moist, but it's worth the effort
>for me.

Thigh meat is great if nicely prepared. Breast meat is great if
nicely prepared. Wings, unfortunately, have no meat and are only
suitable as carriers for sauce. Plastic wings would be reusable and
thereby more efficient. But the parts of chicken I mainly don't
like are the nuggets. Take those for slimy mouthfeel.

On Apr 21, 10:58*am, David Harmon <sou...@netcom.com> wrote:
> On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 06:38:36 -0700 (PDT) in rec.food.cooking, Cindy
> Hamilton <angelicapagane...@yahoo.com> wrote,
>
> >Tastes vary. *I prefer breast meat. *Thigh meat has a slimy
> >mouthfeel that I don't like.
>
> >Granted, it requires more attentiveness to cook breast
> >meat so that it remains moist, but it's worth the effort
> >for me.
>
> Thigh meat is great if nicely prepared. *Breast meat is great if
> nicely prepared. *Wings, unfortunately, have no meat and are only
> suitable as carriers for sauce. *Plastic wings would be reusable and
> thereby more efficient. *

I usually get the "boneless" Buffalo wings, which are generally
breaded fried strips of chicken breast.

> But the parts of chicken I mainly don't
> like are the nuggets. *Take those for slimy mouthfeel.

Where on the chicken are the "nuggets"?

Cindy Hamilton

On Apr 20, 12:58 pm, Sqwertz <swe...@cluemail.compost> wrote:
> This is the first time in probably a decade I have baked chicken
> breasts without first brining them.
>
> Talk about terrible! Ugh. I took one unseasoned bite and I was
> shaking the salt shaker into my mouth.
>
> Friends don't let friends forget to brine. I guess I better make some
> chicken salad. But not 5 breasts worth.
>
In spite of all the fans of brining out there, I've done it only a few
times, without particular success. I don't find it necessary. To
begin with, I seldom buy chicken parts, preferring whole birds. Then
if I'm going to roast or grill them I put some kind of compound
butter, herbal or garlic, under the skin. That goes a long way toward
achieving flavor and juiciness. -aem

On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:04:11 -0700 (PDT), Cindy Hamilton
<[email protected]> wrote:

> On Apr 21, 10:58*am, David Harmon <sou...@netcom.com> wrote:
> > On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 06:38:36 -0700 (PDT) in rec.food.cooking, Cindy
> > Hamilton <angelicapagane...@yahoo.com> wrote,
> >
> > >Tastes vary. *I prefer breast meat. *Thigh meat has a slimy
> > >mouthfeel that I don't like.
> >
> > >Granted, it requires more attentiveness to cook breast
> > >meat so that it remains moist, but it's worth the effort
> > >for me.
> >
> > Thigh meat is great if nicely prepared. *Breast meat is great if
> > nicely prepared. *Wings, unfortunately, have no meat and are only
> > suitable as carriers for sauce. *Plastic wings would be reusable and
> > thereby more efficient. *
>
> I usually get the "boneless" Buffalo wings, which are generally
> breaded fried strips of chicken breast.
>
> > But the parts of chicken I mainly don't
> > like are the nuggets. *Take those for slimy mouthfeel.
>
> Where on the chicken are the "nuggets"?
>
I wasn't going to touch that one with a 10 foot pole. LOL


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:15:35 -0700 (PDT), aem <[email protected]>
wrote:

> In spite of all the fans of brining out there, I've done it only a few
> times, without particular success. I don't find it necessary. To
> begin with, I seldom buy chicken parts, preferring whole birds. Then
> if I'm going to roast or grill them I put some kind of compound
> butter, herbal or garlic, under the skin. That goes a long way toward
> achieving flavor and juiciness. -aem

I don't even bother with butter anymore. I want brown, crispy skin,
not pale, flabby skin. When I roast a whole chicken vertically in the
oven, that's the one time I use convect - and high heat, at least
400F.

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On 2011-04-21, sf <[email protected]> wrote:

> not pale, flabby skin. When I roast a whole chicken vertically in the

Why vertically?

On 21 Apr 2011 20:20:17 GMT, notbob <[email protected]> wrote:

> On 2011-04-21, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> > not pale, flabby skin. When I roast a whole chicken vertically in the
>
> Why vertically?

It's an even brown all over, nice crispy skin. I like the back to be
as brown as the front and I don't like indentations in the breast
meat, which happens when you flip the bird.

--

Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground.