When people think of cooking chicken, they usually believe of roasting, sauteeing, or rotisserie cooking on the barbecue. However, a lesser-known way of cooking chicken breast is to boil it! Wondering why it’s a good idea to boil chicken breast? And how to boil chicken breast? This cooking method has the primary advantage of keeping the chicken moist. It’s meat that tends to dry out quite quickly, and boiling is one way to prevent that from happening. Additionally, if you want to shred the chicken for salads or tacos, boiling is the best method to use – the chicken will come out easily shreddable with a fork if you’ve cooked it correctly. Lastly, boiling can also be a primary cooking method for chicken that’s finished another way – so you could boil the chicken breast to keep it moist and add flavour, then fry it in a frying pan to sear the outside, or to give it a deep-fried crust.
In addition, you can read – How to Boil Whole Chicken
Flavoring the water correctly is key when it comes to boiling chicken. Our recipe includes basic flavours from carrots, peppercorns, onions, and bay leaves, but feel free to get creative with your favourite vegetables and spices! Other things that work well with chicken include allspice and coriander. If the chicken is part of a more substantial meal, then you may decide to adjust the flavours in the water to suit your meal. For example, if the chicken is part of a stir-fry, try replacing the salt with soy sauce and the peppercorns with red pepper flakes. You could also add some ginger to the water to give it an extra kick! The flavours in the pot will infuse into the meat and flavour it, making it juicier and more flavorful than other methods of cooking. This method is particularly important when cooking chicken breast since it’s often dry and extremely mild meat that benefits from additional liquid and seasoning.
Contents
How to Boil Chicken Breast (Step by Step Instruction)
Step 1: Find a large saucepan that is capable of holding 4L of liquid
You’ll want to make sure the pot is large enough so that it won’t boil over. Pour 2.5L water into the pot – it’s best to use filtered water if you can, to avoid any bad flavors from tap water seeping into the meat.
Step 2: Add onion and carrot to the water
Slice onion first to allow the flavour to seep into the water, and make sure the carrot is peeled and cut in half before adding it. You don’t need to slice them finely since you’ll discard them when they’re done. They’re just in the water to flavour the meat.
Step 3: Add Black Peppercorns
They don’t have to be ground; it’s fine to add them as is since the flavour will boil into the water. The same goes for the bay leaves; you can add them whole. If you’re adding more spices, you could consider a bouquet garni or put your spices in a bag, so there is less cleanup involved later.
Step 4: Bring water to a boil
The flavours from the peppercorns, bay leaves, and vegetables will begin to infuse into the water once it reaches a boiling point. When it does, you can take it off the heat to add the chicken.
Step 5: Uncover and add chicken and salt
It’s a good idea to add the chicken to boiling water rather than to lukewarm water so that it cooks evenly and quickly, and you’re able to have a more accurate sense of the cooking time. Although 1 tbsp of salt may seem like a lot, it will make the water just salty enough to flavour the chicken.
Step 6: Cover, return to heat and boil again for 5 minutes
Then leave in broth covered for 30 minutes. This will allow the chicken to finish cooking and absorbing the flavours of the additional ingredients in the water.
Step 7: Take the chicken out with a fork and turn out onto a plate.
When you cut it, it should be uniform in appearance all the way through with no pink spots. After it has done boiling, you can eat it as is, shred it, or use another method to add texture and flavour to the outside, such as grilling, frying, or broiling.
How Long to Boil Chicken Breast
Chicken breast should be cooked for 30 minutes, but you don’t need to boil it continuously for that long! You only need to boil it for 5 minutes – then you can leave it covered for 30 minutes, either on low or off the heat.
Below is a table which offers suggested seasonings for different meal types:
| Meal Option | Stir Fry | Barbecue | Pasta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vegetables | Green onion, carrot | Onion, carrot | Shallots, tomatoes |
| Seasoning | Red pepper flakes, ginger | Chili powder, paprika | Garlic, rosemary |
| Condiments to add to water | Soy sauce, fish sauce | Beer, barbecue sauce | Pesto, white wine, olive oil |
How to Boil Chicken Breast - Summary
Ingredients
- Water 2.5l
- 1 Onion
- 1 Carrot
- ½ tsp Black Peppercorns
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 1 kg Chicken Breast
- Salt 1 tbsp
Instructions
- Find a large saucepan that is capable of holding 4L of liquid
- Add onion and carrot to the water
- Add Black Peppercorns
- Bring water to a boil
- Uncover and add chicken and salt
- Cover, return to heat and boil again for 5 minutes
- Take the chicken out with a fork and turn out onto a plate
Notes
- If you’re unsure about whether or not the chicken is fully cooked, use a thermometer - the safe internal temperature for chicken is 165 degrees Fahrenheit or 75 degrees Celsius
- Experiment with other vegetables if there are flavours you like! For example, you can add green onion to the pot after you’ve boiled the chicken to let the flavour seep in, or any of your favourite spices, such as paprika or coriander. You can also experiment with flavouring the water with different liquids, such as Worcestershire sauce or Tabasco.
- If you want an extra flavour kick, try using a bouliion cube instead of salt. This will up the chicken flavour and salt the water perfectly in the process! Just make sure you add enough bullion for the water to be good and salty, as though it were chicken soup.
- If you’re adding the chicken to another dish, it may be a good idea to finish off the cooking process with a second cooking method such as pan frying to give the chicken more texture.
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