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How to Cook a Chicken Breast- Prepping Ahead for Chicken Dinner

Updated on October 11, 2016

Plain, Cooked Chicken Breast Ready for Use in Simple Dishes

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3 stars from 2 ratings of Chicken Breast!

A Simple Way to Cook a Chicken Breast

I like simplicity and choices. Cooking a chicken breast this way opens up a whole new opportunity for options with chicken dishes. Whether you are cooking for one like I am or cooking chicken for the entire family, this method will save you time by having the most important part of the meal ready to go at a moment's notice, the foundation of the main dish.

Cooking chicken is fairly simple and really doesn't take that much time. Don't limit yourself to just the breast, chicken legs and chicken thighs can be substituted in this cooking technique. Just be sure to cook enough to leave the options open for some quick and easy chicken dishes.

Once the meat is fully cooked, it can be divided into meal portions and frozen for later use. The chicken pieces that you have pre-cooked can be turned into BBQ chicken sandwiches, chicken teriyaki, chicken salad or even served plain with rice. Let your imagination take over, be brave and you too can create the perfect chicken based dishes without spending all of your time in the kitchen cooking.

Cook Time

Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Ready in: 45 min
Yields: Varies, depending on how much you cook at one tim.

How often do you eat chicken?

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Ingredients

  • Any Amount bone in chicken breast
  • 2 cups water, for finishing the chicken
  • 3 Tablespoons oil, for browning the chicken
  • salt, to taste
  • pepper, to taste

How to Cook a Chicken Breast

Click thumbnail to view full-size
Fresh, skinless, bone in chicken breast in the skillet beginning the browning process.First turn, the pieces are browning nicely!All sides are browned and it's time to finish with adding the water.Boiling to finish cooking.  Soon the chicken will be ready for using as a base for many different dishes.
Fresh, skinless, bone in chicken breast in the skillet beginning the browning process.
Fresh, skinless, bone in chicken breast in the skillet beginning the browning process. | Source
First turn, the pieces are browning nicely!
First turn, the pieces are browning nicely! | Source
All sides are browned and it's time to finish with adding the water.
All sides are browned and it's time to finish with adding the water. | Source
Boiling to finish cooking.  Soon the chicken will be ready for using as a base for many different dishes.
Boiling to finish cooking. Soon the chicken will be ready for using as a base for many different dishes. | Source

Instructions

  1. I am using four, bone in chicken breast pieces but you can use boneless chicken breast as well, just reduce the cooking time. Rinse the chicken breast in cold water and remove any fat, skin or anything else that you don't want on it. Pat them dry so they will be sure to brown nicely in the skillet. Add the oil to a skillet and turn the heat on medium until the oil is hot.
  2. Season the chicken breast pieces with salt and pepper to taste and add them to the hot oil in the pan to brown.
  3. Turn the chicken over to brown all sides.
  4. Once all of the exterior of the chicken has browned nicely, this should take approximately 10 minutes, add the water to the pan.
  5. Turn the heat up to medium/high, place a lid on the skillet and bring the water to a boil. Cook the chicken for another 20 minutes then check to make sure it is completely cooked through. If it isn't, cook until it is done.
  6. Remove the chicken from the pan and allow it to cool completely before refrigerating or freezing.

Plain, Cooked Chicken Breast

Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 1 oz.
Calories 46
Calories from Fat9
% Daily Value *
Fat 1 g2%
Protein 9 g18%
Cholesterol 24 mg8%
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.

I took the four chicken breast pieces pictured and was able to create four quick and easy meals before freezing.

  • I simply added BBQ sauce to one shredded breast portion that will make a nice chicken BBQ sandwich that I can eat with chips.
  • I cooked some brown rice and added the rice, fresh broccoli and a little bit of chicken stock to one of the shredded breasts for chicken and rice that I can eat with a piece of crusty bread for dinner.
  • Another shredded breast was combined with the remaining half of the rice and I added carrots, baby corn and teriyaki sauce for a nice chicken teriyaki.
  • The fourth shredded chicken breast was divided between a couple of soft, flour taco shells along with shredded cheese. The lettuce, tomato and sour cream can be added when the tacos are warmed up and I'll have soft chicken tacos for dinner that evening.

Cooking chicken breast ahead of time opens up so many opportunities for quick and easy meals that take only minutes to prepare. The possibilities are endless and the time savings is priceless. In today's busy world, it's sometimes hard to find time to spend with family. By following this simple method of cooking chicken breast for use during the week at meal times, that extra time becomes available for the things that are truly important to you.

You Can Use Your Cooked Chicken Breast to Make a Nice and Easy Chicken Salad!

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