Boiled chicken has long been a popular dish in feasts and even family meals, but many people do not know how to boil chicken properly, only doing so out of habit, resulting in bland and unappetizing meat. Here are four things you need to keep in mind when boiling chicken to make it more delicious and appealing.
1. First note: Place the chicken upside down
When placing the chicken into the pot, we must place it upside down, with the abdomen facing down and the back facing up. If we place the chicken upside up to boil, the thighs and legs of the chicken will face upwards, the water will not completely cover them, and the chicken will be undercooked. That’s why, when boiling chicken, remember to place the thighs of the chicken with the abdomen facing down, this way the meat will also cook faster due to contact with the heat at the bottom of the pot.
2. Second note: Boil the chicken for only 15 minutes
Many people are afraid that the chicken is not cooked enough when boiling it, so they often boil it for too long, which will make the meat mushy, lose its nutrients, and not taste good. We should only boil the chicken for about 15 minutes, and if the chicken is older, it can be boiled a little longer or soaked in hot water.
To make the boiled chicken delicious, we should heat the water first, wait until the water starts to evaporate, and then put the chicken in to boil. Do not put the chicken in with cold water from the beginning, nor wait for the water to boil vigorously before putting the chicken in to boil. After putting the chicken in the pot, turn the heat down low and simmer for about 5 minutes until it boils, then reduce the heat and simmer for another 5 to 10 minutes to ensure even cooking.
3. Third note: Use a pot suitable for the size of the chicken
The size of the pot when boiling chicken also affects the taste of the chicken. If we boil it in pots that are too small, it will be more difficult to flip the chicken and shape it. Furthermore, flipping it can cause the chicken skin to crack and the meat to not cook evenly, while if the pot is too large, the boiled chicken will shrink. The size of the pot for boiling chicken should satisfy both the width and height. To easily boil a large chicken weighing from 2 to 4 kilograms, you can choose a pot with a diameter of 30 to 32 centimeters and a height of 18 to 27 centimeters.
4. Fourth note: Boil the chicken with medium heat
If you boil the chicken with too high heat, it will cause the skin to crack and the boiled chicken will not have flavorful and delicious broth. Boiling the chicken with too low heat will take a long time for the chicken to cook.
In addition, choosing the right chicken is also very important to make delicious boiled chicken.
You should choose a domestic chicken weighing about 1.5 – 2 kilograms. Boiling a chicken that is too large may cause the chicken skin to crack. If you want it to be even more delicious, you should choose a newly laid female chicken with eggs still inside. This type of chicken meat will be tender, fragrant, and still firm. For ready-made chickens, you should choose ones with firm and compact bodies, small and tender breasts.
After cleaning, the characteristics of a good-quality chicken are a shiny yellow skin, but mostly the thighs, wings, and back will have a deep yellow color. Avoid choosing chickens with dark or spotted skin. The chicken meat should be firm, fresh, without any unpleasant smell, foul odor, or antibiotic smell. If the chicken skin is tough, evenly golden, and the chicken fat is white, it means the chicken has been injected with yellow medicine.
Source: Xe và thể thao