Do you steam on high heat?

Steaming is arguably one of the healthiest ways to cook because no added fat is needed. It is also a very gentle method as foods aren’t knocked around by boiling water or stirred over high heat. Rather, the steam gently penetrates and cooks all foods at around 212F, the boiling point of water.

Steaming is an ideal method for cooking boneless chicken breasts and small whole birds such as Cornish hens. It retains the flavor, tenderness and moisture through the use of steam. It is a healthy method of cooking because no additional fat is used.

Poke the meat to see if juices are red or clear For properly cooked chicken, if you cut into it and the juices run clear, then the chicken is fully cooked. If the juices are red or have a pinkish color, your chicken may need to be cooked a bit longer.

So, the short answer to this reader’s question is that your chicken is dry because you’re overcooking it. The only way to make sure chicken breast stays moist is to walk a line of cooking it properly, which is unfortunately quite narrow.

Simply insert your food thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken (for a whole chicken, that would be the breast). You know your chicken is cooked when the thermometer reads 180F (82C) for a whole chicken, or 165F (74C) for chicken cuts.

Heat the water over medium high heat. Once the water is boiling, place the packets inside the steamer basket. Cover with the lid and reduce the heat to medium. Steam the chicken for 20 minutes.

Close-up of a woman slicing raw chicken breast meat on a cutting board. Chicken becomes more tender the longer it cooks. Unfortunately, most cooking methods produce extremely dry meat when the chicken is cooked long enough to become tender.

The healthiest way to cook chicken is to bake it in the oven or stir fry it with vegetables. Put the parts in a baking pan, rub some olive oil on them, and surround them with plenty of garlic, lemon, carrots, or whatever you like. Bake at 350 until brown.

If you are not roasting any vegetables with the chicken, it’s a good idea to add about 1/2 cup of water to the pan to prevent the drippings from burning. Place the chicken on the rack breast side up, slide the pan into the oven, and roast it uncovered for about 60 to 70 minutes.

When cooking meats such as lamb or pork, steaming removes the fat from the meat so it can be easily discarded whereas conventional cooking methods such as grilling, baking or frying, cook the fat into the meat. Getting rid of the fat makes the meat lower in calories and lower in cholesterol.

All types of meat are suitable for steaming including seafood such as crab legs, lobster and shrimp, poultry and red meat such as beef and lamb. Choose smaller and thinner cuts of meat to allow them to steam-cooked faster.

Roast Low & Slow: Roasting at 200F keeps the meat from seizing up and squeezing out lots of juice, a risk you run with high oven temps. The chicken’s temperature rises slowly, so you’re less likely to overcook it. And roasting it skin-side up dries the skin even more before the pan-browning.

Heat the water over medium-high heat. Once the water boils, place the packets in the steamer basket. Cover with the lid and reduce the heat to medium. Steam the chicken for 20 minutes.

Add just enough water to cover the chicken. Turn heat to high, bring to a boil then remove any foam or scum that floats to the top. Adjust the heat so that the water simmers very gently around the chicken. Cook until chicken is very tender, about 30 minutes.

Chicken breast can be steamed from frozen, but count on at least twice the cooking time as for thawed meat. As an alternative, thaw the breasts first in the microwave, arranged in a single layer on a dish covered with plastic wrap, with cup of water added.