How to Bake Chicken
Knowing how to bake chicken can be very useful because chicken is a very healthy and nutritious meat. There are many different baked chicken recipes and many different styles of cooking chicken. Chicken is such a versatile meat that some restaurants will use chicken in every dish that they serve. However, chicken is a very tricky ingredient to cook with because it dries out very easily and has a tendency to sometimes be undercooked. Many people that like eating chicken don’t like cooking it because it sometimes just won’t cook right. Chicken really is a very simple dish to prepare. The main thing to remember is to keep the chicken moist. When baking a chicken, baste it in the broth it sits in much like you would a turkey on Thanksgiving.
When you are buying chicken to cook for a meal, make sure that you aren’t getting old chicken that might have salmonella. Check the dates of the chicken you are buying. Usually, the cheaper it is the worse quality it will end up being. Also, try to find skinless chicken with very little fat because chicken fat and skin is very greasy and unhealthy. For the best tasting chicken meals, it is a better bet to go with fresh chicken rather than frozen chicken because it will have a cleaner taste and less “mushy” texture.
Baked Chicken Recipes
The following are a collection of three baked chicken recipes that include great classics such as beer roasted chicken, rosemary roasted chicken, and classic roasted chicken.
Beer Roasted Chicken
Serves 6
For this recipe you will need the following ingredients:
- 1 chicken, about 4 pounds
- 1 lime cut in half
- ½ can of beer (12 fluid ounces)
- 1 cup of water
- Salt and pepper
Step 1:
Preheat the oven to 350°. Rub the salt and pepper on the chicken, getting it spread as best as you can. Put the two lime halves inside the chicken so that the juice soaks in while baking. Set the can of beer in the middle of the baking pan and set the chicken on top of it with the can of beer going into the inside of the chicken. Pour 1 cup of water into the pan and cover the chicken with aluminum foil to lock in moisture and place the pan in the oven.
Step 2:
Cook the chicken for 1 ½ hours, making sure to take the tin foil off in the last 20 minutes. Always make sure to keep an eye on the chicken and baste it with the broth that it produces. The meat will be very tender and juicy when it is done. Before you serve, let it stand about 10 to 15 minutes.
Rosemary Roasted Chicken
Serves 6
How to Bake Chicken
Here is the list of ingredients you will need for this recipe:
One 4 lb. chicken, rinsed off
- Salt and pepper
- 1 small green onion, diced
- ¼ cup chopped rosemary
Step 1:
Preheat the oven to 350°. Rub the chicken with the salt and pepper making sure to spread it evenly over the surface of the chicken. Take the diced onion and chopped rosemary and put it inside the chicken.
Step 2:
Put the chicken into a 9 x 13 inch baking pan and cook for 2 to 2 ½ hours or until golden brown. Make sure the chicken is cooked all the way through with a meat thermometer if necessary. The cooking time will be different depending on how big the chicken is.
Classic Roasted Chicken
Serves 4
Here is the list of ingredients you will need:
- 1 4lb. chicken, which is cut into 8 parts (2 legs, 2 wings, 2 breasts and 2 thighs)
- Olive oil
- Salt and ground pepper
- ½ cup of chicken broth (you could also use white wine for a different flavor)
Step 1:
Preheat the oven to 400° and make sure the chicken has been cleaned. Take a roasting pan and coat it with olive oil so the chicken doesn’t stick to it while baking. Rub the chicken in olive oil. Spread the salt and pepper onto the pieces of chicken and set the chicken into the roasting pan so that the pieces are not crowded together.
Step 2:
Cook the chicken at 400° for 30 minutes and then lower the temperature to 350° and cook for another 30 minutes or until golden brown. The chicken should be tender and juicy from the olive oil.
Step 3:
Take the chicken out of the oven and cover the pan with aluminum foil. Let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes or until cool enough to serve.