There is a natural order of things in this household. Mr. V hunts and I protect the crib. Oh, wait actually, I do the grocery shopping and he… well, he just makes sure the doors are locked at night. He makes the messes and I clean the messes. I cook and he eats. He eats the white meat while I eat the dark meat. Like I said, natural order of things.
Today, I have a goal. It’s good to have goals. No, not big, life goals. Little ones. Just so that I think I’m continually accomplishing things even though it may not be the most constructive ones. Goals such as not to lose anymore socks in the dryer. Or to try to last a month without fried chicken. Or it could be to get rid of that one pimple on your face by blowing it off with a shotgun. Yes, that’s a long stretch but still a goal.
Back to my goal. I want to create an imbalance in this household. I want to create havoc! I want to eat white meat. I want to LOVE white meat. If I only knew the pawaarrr of the white side. Well, I guess it’s high time then.
Look, white meat aka chicken breast has a bad reputation. It can be dry. It can be boring. It can lack flavor. I can name only three people I know that loves white meat. Ok, maybe four. But after Gordon Ramsay’s umpteenth repeat in the Master Chef show saying that chicken breast can be cooked perfectly, with crispy skin seared on the outside and moist juicy meat on the inside, well, I say it’s my lucky day for sabotage day. Havoc in the household.
The rules are simple. Sabotage and nobody gets hurt. Except the chicken.
So, to be able to sear the perfect chicken, we need to be clear on these:
- Chicken must be dry. Pat dry with paper towel.
- Chicken must be even in thickness (as much as you can pound em).
- Skillet/pan must be hot, almost smoking.
- Don’t crowd the meat or you’ll be steaming them instead.
- Keep your hands to yourself. In other words, don’t touch the chicken while it’s searing.
- Finish in oven for a even cooking and ensuring no dry meat.
- Rest the chicken to let the juices redistribute itself.
So I took a bite of the perfectly pan seared oven roasted chicken breast. My head was spinning with wow, wow, wow… whoa… wow. I couldn’t believe how I would, after more than three decades of not loving something, to actually consider to like it. Now that I’ve created an imbalance in my head and in this household, I need to create another imbalance to balance it all up. I’m going to stop cleaning up the messes. Yep, that would do it.
Quick Method
what you need:
2-4 boneless, skin on chicken breast
Oil
Your favorite spices
directions:
- Preheat oven to 400F. Make sure chicken reaches room temperature before cooking (30 minutes from refrigerator). To get a more even thickness, pound them. Pat them dry with paper towels. Season chicken with your favorite spices.
- Pour enough oil to thinly coat the bottom of a pan. Put the heat over medium high. When the oil in the pan ripples when you tilt the pan at an angle, the pan is ready.
- Gently lay the chicken skin side down away from you into the pan. Don’t crowd the pan.
- Let them sear for a good 4-5 minutes until the skin is beautifully browned and crisp. Do not poke, touch the chicken or the pan while they sear.
- Nudge the chicken a little and if it moves easily, it’s ready to be flipped. Flip the chicken, look in awe of the job well done and put the pan in the oven for 8 minutes or until thickest part of chicken is 160F.
- Arrange the chicken on a plate or cutting board and let it rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes:
I know I said an oven is a must. But if you want to finish it off on the stove, cook the second side for another 4-5 minutes or until the thickest part of the chicken is 160F.
I have the perfect spice blend for this. It’s absolutely heaven. I’ll post it up real soon.
How do you achieve a perfectly juicy and moist chicken breast?
