Snow Day Poached Chicken

Cooking and blogging are the best things in the world to do on a snow day...ok, along with sleeping, eating, reading, and watching movies. I've been poaching chicken for so long, I can't quite remember where I got the recipe. I think I got it from Martha Stewart's Every Day Food, which is no longer published. I don't know about the rest of you, but generally speaking, I'm a dark meat gal. White meat tends to be dry and chewy. Frankly, I think it would be easier to swallow wood pulp than chicken breast the way it is usually prepared. But there are some things for which white meat is just more appropriate. I always have some on hand for such things as chicken salad, chicken pot pie, casseroles, or even just creamed chicken. And poaching chicken is not hard at all.

I remember, according to the recipe, you need a straight-edged skillet. I don't know why this is necessary, but apparently it is.

And I just happen to have the right pan for the job. My dad gave me this cooks skillet years ago, and I use it exclusively for poaching chicken.

What's nice about this recipe is that you don't have to cut things small and dainty. You can just use big chunks. What you include are: some onion, peeled and crushed garlic, some chunks of celery, carrots, a good heaping teaspoon of salt, peppercorns, thyme, and sliced lemon. This time, I didn't have any carrots, which really shocks me. I almost always have carrots. But I did have thyme because of the Butternut-Leek bisque, so I was able to add it, which I rarely do. I really don't like celery. Undoubtedly the healthiest vegetable of all, and of course, I dislike it. But it does belong in some dishes, so when I buy some, I quickly chop it up and throw it in the freezer; otherwise, it'll spoil by the time I get around to using it. The only ingredient I won't leave out is lemon. I don't know if it adds all that much flavor, but I love the smell. I also think the original recipe said to use so much chicken broth with the water in the poaching...I never do that. It doesn't seem to make much difference. So you add enough water that the chicken breasts will be completely covered in water. And of course, we need chicken breasts. My pan is very big, but you can only put so much chicken in to properly poach it. About one full chicken breast will do it. But if you use those gigantic chicken breasts from Fareway, only a half at a time.

Maybe I should explain the term "poaching." Poaching means to cook in a hot liquid just below boiling. With chicken breast, you want to bring the water and other ingredients to a boil. Add the breasts. Let the chicken cook like that for 3 minutes, turning once in the middle.

Then after the 3 minutes, cover it and turn off the stove...you may want to remove it from the burner if you have an electric stove. Leave it in the pot this way for 9 minutes. Then flip and cover and leave it another 9 minutes. Then check the temperature. It should be 165 degrees in the middle.

I killed my digital thermometer making yogurt, so until my new digital thermometer gets here, I have to use this old clunky analogue one. But I've never had trouble with temps while poaching. Either use the chicken or refrigerate immediately. Do not leave it in the water. It'll continue to cook and you'll have that same old dried out chicken breast. This is the most succulent and moist chicken breast I've ever had. If you're grilling chicken, it's also a great way to guarantee you've got your chicken done. Poach it first and then just put it on the grill for that nice grilled flavor and you're guaranteed it's not undercooked.