Many of the myths about chicken that need to be dispelled will help the culinary-inclined
to make better decisions about their food, even before it reaches the kitchen counter.
These are the common myths about chicken that are actually false.
For years, we've heard removing chicken skin is the healthier way to eat it.
Cardiologists and nutritionists once spoke of the havoc fats caused, and as a result,
encouraging everyone to go to "low fat" in their diets.
"Poor diet has now surpassed tobacco smoking
as the number one cause of death and disability in this country."
This low-fat lifestyle applied to a range of foods, including your delicious rotisserie and
baked chicken. Turns out, there are good kinds of fat that humans need to thrive.
And that includes chicken skin, which contains the healthier unsaturated
fat that can actually improve cholesterol levels and lower the risk of heart disease.
Plus, any cook that is still skeptical should be aware that removing chicken
skin before cooking can dry out the tender meat. Leaving the skin on not only results
in a moist and flavorful dish, but also lets cooks use less salt in preparation.
Salt might be an excellent way to flavor meat,
but too much leads to high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke.
"Mom! I think you're having a heart attack."
"Honey, do I look like the type of person who has a heart attack?"
By leaving on the skin, you can also lessen the need for using any less
health-conscious coatings — even though breaded chicken makes for a mouth-watering
meal. Chicken skin is actually the healthy and delicious choice for today's kitchen.
Southern-style fried chicken is a staple of summer. Many cooks take their fried
chicken recipes seriously when it comes to gaining the ideal crispy, yet juicy,
piece of meat. How to achieve that balance varies greatly depending on who you ask.
One myth stands out: taking the extra step of crisping fried chicken in the
oven to achieve an extra crunch in the flour coating. Food & Wine explains that
you don't need to bother with this step to make true southern-style fried chicken. The
fried coating itself is really where the enviable crunch is going to be achieved.
You just need a Dutch oven to keep the splatter to a minimum,
although traditionalists will stick to a cast iron skillet. To elevate the recipe, add some corn
starch in the flour to weaken the flour's protein, resulting in a crispier and flakier final product.
You can also include some Southern bourbon in the buttermilk and egg
mixture to help set the coating and create more of the irresistible flakes.
The alcohol burns off in the frying process to ensure no one will feel the effects.
We know chicken is one type of meat that requires thorough cooking to avoid bacterial infections.
For safety, all poultry must be cooked to the internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Checking to see if the meat is still pink won't actually tell you if the chicken is
ready to eat. Even waiting until the juices run clear isn't a certainty.
The only reliable way to know if a piece of chicken is cooked all the way through is to use,
you guessed it, a meat thermometer. The USDA recommends taking the chicken to 165 degrees,
for meat that’s done all the way through without being overdone.
It's not unusual for a chicken breast that's fully white when it's cooked to be dry and overdone.
Fortunately, thermometers are a cheap and simple way to achieve
peace of mind and a great-tasting chicken.
The beer-can chicken recipe became popularized thanks to cookbooks,
a Keith Urban song, and die-hard fans on the internet. This myth about cooking chicken
is one technique to steer clear from. Beer-can chicken involves placing a beer of your choice
inside the chicken cavity while cooking — a method devotees claim results in a more
tender and flavorful chicken. Plus, it offers a unique visual when there's an audience.
According to meat expert Meathead Goldwyn at the Food Network test kitchen,
there is no way for the beer inside the can to escape and make contact with the
flesh of the bird. The can blocks sideways movement of the beer and
also doesn't allow the beverage to reach a temperature to steam out of the metal.
He also explains for anyone who might believe that beer crisps the skin on the
outside to remember that the interior beer can is blocked by at least an inch of meat.
Real health concerns also come into play about using the can itself. Manufacturers
don't test the plastic liners inside the can to withstand cooking temperatures,
because that's not what they're intended for.
To make matters worse, the ink on the outside of the can could get on the
chicken itself and is unlikely to be food grade. In the words of Annheuser-Busch,
maker of Budweiser and other beers:
"While many people swear by these methods, and apparently they produce some delicious results,
it's not one we endorse or recommend, since we don't design our cans for this purpose."
This cooking technique for chicken is one that provokes some skepticism.
According to endorsements by some online sources, home cooks can roast a chicken,
turkey, or any piece of meat in the oven using a bundt pan.
Placing the chicken cavity over the cone at the center will keep the meat from touching
the bottom, and allow for the effect of a vertical roaster. The recipe even calls
for vegetables at the bottom in order to cook an entire meal in one fell swoop.
AmazingRibs.com science advisor Professor Greg Blonder calls this,
quote, "an unspeakably bad idea." Using a bundt pan as a vertical roaster won't
offer the desired results for anyone looking to cook a crisp roasted chicken.
Blonder recommends cooking with a Dutch oven. At least it's not a myth
that Dutch ovens really do offer an excellent way to cook chicken.
Achieving crispy wings, regardless of how they are battered, fried, baked,
or roasted, is a priority for many wing lovers. Not everyone, however, can find a place in the
kitchen for a deep fryer, or is brave enough to fry pieces in a high-temperature skillet.
Luckily, cooks can place wings on a grill and still reach peak crunch.
A bit of corn starch on the outside will ensure a flaky exterior.
You don't even need to use flour to get the full battered treatment.
Tossing dry pieces of chicken in olive oil first will help the seasonings stick. Then,
place each piece of chicken on the grill with some seasonings to get the ideal crispy texture.
Wings will cook for about 35 to 40 minutes with the lid closed.
Flip as needed to promote an even crisp, and don't forget your favorite sauce when they're done.
The traditional process of washing chicken before it's cooked can be thrown out with the bath water.
Due to modern food safety practices, the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service does
not recommend washing raw poultry, or any other meat for that matter.
"So, most people want to wash their chickens because they want to get rid of the bacteria.
And unfortunately the opposite is true when you wash the chickens."
The problem is that when you wash raw poultry,
bacteria from the raw meat and juices can spread to other foods, cutting boards,
cookware, and surfaces throughout the kitchen. Bacteria can easily spread to surfaces, and most
cooks understandably don't stop mid-preparation to fully sanitize their sink, counters and utensils.
Meat is cleaned when it's processed, and doesn't need to be sanitized at home.
The best way to kill the bacteria that might develop or be present
is to cook your poultry — no suds required.
Antibiotics are a confusing, and unsavory,
subject when it comes to buying the best chicken for your dinner plate. Antibiotics
are sometimes used to speed up growth in young chickens and keep them healthy.
The use of antibiotics to raise animals is common in production across
the globe. Members of the science community have been pointing to the
dangers of feeding animals drugs used by humans to fight infections for decades.
Using antibiotics similar to ones humans depend on leads to drug resistance in the general public.
The Guardian found that most animals are raised with the assistance of doses of antibiotics on
most days of their lives, leading to over 63,000 tons of antibiotics used per year. In recent
years, antibiotic-free chicken is often preferred, due to health concerns and personal preference.
Consumer Reports found that some labeling regarding antibiotic use can be deceptive
to consumers, and may have led to myths about what chicken meat is free from these drugs.
In order for chicken to be labeled “organic”, it can be given antibiotics only in the
hatchery. Only those labeled, "raised without antibiotics" are truly free from antibiotics.
But here you can tell why it's still so confusing to the everyday consumer:
"Some chicken brands use labels to trick people and charge higher prices."
"Raised without antibiotics."
"That's just marketing speak."
A still more confusing label is, quote, "no medically important antibiotics."
This designation actually means poultry is fed other antibiotics not available for human use.
Food labeled "natural" is nothing more than a marketing ploy. It's truly a myth
that "natural" foods are healthier for you. The problem really, it turns out,
is what the expectations that shoppers have when they see this label. While 62 percent of
shoppers said they often buy foods labeled “natural”, according to Consumer Reports,
nearly two-thirds believe the natural food label means more than it actually does.
These same consumers also believe, incorrectly, that natural foods are produced without
genetically modified organisms, hormones, pesticides, and other artificial ingredients.
Food-safety experts examined typical foods found in the grocery store,
including pre-packed “natural” chicken strips from the producer Tyson. The product contained multiple
corn sweeteners and citric acid, typically a lab-produced additive derived from bacteria.
"It's natural enough, and like sugar it's fine in moderation."
"I guess…"
"You guess what, that you should have kept your mouth shut."
When Tyson was asked if any of their ingredients came from GMO corn,
the food brand responded by saying:
"[The government's] natural requirements do not address GMO."
The strips are just one example of the types of additives allowed in chicken labeled "natural."
Dispelling this food myth will allow shoppers to be much savvy in the store,
and make the best personal decision for their plates.
Buying hormone-free chicken might seem like the clear winner when comparing meats.
Shouldn't the label hormone-free chicken also indicate that it's
the better option for shoppers? The reality is a little more complicated.
None of the chickens raised in the U.S. or internationally are given hormones. In fact,
feeding chickens additional hormones, other than the hormones the animal produces on its own,
has been illegal in the U.S. since the 1950s.
Instead, labels for hormone-free chicken are just a clever marketing ploy to draw
in health-conscious consumers. The label is similar to the meaningless designation "farm
raised." Spoiler alert, all animals destined for meat consumption are technically raised on farms.
The term "free-range" might make you think of a happy and healthy animal moving freely
in a pasture and pecking for food, but in most cases that's nothing but a myth.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture issues "free range" certification to
poultry operations that simply allow birds access to the outdoors. Heathline explains
that "free range" doesn't mean the poultry must be allowed access to pastures or grass.
Farmers also don't have to ensure a certain amount of time outdoors, or the size of the area
for a given number of birds. Outside space isn't defined, leading to certain producers offering
less than ideal conditions. Free-range chicken might only have access to a patch of gravel.
If shoppers are committed to buying meat raised outdoors, chicken that's labeled "certified humane
pasture-raised" or "certified humane free range" requires additional space and outdoor grazing.
It's becoming more common to see free-range chicken labeled as “vegetarian-fed” hens.
Vegetarian-fed chicken is labeled on meat and eggs as a benefit to the consumer,
but what that benefit might be is unclear.
Chickens are actually omnivores, which means they prefer to eat bugs and small animals
in the wild. While free-range chicken isn't quite the pastoral life that many shoppers expect, any
vegetarian-fed chickens are likely getting even less of the time outdoors than the name suggests.
If a bird is "vegetarian fed," the chickens are unlikely to gain access to grass,
dirt, and insects outdoors. Instead of delicious neutral proteins chickens eat in the wild,
the birds are given protein replacements. The vegetarian feed the chickens are eating
is most likely heavily loaded with GMO soy.
This results in poorer quality, low nutrition eggs and meat for consumers. This is also a
problem for anyone with soy allergies, because second-hand soy products end up in the eggs.
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