Learn how to make ultra-tender, beautifully-juicy chicken breasts at home with this simple, foolproof tutorial for Poaching a Chicken Breast - no fancy kitchen equipment required! Whether you use it in salads, soups, sandwiches, wraps, casseroles, or simply enjoy it on its own, mastering the art of how to poach chicken will take your culinary game to an whole new, delicious level.Recipe can be scaled up or down by using the slider if you hover your mouse over the number of Servings.
30 minutes before cooking: Take the chicken breasts out of the refrigerator. Remove and discard the packaging and set on a clean work surface or plate. Set the chicken aside and let come to room temperature on the kitchen counter for 30 minutes.
Add chicken to pan: Season the chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper. Then transfer the chicken breasts to a saucepan or pot large enough to hold the chicken breasts in a single layer.
Add water & flavor: Fill the saucepan with enough COLD water to cover and submerge the chicken breasts with about 2-inches of water. Add any flavoring ingredients, such as wine, garlic, onion, and lemon, if using. Give everything a good stir to combine.
Bring to simmer: Place the saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a rapid simmer.
Poach Chicken: Once simmering, immediately reduce the heat to LOW. COVER the saucepan with a lid, and cook for 7-12 minutes, or until the thickest part of the chicken registers 165-degrees on an instant-read thermometer.
Rest chicken: Remove the chicken breasts from the poaching liquid and set aside on a clean work surface. Let chicken breasts rest for 5 minutes. Strain broth - optional: If you’d like to keep the poaching liquid, strain the broth through a fine-mesh strainer if you added flavoring ingredients (or simply use tongs to remove and discard larger flavoring ingredients if you’d like).
Slice, shred, serve or store: Slice, shred, or chop the chicken breasts and use as desired. Alternatively, place the whole poached chicken breasts into airtight storage container or resealable bag and store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Notes
Chicken: You can use frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts; however, you will need to thaw them prior to poaching.
Make sure you start with chicken at room temperature. Poaching is all about gently cooking the chicken. Starting the chicken at room temperature aids in this process.
Step Photos: My two chicken breasts weighed a total of 1.43-pounds, and they needed 10 1/2 minutes in step 5 to reach 162-degrees Fahrenheit. (I rely on carry over cooking for the remaining few degrees.)
Flavoring Ingredients: These are entirely optional; however, it’s important to note that the subtle flavor they do add does a lot for the chicken. If you poach your chicken in just water, the chicken will be super tender, but it won’t have any flavor – just a heads up! Optional Flavoring Ingredients:
1 small Yellow Onion – peeled & halved with the root left intact
What I typically use: ½ to 1 cup of chardonnay, ½ yellow onion, 2 cloves of garlic, ½ lemon, a handful of flat-leaf parsley or chives, and a bay leaf to flavor my poaching liquid. I’ve found this combination yields juicy chicken with just the right amount of savory flavor – meaning it’s not bland; however, it’s also not overwhelmingly flavorful, so I can use it in recipes like soups, salads, and casseroles.
If you are keeping the broth for sipping, I highly recommend flavoring the poaching liquid so it’s aromatic and tastes delicious.
Nutritional information is an estimate based upon 2 servings. Exact information will depend upon the brands of ingredients and precise measurements used.