# Cooking meat/poultry in pan with marinade....help



## avanraalte (Nov 16, 2014)

Hello

I would like to get some feedback on how to cook chicken breasts, top round, etc... in the pan on the stove top with marinade.

Do you marinade and then wipe it off or keep it on the food?  I ask because I seem to cook and the marinade ends up burning.

Also, in regards to chicken breasts in the pan: it seems if I strive for an internal temp of 165 (food safety guidelines), my chicken ends up dry and burnt.  Any advice?


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## mike9 (Jul 13, 2012)

You have two completely different things going on - beef like eye of round requires a different technique than chicken breast.  Can I assume you are using skinless, boneless breast?  If so that does not like to be "boiled" what is what you are doing by cooking it in marinade.  You can't even braise breast it has no fat, or collagen to lubricate it.  Eye of round is usually cooked dry in the oven either by blasting, or slow roasting.  If you are going to braise it it will require low and slow something like a slow cooker.


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## avanraalte (Nov 16, 2014)

Thanks for the response!

Let's first start with the chicken.  Yes, I am talking boneless, skinless breast.  I would like to pan saute the breast.  Is it possible to cook with marinade?

As for the meat, I am talking about an 8oz inch and a half cut.


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## mike9 (Jul 13, 2012)

Saute and marinade in the same pan don't go together.  As for the meat I would put it in the freezer and just before it was solid slice it in 1/8" (or less) slices then saute it quickly in a hot pan like a Philly Cheese Steak, or other quick cook method.  Neither of these proteins has any fat, or connective tissue and there is not much of a fat cap on eye of round.


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## avanraalte (Nov 16, 2014)

Are you suggesting dry rub or seasoning on chicken in the sauteing pan? Nothing wet?


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## spoiledbroth (Sep 25, 2014)

what is your marinade composed of... be as exact as you can...

people marinade chicken breasts all the time and grill them... So you shouldn't have a problem. Typically I would marinade them for some time and then pat dry if you are cooking in a skillet, if you are using some kind of marinade with sugar could even wash them but then you'll want to marinade for as long as possible.


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## avanraalte (Nov 16, 2014)

I usually marinade in Italian dressing.


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## mike9 (Jul 13, 2012)

SpoiledBroth said:


> what is your marinade composed of... be as exact as you can...
> 
> people marinade chicken breasts all the time and grill them... So you shouldn't have a problem. Typically I would marinade them for some time and then pat dry if you are cooking in a skillet, if you are using some kind of marinade with sugar could even wash them but then you'll want to marinade for as long as possible.


He's not talking about grilling - that's a whole 'nother thing. He's asking about pan cooking in marinade.


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## spoiledbroth (Sep 25, 2014)

Yeah I know I was aware! I've never had a problem pan frying marinated chicken breast, I do it all the time. As I said before, if the first ingredient in your store bought italian dressing is sugar (unless you mean oil/balsamic) make sure you rinse and pat dry your protein. And you can easily braise chicken breast, I can point you to a hundred thousand recipes that call for it. 

At the end of the day I would guess the OP is "riding the flame" as we say-- using far too much heat for the current application. Pan frying a breast perfectly is more a function of adjusting and controlling heat, if things get too dark pop it in the oven to finish.

You should also look into creating your own marinades. They are almost always made with stuff you'll have available in your pantry and I have always been suspicious of the suggestion to use store bought dressings as marinade. I question whether the acidic content of those dressings is enough to penetrate your protein in a remotely timely manner.


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## chrisbelgium (Oct 2, 2010)

I see no benefit at all from marinating this kind of meat. Marinating is used to tenderize tougher meat and give it a flavor at the same time. Chicken breast is so tender that marinating seems so redundant to me, except maybe to add a flavor. In that case I would strongly suggest to throw out your store bought marinade.  

As an alternative to your marinade try this;

Put the breasts in a plastic bag, add a few tbsp. of sunflower oil, add thinly sliced fresh garlic, add chopped fresh tarragon or any other herb of your preference. Add some pepper (freshly ground or chili flakes or whatever...). Absolutely NO salt (it dehydrates meat)!! Massage the bag with all the ingredients in it and set aside for the next hour or even overnight.

Next, panfry after removing the garlic slices (they will burn).

I always panfry chicken breasts like this;

- use sunflower oil. You do not need to dry the breasts when marinated as I described above.

- use around 80% of your available heat potential underneath your pan. Let the pan heat up. When the oil in there starts to "ripple" a bit, it's time to fry.

- put the breasts in and don't move them around for the next 2-3 minutes. Salt the upper side. Turn and do the same.

- turn the heat down to 15-20% of your available heat potential. Take a sheet of aluminum foil and cover the pan loosely. Let the breasts fry for another 10-15 minutes. (Turn the meat 2 or 3 times)

- when done, use the aluminum foil to wrap the meat in and let the package rest on your cutting board for the next 10 minutes (which gives you ample time to make a killer sauce).

You meat should now be perfectly tender and quite moist! BTW, I do the same with pork tenderloin.


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## spoiledbroth (Sep 25, 2014)

ChrisBelgium said:


> Absolutely NO salt (it dehydrates meat)!!


I think this is an old wives tale regarding marinades. I've heard not to salt them, but if you consider the effect of brining...

I think my favourite thing to marinade chicken with is... buttermilk! Really amazing. Just need to be careful how long you let it sit for, otherwise you'll end up with pink goop.


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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

I don't marinate chicken breast but I do make a pan sauce.  Pat the chicken dry and sear it on both sides, then remove it.  It will still be uncooked in the center.  Then in the pan I make a gravy type sauce using onions, garlic, white wine, a little stock, herbs, maybe some dijon mustard, butter, or you could even throw in your italian dressing.  Bring to a simmer then put your chicken breasts back in and cover with a lid.  Allow it to simmer until the chicken is cooked through, and then serve with the sauce which goes perfectly well over rice.


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

Koukouvagia said:


> Pat the chicken dry and sear it on both sides, then remove it. It will still be uncooked in the center. Then in the pan I make a gravy type sauce using onions, garlic, white wine, a little stock, herbs, maybe some dijon mustard, butter, or you could even throw in your italian dressing. Bring to a simmer then put your chicken breasts back in and cover with a lid. Allow it to simmer until the chicken is cooked through, and then serve with the sauce which goes perfectly well over rice.


One of my "go-to" recipes for chicken is quite similar:

1) Place olive oil with smashed garlic and herbs (thyme, rosemary, bay leaf...) in a COLD pan.

2) Infuse oil by heating slowly.

3) Once oil is hot, remove herbs & garlic and sear the chicken until golden brown.

4) Add about 1/2 glass white wine, herbs & garlic to the pan, cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked.

5) Add the juice of one lemon, reduce the sauce to glaze consistency.

It's simple, and delicious!!





  








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## koukouvagia (Apr 3, 2008)

@French Fries I will have to try that recipe. Is that what is called a fricasse?


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## french fries (Sep 5, 2008)

No, a fricassée is a white dish, where you cut the meat in small pieces, saute them lightly without any coloration, add some aromatics and flour the whole thing, add some white stock and cook the meat in the white sauce. 

Here I leave the chicken in large pieces and create as much golden brown color as possible, I don't flour, and I add very little liquid, just enough to create a syrupy glaze at the end. It's a very simple way to prepare the chicken, very quick, not much work involved.


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## teamfat (Nov 5, 2007)

James Peterson's book "Sauces" has an excellent, old school recipe for chicken fricassée with cream and egg yolks for a very rich sauce. Was going to make it a few days ago but SWMBO suggested pot pies. I do need to make a batch soon.

mjb.


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## captains (Nov 12, 2014)

Sounds like you might be pouring the chicken and marinade into the pan. If that's the case then your stewing very lean meat. Take the meat from the marinade to he pan & fry.

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## avanraalte (Nov 16, 2014)

Captains: Do you mean wipe off the marinade?


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