that's rich in flavor and high in protein. Grilled chili lime chicken rescues tender chicken breasts from the more common (but still delicious) chicken piccata. If that's too much spice, a simple herb-rubbed grilled chicken recipe might be what you're looking for to disrupt dinner. Or a simple olive oil and lemon marinade gives this prevalent poultry a light Greek flavor that's simple enough to please picky eaters as well as flavor cravers. That one may even turn out to be one of your favorite recipes. What's even better about grilled chicken is that it's easy to repurpose the leftovers in a chicken salad, tacos, or a wrap.

Baked Chicken Breasts

The oven picks up where the grill leaves off. While chicken thighs tend to be more moist and flavorful than other parts of the chicken, baked chicken recipes are more abundant and more abundantly flavorful. As an example, skinless chicken breasts work well in casseroles. When they're stripped of fat, they lose some flavor which can be replaced with a sublime sauce. If you're looking for low-fat, you'll probably find a recipe in the direction of a broccoli chicken casserole. If you want to throw calories and caution to the wind, you might be tempted by a chicken bacon ranch tot casserole (it's a mouthful, but totally worth the trouble and the calories). But if you're not feeling saucy, there are plenty of parmesan-crusted chicken recipes that won't leave your chicken swimming in a baking dish full of butter and cream.

As long as calories don't count, bacon wrapped cheese and mushroom stuffed chicken breast is oven baked chicken at its best. If the idea of stuffing a chicken breast blows your mind, it's much simpler than the word suggests. To stuff a chicken breast, you need not do more than butterfly the breast, lightly pound it out between two pieces of plastic wrap with meat mallet, spread the filling on one side roll it all up. Keep everything intact with a toothpick while it's baking but remove it before serving. After stuffing a chicken, you will feel like the master of your kitchen domain.

Slow Cooker Chicken Breasts

Dinner recipes aren't limited to the grill or oven — the slow cooker is one of the best ways to keep your chicken breasts juicy and delicious without having to use a meat thermometer to make sure they're fully cooked. With the slow cooker, you can transform humdrum boneless skinless chicken breasts into a conduit for cultural discovery. Teriyaki chicken for a taste of Asia or chicken cacciatore as an Italian treat, you can travel the world in just four hours with a slow cooker! But there are hundreds of uniquely American dishes your family will want heaping helpings of. Slow cooker BBQ pulled chicken for a fun weekend meal or slow cooker chicken and stuffing makes an easy chicken dinner for weeknights. And let's not forget the kind of magic cream cheese creates with chicken in the crock pot. Chicken Tetrazzini, chicken stroganoff, or creamy tacos flavored with garlic powder and spiced with cumin and cayenne — there's a recipe that everyone can agree on.

Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Stuffed breasts might be the most delicious way to bake chicken breasts — you really can't go wrong with chicken cordon bleu or a creamy spinach-stuffed chicken breast. If it sounds complicated, don't be intimidated; they're much easier to pull off than they might seem. You can stuff a chicken breast in one of two ways: butterflying the breasts and pounding them out into cutlets to layer and roll or just slice into to create a small cavity where you can put your stuffing. The one thing you can do that's not very common is leave the bone on. That might be slightly more difficult to wrap your head around, but it's easy in execution. The benefit of the bone-in stuffed breast is that the bone imparts more flavor during cooking.

Chicken Pitfalls To Avoid

Chicken breasts are versatile — they can take on textures and flavors making it nearly impossible to find the limit on variations to choose from. But there are a few pitfalls to avoid:

Rinsing

Rinsing chicken won't make your chicken cleaner when you cook it. If you cook your chicken to the right temperature (165 degrees Fahrenheit is the safe internal temperature for a chicken breast, according to Federal regulators), any bacteria that you might have rinsed off will be cooked away. The reason you shouldn't rinse chicken is that the splashing can spread bacteria in places you may not see and probably won't clean, making it dangerous for people who come in contact with those unseen hazards.

Not Pounding It Out Correctly

If you want quick-cooking breasts or you need cutlets, you should pound it out with a meat mallet. The first thing you should know is that you should cover it with plastic wrap before thumping it with a mallet. This keeps the spattering from the raw chicken contained, reducing the risk of spreading bacteria. The other thing you need to keep in mind is how thick the results should be.

Expecting Fried Chicken To Fully Cook

Unless you're using a restaurant-grade fryer, it's pretty tough to fully cook fried chicken without burning it. A quick remedy is to fry the chicken to the color you want (golden brown is always good!) and then finish cooking it in the oven. Make sure to check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer.

Not Giving It A Rest

After cooking any meat, you should let it rest before cutting into it so it stays juicy. When meat is cooked, the protein contracts, forcing the moisture out. When you let the meat rest, it sort of reabsorbs the moisture, so the longer you let it rest, the juicier your meat is. If you're concerned about it getting cold, you can loosely cover it with aluminum foil.

Thawing Frozen Birds On The Counter

It's true that it takes longer to thaw frozen chicken in the refrigerator, but it's exponentially more dangerous. Bacteria starts growing rapidly at temperatures between 40 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit and that includes frozen food being thawed at room temperature. Thawing it in the refrigerator takes longer, but it never reaches the ""temperature danger zone.""

Not Drying Chicken Before Cooking

It might sound counterintuitive, but the more moisture you leave on the chicken before cooking, the crispier the skin is (if you choose to keep the skin). You can dry the skin by leaving it in the refrigerator uncovered or pat it dry with a paper towel before cooking it.

Not Cooking It At The Correct Temperature

Chicken breasts come in varying sizes and thickness which means the time it finishes cooking will vary. Generally speaking, an average sized breast in an oven set at 350 degrees Fahrenheit will cook to a safe temperature (165 degrees Fahrenheit) in 20 to 25 minutes. However, every recipe is different — some may direct you to pan sear the chicken before putting it in the oven or there may be breading or stuffing involved — they all dictate different cooking temperatures and times. The one thing they all have in common is that it should cook to 165 Fahrenheit.

Checking On It Too Often

If you're cooking chicken in the oven or the grill, try to be patient and not check if it's done before the suggested cook time. When you open the oven or lifting the grill lid, it lets heat escape and the cooking is slowed down significantly.

Not Seasoning It Well

Chicken alone is bland. It requires a lot of seasoning to make it flavorful, especially if the skin is removed (there's a lot flavor in the skin!). Make sure to generously season the chicken before cooking.

There are dozens of ways to serve chicken, it's up to you on how tasty it is, we're only here to give you options. From cheesy Mexican chicken casserole to classic roast chicken, browse thousands of easy chicken breast recipes to suit you.