# A chicken or turkey cooked all alone?



## eckstg (Apr 2, 2008)

I was wondering if its ok to just simply cook a chicken all by itself with nothing else added but maybe water?Any ways this could be done i would like to know of like if in a roaster,crockpot,baked in oven, or boiled on stovetop.

I read somewhere you average the cook time in the oven to 20 minutes per lb at 350.Also i read in a crockpot you could just add a little water and let cook for 8 hours before it finishes.Also if its frozen i read you could take it out of freezer and just let it sit for 1 day in frige to be long enough to defrost.Are these correct?


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## suziquzie (Apr 2, 2008)

That's the beauty of poutry! Aside from thawing method (shhhh everyone) you can do whatever you want with it!
The easiest I'd say would be to roast it in the oven. A whole chicken w/ nothing else would make the skin a little icky IMHO. I think you're right on your time / temp. A better gauge would be internal temp. I go to 165 in the thickest part of the breast. I'm sure someone will tell my I do that wrong but whatever.... 
At least rub some olive oil, salt an pepper on it. Maybe put a cut onion, a carrot, and a celery stalk in the cavity. Keeps it moist and adds some flavor.

I don't think it would thaw in 1 day in the fridge. I give a chicken about 2 1/2 days to defrost. A turkey about 4.


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## miniman (Apr 2, 2008)

If you start the chicken off breast down, you may not need to add any fat. however, I would usefully add some fat over the top to start the roasting. You could also poach the chicken by itself - I personally would add aromatics to the poaching water (bouquet garni, onion or celery).


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## Jeekinz (Apr 2, 2008)

An internal thermometer is ideal.  However, you can poke in the thick part of the thigh area with a knife, if the juices run clear, it's done.


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## auntdot (Apr 2, 2008)

I agree with the above posters and strongly recommend the use of a meat thermometer.  Oven temps vary despite what it says on the dial (also strongly recommend an oven thermometer. They are cheap and help prevent under and over cooking). And ovens have hotter and colder areas.  It is the temp of the bird that is important.

Also, like suzi, will roast a chicken with onion, carrot and celery in the cavity, whole or cut into large chunks is fine.

Will roast a chicken on a bed of mirepoix cut fairly chunkily (doubt that is a word, but I hope you know what I mean).

Think it gives a nice taste to the boid and keeps it off the baking pan (course you could always put it on a rack). Love to eat the veggies the juices have dripped on.  Not good for the diet I guess.

Have put butter under the skin (you separate the skin from the meat with your fingers and push the butter, thinly cut, in the space), and that works well.  Have added butter mixed with veggies from the food processor under the skin but the results were not esthetically pleasing. No one seems to want to eat chicken with green stuff under the skin.  Why?  I am not sure.  But the chicken sure tasted good.


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## ChefJune (Apr 2, 2008)

eckstg said:


> I was wondering if its ok to just simply cook a chicken all by itself with nothing else added but maybe water?Any ways this could be done i would like to know of like if in a roaster,crockpot,baked in oven, or boiled on stovetop.
> 
> I read somewhere you average the cook time in the oven to 20 minutes per lb at 350.Also i read in a crockpot you could just add a little water and let cook for 8 hours before it finishes.Also if its frozen i read you could take it out of freezer and just let it sit for 1 day in frige to be long enough to defrost.Are these correct?


 
I'm guessing we are misunderstanding you.  Do you mean that you want to cook the chicken with no flavorings, salt, pepper, etc? Or that you want to cook it without accoutrements like potatoes and carrots, or garlic or stuffing?


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## Alix (Apr 2, 2008)

I'm with June. My initial impression was that you didn't want to stuff it or put any veggies with it. Is that correct or did you mean seasonings?

And just an FYI, just plain old roasting leaves the skin nice and crunchy and tasty. Not icky at all. My kids fight over it.


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## suziquzie (Apr 2, 2008)

^^^^
I am having brain issues today. 
I meant to say that throwing in in the crock pot alone would make the skin wierd. 
I've been known to skin a whole roasted chicken and run away with my takings!!!


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## Jeekinz (Apr 2, 2008)

How could you eat plain ol' chicken anyway?  I mean, throw some BBQ sauce on it or something.


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## GotGarlic (Apr 2, 2008)

suziquzie said:


> ^^^^
> I am having brain issues today.
> I meant to say that throwing in in the crock pot alone would make the skin wierd.
> I've been known to skin a whole roasted chicken and run away with my takings!!!



You 'n me both!


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## suziquzie (Apr 2, 2008)

LOL, what the brain issues or the skin swiping?!?


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## GotGarlic (Apr 2, 2008)

suziquzie said:


> LOL, what the brain issues or the skin swiping?!?



Oh, the skin - definitely the skin. If it's not crisp enough, I put it in the toaster oven to brown a bit more 

Hey, what about beer or wine butt chicken?


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## Alix (Apr 2, 2008)

Mmmmmmmmm skin gooooood. Jeekinz, you clearly haven't lived. Go skin a roasted chicken and savor.


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## Jeekinz (Apr 2, 2008)

Alix said:


> Mmmmmmmmm skin gooooood. Jeekinz, you clearly haven't lived. Go skin a roasted chicken and savor.


 
I've had my fair share, just don't understand the OP's MO.


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## ChefJune (Apr 2, 2008)

Jeekinz said:


> How could you eat plain ol' chicken anyway?  I mean, throw some BBQ sauce on it or something.


You slice it and cut it in pieces and serve it with anything you like! Just about my favorite thing to cook and eat in the whole world. 

OR you could slice it up and make awesome sandwiches.

IMHO there is no such thing as "plain ol' chicken," unless it's the boiled bird that's just come out of the soup pot. but I like that, too!


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## eckstg (Apr 2, 2008)

Thxs everyone for your input it is very appreciated!!And what i meant was no seasonings or accoutrements or anything at all except water.

Wanted to basically just buy some frozens birds defrost them and cook them all alone except in water maybe in all different ways possible and looking for information on how and how long in the different methods to do this.

So far i hear 
baked - is 20 minutes per lb @ 350 and with replies in this post be good idea to buy the meat thermometor instead and also a stove thermometor to make sure ovens working at right temp as nob.

slow cooker - fill with water until half of chicken is covered let cook for about 6 to 8 hours.

Havent heard on how long to boil?If you boil do you need to defrost or just simply add to water?Also same with slow cooker is it really necesarry to defrost before putting into slow cooker?

I assume to peel the skin and toss it away since its unhealty anyways.


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## Bilby (Apr 3, 2008)

Skin is only unhealthy if you have the fat with it. You can crisp it up, removing the fat and it's just skin.

You can poach or steam the chicken as well without anything added.

May I ask what is motivating you to only use water and no seasonings? Not everything that you can add to the chicken is unhealthy. Just curious.


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## GotGarlic (Apr 3, 2008)

Bilby said:


> Skin is only unhealthy if you have the fat with it. You can crisp it up, removing the fat and it's just skin.
> 
> You can poach or steam the chicken as well without anything added.
> 
> May I ask what is motivating you to only use water and no seasonings? Not everything that you can add to the chicken is unhealthy. Just curious.



I'm curious about that, too, because even though you can season it later when you do something else with the meat, the final result will taste better if it was seasoned while cooking.

One of our experienced members (Goodweed, maybe?) posted a response to another thread recently and said that boiling chicken was not a good idea - can't remember why exactly, but gently poaching is a better method, and you can add calorie-free flavor that way with things like lemon juice, wine, herbs, peppercorns, etc.


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## GB (Apr 3, 2008)

Boiling chicken will make it dry and tough. Simmering is beter.

I am also curious why you don't want to add any flavor up front. Doing it after will not give you the same result.


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## RPMcMurphy (Apr 3, 2008)

I posted in another thread, but I cooked a 6.5lb turkey breast in a crock pot for easter....salt pepper,and rubbed it with onion soup mix and THATS IT...no water. (it was defrosted already) 1 hour on high the rest on low....it wont "brown" but it will be good.


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## *amy* (Apr 3, 2008)

eckstg said:


> Thxs everyone for your input it is very appreciated!!And what i meant was no seasonings or accoutrements or anything at all except water.
> 
> Wanted to basically just buy some frozens birds defrost them and cook them all alone except in water maybe in all different ways possible and looking for information on how and how long in the different methods to do this.
> 
> ...


 
Welcome to DC. Color me confused. Can you help us out & tell us what you are preparing or why there must be no seasonings except water?

Re the slow cooker - I have added only a little liquid. NEVER filled the pot with liquid. Absolutely defrost before adding to a slow cooker. Temp changes may crack your crock. Follow the directions for your make/model.

Re the skin - I'm not a big fan, unless it's roasted with seasonings, & I'll take a taste. The skin does contain fat. I usually buy skinless.

As for cooking time, depends on the size of the chicken & your prep/cooking method. 

Guessing you want to eat healthy? You can broil chicken breasts with some lemon pepper & some lemon or lime juice. Adding fresh herbs to chicken prep will still keep it light, & low fat/low sodium chicken broth will give the chix some moisture - other than water. If you are boiling try adding a bouquet garni. Hope that helps.


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## GotGarlic (Apr 3, 2008)

*amy* said:


> Re the skin - I'm not a big fan, unless it's roasted with seasonings, & I'll take a taste. The skin does contain fat. I usually buy skinless.



The skin contains fat when the bird is raw, but if it's roasted or grilled, the fat is rendered (melted away) and only the crisp skin is left. Practically fat-free.


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## Jeekinz (Apr 3, 2008)

GotGarlic said:


> The skin contains fat when the bird is raw, but if it's roasted or grilled, the fat is rendered (melted away) and only the crisp skin is left. Practically fat-free.


 
OMG!  You and Alix are _Skin Pushers_!


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## GotGarlic (Apr 3, 2008)

Jeekinz said:


> OMG!  You and Alix are _Skin Pushers_!



Hey, if there are no takers, I'll take 'em all back!!  
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





I've told people that crisp chicken skin goes bad real fast in the fridge, so I have to eat it all now ... it does, you know. It gets all flabby  Can't waste good skin


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## eckstg (Apr 3, 2008)

Well i basically want it as healthy as possible and to make as simple as possible especially for the first couple times as practice.
Not any experience with buying whole chickens and cooking them and figured buying the whole frozen birds turkey or chicken would be cheaper possibly.

Figured i could simply if in a hurry stop by supermarket run in grab a couple bring them home letem defrost then use what ive read here to cook them.When done i could season with salt n pepper and whatever for however i use the meat at that point.Rice sandwiches bbq sauce whatever.  

Figured i learn the very basic way to cook first then get more creative in future receipes with more time to spend on buying seasonings veggies etc.


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## GotGarlic (Apr 3, 2008)

I don't think you'll save money buying frozen chicken - I'm not sure I've even seen frozen chicken in the grocery store. And they will take at least overnight to thaw, so if you're in a hurry, don't buy something frozen 

But roasting a chicken is simple, adding a few common seasonings is easy and will make the final result taste better, no matter what it is. All you really need is salt, pepper and oil. There are flavor components that dissolve in oil that you won't get without it, and I think it helps with browning the skin. Also, we all need a little fat in our diet in order to absorb fat-soluble vitamins, like A, D, E and K.

So here you go: One 3 1/2 lb. or so chicken, 1 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. pepper and 1/4 cup olive oil. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, brush chicken with oil, sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper. If you have extra garlic, onion, lemon, and/or celery, rough-chop 2 cloves of garlic, 1/2 onion, and celery, cut lemon in quarters, and stuff in the chicken's cavity.

Roast on rack in roasting pan for about 1 1/2 hours. If you have an instant-read thermometer, that will help determine when it's done (see above). HTH.


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## Bilby (Apr 4, 2008)

Second everything GotGarlic said.  If you really are opposed to adding seasonings, at least cook it on a bed of aromatic vegetables, like carrots and celery. They will impart a flavour to the chicken, esp if you steam the chicken over the veges and you can eat the veges as well. All in one cooking. Understand your point about simple techniques for healthy cooking but I think you are not going about it the right way.  The chicken won't be as appetizing the way you are suggesting.  Listen to GotGarlic.


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## GB (Apr 4, 2008)

Adding flavor does not have to be unhealthy. It can actually be even healthier than cooking it plain (such as cooking with veggies). Adding salt after the fact will not get you the same result as adding salt during the cooking process. If you cook the chicken plain then you are going to end up with very bland flavorless meat. Adding flavoring after the fact will not make the meat more flavorful.


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## AllenOK (Apr 8, 2008)

I'll take what GB posted even further.  When I was in college, my chef-instructors taught me that if you leave salt completely out of the dish, then add it at the end, you'll actually use MORE salt to make it taste good, compared to if you added some salt before it was cooked.

You might want to run a search for the various threads about brining chicken/turkey.  Done correctly, it adds moisture, and flavor, without make the bird taste salty (as long as you don't goof the ratios of salt : water like I did the first time).


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## eckstg (Apr 11, 2008)

Thxs everyone eveything you said did go into consideration and i cooked my first whole chicken last saturday 7 days ago now and plan to cook a couple tomorrow.

I did as you all advised and added the oil,salt,pepper before hand and a couple garlic gloves,lemon,half onion,and part cerely stick which was all i had in fridge.I baked @ 350 for 90 minutes and didnt appear to be completely done in center o i cooked an additional 30 minutes and it turned out delicious!

I need to get a meat thermometer and stove thermometer to get more accurate with times.Tomorrow i plan to coom 1 in the slow cooker and from what i read should take somewhere over 6 hours?And the least amount of water to add to slow cooker is a cup or 2?

Again thxs for help everyone!


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## Bilby (Apr 12, 2008)

It is surprising just how easy it is to roast a chicken and just how yummy it can taste for very little work. Glad it turned out well for you. If you cut into the chicken in the thickest part of the bird, the juices should run clear when it is cooked.

Don't forget that if you stuff the chicken to remove the stuffing before refrigerating the chicken.  Don't store them together.


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## GotGarlic (Apr 12, 2008)

That's great, I'm glad it turned out well for you 

re: the slow cooker, I looked around at a few recipes, and they all say it creates its own juices, so no need to add liquid. Here's one: Whole Baked Chicken In A Crock Recipe HTH.


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