Cooking Chicken Fillet In Oven

SimonTemplar

This might seem like a silly question but I'm a complete cooking novice and I want to know how to cook chicken fillets in the oven. Is this right:

Cover the fillet in a little olive oil
Wrap the fillet loosely in tin foil
Put on a baking tray in a preheated oven for 25-30 mins at 180.



Once I've mastered cooking a fillet by itself, I'd like to make it more interesting by adding some mushrooms and onion, or pineapple. What would I need to do differently: would I just put them straight in with the chicken in the oven; would I saute it first in the pan and then put it with the chicken; or cook them completely seperately.

(Simple questions, I know, but I'm an absolute beginner attempting to eat healthier and learn to cook.)

username123

If youre trying to be healthier, why use olive oil?

Would you not just oven bake it in its own juices?

I just bang them into a baking tray, cover the top with tin foil and cook for 30-40 mins at 180 or so (think my oven is losing heat so time could be shorter with a better oven.)

oscarBravo

username123 wrote: »

If youre trying to be healthier, why use olive oil?

What's unhealthy about olive oil?

icesnowfrost

For a perfect melt in your mouth cooked chicken fillet done in the oven. preheat the oven for 3 minn on 180 and put in the fillet for 25min (no longer or shorter)

If u dont want it to be bland rub in some piri piri chicken rub or any seasoning that goes with chicken ( do this before u put the fillet in the oven)

Animord

Everyone's oven is different, so you will either need to buy an oven thermometer or just try it and see. If you have a fan oven you need it lower than whatever most recipes say.

It will cook the way you have described but it will be pretty bland. Personally when I do chicken breast, I'd at least wrap a couple of rashers around it, which will help to lubricate the meat.

You can stuff them with anything you like - you make cut along the length of the breast so it flattens out a bit and you could put your previously sautéed mushrooms and onions into the centre, I'd put a bit of cream cheese in too, to hold it together, then roll it up as best you can, wrap a rasher round it to hold it and bake it in the oven.

It might be easier to look for simple recipes that you like the sound of and asking specific questions about them.

username123

oscarBravo wrote: »

What's unhealthy about olive oil?

Nothing except the extra calories. But it's an unnecessary addition to an oven baked chicken breast. There is enough fat in the meat to cook in its own juices without smothering it in oil as well. If someone is trying to eat healthier as OP states they are, then they will get a lower calorie, just as tasty chicken breast without the oil.

SimonTemplar

Animord wrote: »

You can stuff them with anything you like - you make cut along the length of the breast so it flattens out a bit and you could put your previously sautéed mushrooms and onions into the centre, I'd put a bit of cream cheese in too, to hold it together, then roll it up as best you can, wrap a rasher round it to hold it and bake it in the oven.

Thanks for your advice. I'm not too keen in wrapping the chicken in a rasher because I'm trying to reduce my red meat intake. Would wrapping the stuff in tin foil not hold everything together?

username123 wrote: »

Nothing except the extra calories. But it's an unnecessary addition to an oven baked chicken breast. There is enough fat in the meat to cook in its own juices without smothering it in oil as well. If someone is trying to eat healthier as OP states they are, then they will get a lower calorie, just as tasty chicken breast without the oil.

In my naivety, I assumed some oil was required. I'll omit the olive oil so because I need to reduce my calories.

Animord

SimonTemplar wrote: »

Thanks for your advice. I'm not too keen in wrapping the chicken in a rasher because I'm trying to reduce my red meat intake. Would wrapping the stuff in tin foil not hold everything together?



In my naivety, I assumed some oil was required. I'll omit the olive oil so because I need to reduce my calories.

It'd work fine, I just don't believe that low fat is good for you, but that is a whole other controversial thread... :pac:

Minder

Personally I'd cook a skin-on chicken breast in a pan to get colour on the skin, then season and put into a hot oven for no more than 15 minutes. Chicken is cooked when the internal temperature gets above 74c. Buy a digital probe thermometer and start experimenting.

RasTa

I find it better to butterfly the chicken breast, pan fry on a hot griddle it for 3mins each side and it stays juicy.

nhg

I either pan fry on a griddle pan with mushrooms & onions or pop the fillets into a magic cooking bag on a bed of courgettes & cherry tomatoes & oven bake.

My granny cooked everything in magic cooking bags in the oven....