Woah...... I realized, as much as I love food, that I can't cook worth a lick.  If I have a recipe and the ingredients, I can tear it up, but unless I have instructions with exactly what I need and what I need to do, I can't do it.  

I tried the other night to make some chicken breasts, so i just threw them in a skillet with veggie oil and some spices, it might have been good if I wasn't afraid to UNDER cook it.  Being pregnant, that scared the mess outta me.  So I accidently over cooked it :( I was worried about putting it down the garbage disposal...the blades are gettin old..hah

Anyways, does anyone have any simple chicken breast or rice or pasta recipes?? That doesn't take too many ingredients or steps LOL I'm cooking for BRF and I and baby BRF eats some of what we eat.  depending on what it is.  I just know you ladies are better at this kinda stuff than I am.....please help a food lovin kitchen n00b out

Sure, step 1:  Get a girlfriend.

Try the Campbells soup site for easy and quick recipes.

http://www.campbellkitchen.com/Default.aspx

I like to marinate chicken breasts w/ jerk seasoning or whatever and then just bake them in the oven at 400 degrees for 30 mins.  Pretty foolproof and tastes good.  The gthere's always http://allrecipes.com/

My mom used to bake chicken breasts with cream of chicken soup (pour it over the top before baking), and serve it with rice or something.  It was pretty good....

I do most of my chicken in the oven. You can do some really easy like shake and bake,you can also use stuffing and cook the chicken. BBQ sauce poured on the chicken and baked. Give us an idea of what you want to try and we'll see what we can do. Stir frys are also good with lots of vegies. Fairly easy. Food Network on the site are the various cooking shows,click on them and there are all kind of meals. Check out 30 minute meals, she has alot of quick and easy meals you can do.

Single guy chicken breast.

Mix two eggs and 2/3 cups of milk, beat to a pulp
grab a boneless breast or two
dip in egg mixture and throw on a plate
cover plate with a pile of Progresso Italian Bread Crumbs
batter breast well.

oven preheat to 325
throw breasts in cast iron skillet the smaller the skillet the better.
bake for 45 minutes

make some pasta and sauce
throw pasta in bowl and cover with a cooked breast
ladel on the sauce and enjoy.

Womenz love this meal and think your a genius

Easy Pollo Italiano:

spray large rectangular baking dish with Pam
Lay THICK cut breasts in dish
season with
salt
pepper
garlic powder
basil leaves (dry is fine)
put plum tomato wedges on each breast
sprinkle with:
Italian style bread crumbs
freshly grated Parmesean cheese
Drizzle Olive oil over them and bake at 350 for about 40 minutes until done

Easy pesto pasta
Boil water and cook pasta per pkg instructions (Barilla brand is a fave here)

If you have a mini food processor, process basil leaves finely with almonds and add olive oil to form thick paste.
Toss with Pasta OR
Buy Classico pesto in the jar (pricey and good--I hate jarred Italian anything, cause mine is so much better, but this stuff is the bomb!)

I have a few more...but it's getting late....

There's a certain risotto mix I like to use.  SO easy, ten times better than the crap I try to make.  I can't remember the name of it, I'll edit my post when I get home.  Anyway, I get the parmesan kind, all you have to do is put it in a pot with some chicken stock (adds tons more flavor than water) and let it cook for 20 minutes, stir occasionally.  If you want chicken to go on top of it, you can grill it or pan-sear it.  I just do some olive oil on the ouside, salt and pepper, maybe a little fresh garlic.  Don't fuss with the chicken too much, but if you're worried about ti getting done, I jsut take a knife and cut a little slit in the center to check on how it's doing.

Sorry that wasn't a recipe, but I hope it helps.

Bone in and skin on breasts/legs/thighs.

Sprinkle liberally with lemon pepper. You can also put garlic powder, onion powder cumin on or whatever else tickles your fancy.

Place on a cookie sheet (helps to use Reynolds release foil), and bake at 400 deg. uncovered for 1 to 1 1/2 hrs. (we like them well done and the wife is very fussy about that), but I believe they are done at one hour or less.

Extremely easy and IMO tasty.

Slow cookers/crock pots are my friends, along with onions, carrots and potatoes. Don't forget the Cream of Chicken soup with milk or 1/2&1/2, and your choice of spices. Cook on low for about 6-8 hours. Make some baking powder biscuits and WOWSERS...heaven.

Skeered of undercooking? You should be, while damn tasty, chickens are scary animals to eat raw.

Take the chicken breasts (boneless of course...) put between 2 layers of plastic wrap or parchment paper (200 points if you are a single guy and have parchment paper on hand, another 200 if you know what it's for...) and pound it to about 1/2 inch thick with a wine bottle or meat tenderizer (deadblow hammer from the garage works too). Take it slow or you will end up making something with chicken pieces parts.

Once it's nice and thin, dunk in water, then in Progresso Italian spiced bread crumbs. Coat completely and cook on med heat in olive oil and a butter.

It's easy to cook this right, because it's thin. When you are done it looks cool and tastes great.

If your are careful and don't burn the breading too much in the pan, you can make a sauce out of the oil/butter/chicken stuff left over in the pan....(like add wine to blanch the pan, then some butter and spices and cream..YUM).

...or just cook up some pasta and cheat with jar sauce.

If you are in a real bind and have no sauce at all, cook pasta, melt butter on it and toss it up. Sprinkle some herbs on it, then serve with the chicken....put lemon slices on there for a little flavor and garnish.

MrzBRF,

A Man, A Can, A Plan

This last weekend I had Chicken Fricassee

I took two small chickens and quartered them, put them in a larger pot and covered them with water.  Added a dozen or so peppercorns and some salt.  Boiled them for about two hours. (Big pot.)

When the chicken was done I took the pot off the stove and took two frying pans out.
Into each pan went a quarter stick of margarine.
From the pot went the chicken.
Top the chicken with thin slices of onions.  Just enough for flavor; you don’t have to have wall-to-wall onions.  A quarter cup of frozen diced onions per frying pan as a substitute for sliced onions works almost as well.
Started the burners under a somewhat light heat and just brown the chicken; they’re already cooked.
After just a few minutes (10±) per side the chicken is ready.

Take the leftover broth and put them in bowls (Tupperware preferred) and put the bowl in the refrigerator.  The next day you skim off the grease on the top and you have the base for chicken soup.

Imagine that; a Guy telling a Lady how to cook.  My mother sure liked the chicken.
(Good guy time.)

MrsBRF do yourself a favor and buy a thermometer to measure the temperature of the chicken so you're not worried.  Fully cooked chicken should be warmed to 145 degrees before eating it, uncooked [raw] chicken should be cooked to 180 degrees.

Here's some yummy things to try with chicken.

Preheat oven to 350
I will take a whole cut up fryer
I will take 5 cups of corn flake cereal [I roll these in a gorcery plastic shopping bag so they're very fine]
11/2 TSP of Johnny's seasoning salt

I will take the skin off the chicken.  To do this I take a paper towel and grab one end of the skin and rip it off.  The paper towel really helps grab the skin off easily.

wash the chicked after deskinned and then shake each piece in corn flakes, place in a glass dish, cover [with casserole lid or foil] and bake until chicken reaches 180 [about 1 hour].

Very yummy 'fried' chicken.


Another thing to do is to peel and thinnly slice carrots, celery, onion & mushrooms.  Cook in a skillet with 1 can of chicken broth until tender.  Add thinly sliced chunks of chicken and stir until chicken is 180 degrees or completely white in color [cut it open to look].  Season with pepper & Mrs. Dash.

serve on bed of rice.  

You can also take an whole chicken, take the skin off and cut away any excess fat.  Layer a casserole dish with 1 cup of rice, a cup of corn, a cup of green beans, skinned chicken [whole], and a jar of prego tomato sause.  Cook until chicken is done and rice is tender [about 2 1/2 hours at 325].

Patty

Mrs BRF, just remember the simple basic seasoning: SALT and PEPPER.
With that you can already have a good chicken dish.

BASIC:

Rub salt and pepper on the chicken breast. Approximately 1 breast 1 teaspoon of coarse salt (table salt will do if you do not have rock salt) and half a teaspoon for pepper (freshly crushed is good, but powdered will do).

It is advisable to do this at least an hour before cooking so the flavor of the salt and pepper seasoning will be absorbed by the chicken.

COOKING:

With this basic rub, you can already fry the chicken breast as is. In a skillet, place cooking oil (enough to cover the skillets surface) and turn on heat. When the oil is hot (tip: sprinkle a drop of water. if it sizzles, you're good to go.) just place in chicken breasts. Cook until it is golden brown. Turning it on both sides.

Note: Chicken is basically cooked when it turns white. You will see the color change from pink, to translucent pink to white. When it turns white, don't take your eyes off it anymore. Wait for it to turn golden brown on the outside. Take it out and eat.  DO NOT BE AFRAID TO TAKE IT OUT TO SEE IF ITS DONE. You will know its cooked when the meat is flaky when you cut it open or tear it. Off the top of my head, it can take 2 to 3 minutes on each side.

CAUTION: When frying chicken, be careful of the oil splatters. The oil tends to pop!


VARIATION 1:

With the above seasoned breast, you can choose to cook it this way instaed. Debone the breast. On a plate, put about 3 heaping spoonfull of flour. Place breast on flour, coating it entirely. Lift up, shake off excess flour and place chicken in hot pan (with oil, same as above). Cook until golden brown. With it lightly coated with flour, you will not have the messy oil splatters (it will not pop).

VARIATION 2:

That same "process" can be done by substituting the flour with breadcrumbs. Just make sure to dip the chicken breasts on a beaten egg so that the breadcrumbs will stick better on the chicken. Then fry.

ROASTED CHICKEN BREASTS:

With the same basic seasoning, salt and pepper, add different herbs to the rub. Crushed garlic, Oregano, Rosemary or Thyme AND a splash of lemon juice. RUB ON THOROUGHLY and set aside for at least an hour.

COOKING:

Put in a cooking tray. Pop it in the oven until it turns golden brown.

VARIATION:

You can choose to put the breasts on top of a bed of chopped carrots, potatos and even leeks. The Chicken drippings will seep into the veggies and makes for a good siding.


Enjoy. Hope it works for you!

[ETA: The same "fried" recipe works well too with PORK CHOPS!]

Now you've gone and done it!

You've made me hungry!

My catch all solution lately:  the crock pot.

There is a crock-pot cookbook called "Fix it and Forget It Lightly" full of pretty healthy recipes.  All of them I have tried have been really good, and with crock pot cooking you will have a tough time cooking anything dry.  The ones I have tried have all been under 1/2 hour prep time and then a couple hours (up to 8) of cook time.

It requires more planning, but the results are great and there are always leftovers.

shooter

Thanks everyone!! With the chicken I made, it was white ALMOST all the way through, then pink in the middle, so I kept it cookin, I kept checking and by the time it was white all the way through, it had turned into CHICKEN BRICKS lol  

keep these comin! they are awesome recipes :) And see pretty easy too!

BTW:: the crockpot, i REALLY want one.  but dont have one yet..

Darn it where is my girl at.  I've been waiting for her to jump in here to talk about what she likes to cook and so far I've been disappointed because she isn't here.  

Quoted: With the chicken I made, it was white ALMOST all the way through, then pink in the middle, so I kept it cookin, I kept checking and by the time it was white all the way through, it had turned into CHICKEN BRICKS lol

Here's a "trick". when you take the chicken out and find out that it's still a bit pink on the inside, just pop it in the microwave and nuke it for one minute. That should zap it in a flash without drying out the breast and over cooking it.

Maybe use a recipe that calls for smaller pieces for cooking in a pan.  Stir fry or with a cream sauce.  

MrsBRF, here's a simple beef recipe.

STIR FRIED BEEF

1 piece of steak cut into 1 inch cubes
(I usually use either tenderloin steaks or new york cut steaks)
half a head of garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3 to 4 tbsp of oyster sauce
(enough to coat your meat)
3 tbsp of  liquid seasoning
(or just 2 tbsp. soy sauce)
3 tbsp olive oil

Mix EVERYTHING thoroughly in a bowl. Making sure that meat is well coated. Set aside for an hour.

In a skillet, over high heat, place another 3 tbsp of oil. When the oil is hot, drop in the meat. Stir like crazy until the meat is golden brown.

TIP: The skillet needs to be very hot before you drop in the meat. In this way the heat will immediately sear the meat on the outside and NOT overcook it on the inside. Remember, keep stirring. The oyster sauce and soy will brown and caramelize the meat almost immediately. If the steak is too rare for your taste - again just nuke it for a minute - or even less.

Tell me how it works out for you.

Simplicity itself:

1-1.5lbs of boneless chicken breasts

chopped garlic

rosemary

Can (14.5oz) of chicken broth

Glass baking dish

Aluminum foil.

Heat the oven to 350-375 degrees

Place the chicken breasts in the glass (pyrex) baking dish.  Pour in the can of chicken broth.  Place the chopped garlic and rosemary (or whatever floats your boat) on top of the chicken breasts.  Cover with aluminum foil.  Bake for 35-45 minutes (this depends on the amount of chicken, your true oven temperature, etc.)

The chicken will be moist and flavorful.  Keep the leftovers in the broth to keep the chicken from drying out.  Shred it the next day and serve chicken burritos, chicken caeser salad, or over a plate of nachos.

Quoted: Easy Chicken Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (4-5) FROZEN 1 can chicken broth 1 cup rice spices Oven at 375.  9x13 pan.  Put dry rice in bottom of pan.  Lay chicken on top.  Pour broth over it.  Spice up the chicken, getting some of the liquid spiced up, too.  Cover with foil, throw in the oven for 45min.  After that, check and take the foil off.  Leave off and cook another 15 min or so.  Just cook it until the chicken's done and the rice is ready. Simple and easy.  You can do it with fresh chicken breasts, just adjust the cooking times.

Makes me stalk love you even more.

MrsBRF: Get a digital meat thermometer.  You'll never over/under-cook your chicken again.  

For chicken dinner quick fast and in a hurry:
+
+
= BAM!  

Also, opening the oven door to check it all the time probably made matters worse.  You let out the heat and the oven kicks into over drive trying to bring the temp back up.  With a digital thermometer, you can just check the reading.

Quoted: MrsBRF: Get a digital meat thermometer.  You'll never over/under-cook your chicken again.   For chicken dinner quick fast and in a hurry: www.cargillintegra.com/images/prodra_01.jpg + images.amazon.com/images/P/B00032HPBM.01-A3CDPEGSIQM61V._SCMZZZZZZZ_.jpg+ lib1.store.vip.sc5.yahoo.com/lib/partshelf/ci00724l.jpg = BAM!

Even a regular meat thermometer works.  Chicken should be cooked to 165.  You can calibrate the thermometer by sticking it in a glass of icy water and turning the dial to read 32 degrees.

Gabby: Do you think the regular ones are more accurate too?  I get the feeling they may be.  

But with the digital ones the part that shows the temp is outside of the oven so you can always get a good view of the temp on the little sucker without having to open the oven.   And they have the alarms and whatnot.  Just thought that would be easier when your attention is not always on cooking - with little people around and all.  

And MrsBRF, don't be too hard on yourself.  It just takes practice.  

Oh, and if you're looking to save some cash, you might want to try learning how to cook a whole bird.  It's a lot cheaper to buy a whole chicken (around here it's less than $1 per lb for a whole bird and $3.99 for just the boneless breasts ) and with the whole bird you get roast w/ gravy one night, maybe a casserole the next, and soup on the third if you boil the bones and all for stock.  With a small family you could probably even work in some lunches if the bird is big enough.

is the temp really 165?  I always heard 180?  Patty

Quoted: is the temp really 165?  I always heard 180?  Patty

180 and you'll have a very dry dinner.

And Perseph: they always worked better for me.  Plus they have that nifty little holder so you don't burn yourself.

All you need is the Three Ingredient Cookbook----very good and simple...

That being said anyone have any Kraft macaroni & cheese recipies they want to trade?

Not a lady but I know my way around the kitchen.  I have seen a thermometer mentioned here several times, I'll re-emphasize that suggestion.  You'll want at least two, a digital probe type and one with a heat shielded cable to be used in the oven.  They will help you cook chicken, fish, steaks, burgers, pork, and all other kinds of meats to perfection.

A useful reference tool on outfitting your kitchen is Alton Brown's Gear For Your Kitchen.

Here's a chicken recipe my family loves courtesy of Emeril Lagasse

------------------------

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

Stuffing:
2 slices bacon, chopped
1/4 cup diced onion
2 tablespoons diced celery
2 tablespoons diced green bell pepper
2 corn muffins, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup chicken stock

Chicken:
4 chicken breasts, 6 to 7 ounces each
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground white pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup orange-apricot marmalade <i>If you can't find the marmalade use 1/4 cup orange marmalade and 1/4 cup apricot jelly</i>
1/2 cup chicken stock

For the stuffing:
Set a 10-inch saute pan over medium heat. Add the chopped bacon to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is crispy and most of the fat has rendered, about 7 to 8 minutes. Remove the bacon from the pan and transfer to a paper-lined plate to drain.

Add the onions, celery and peppers to the pan and cook, stirring often, until the onions are translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Place the cornbread in the pan and stir to combine.
Season with the salt and cayenne pepper. Pour the chicken stock into the pan and cook until it is nearly completely reduced, about 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the stuffing from the pan and place on a plate to cool. Fold the crispy bacon into the stuffing and continue to cool until the stuffing is cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes.

For the Chicken:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Lay each chicken breast between 2 sheets of plastic wrap (each at about 13 to 14 inches long), and pound using a meat mallet to a 1/4-inch thickness.

Season the chicken on both sides with the salt and white pepper. Place 1/2 cup of the stuffing along the lower third of each chicken breast. Roll the chicken breasts like a jellyroll, and secure using twine. <i>I use toothpicks</i>.  Add the oil to a 10-inch <i>(OVEN SAFE)</i> saute pan and once the oil is hot, add the chicken rolls -- seam side up -- to the pan. Sear the chicken in the pan for 3 minutes, then turn 1/4 of the way. Continue to cook another 2 minutes, and turn another 1/4 turn. Cook for an additional 2 minutes, and place the pan in the oven.

While the chicken is cooking, combine the marmalade and chicken stock in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Cook until the stock is nearly completely reduced, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the pan from the stove and set the glaze aside until needed.

After the chicken has cooked in the oven for 15 minutes, remove the pan from the oven and pour the glaze evenly over the chicken breasts. Return the chicken to the oven and cook for an additional 5 minutes, if desired, to brown the glaze. Remove from the oven and set aside to rest for 5 minutes. Remove the twine, slice the breasts crosswise into 1/2-inch thick slices, and serve immediately.

----------------

I use a thermometer for this recipe too.  My cook time is usually 20 minutes.

Quoted: is the temp really 165?  I always heard 180?  Patty

I go to 170

Oops I just realized you wanted simple.  Here's one from Food Network.  You'll wonder about it as it cooks, but my family of finicky eaters love it.

-------------------

Recipe Summary
Yield: Serves 6-8.


4-5 lbs. chicken thighs
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp. black peppercorns
3 bay leaves

Combine all ingredients in a large pot. Cover and marinate chicken for 1-3 hours. Bring to boil, then lower heat. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover and simmer until sauce is reduced and thickened, and chicken is tender, about 20 more minutes. Serve with steamed rice.

------------------

I bone and skin the thighs first and don't serve the bay leaves on the rice.

+ 1 for baking! Use the oven, hard to go wrong.

Quoted: Quoted: is the temp really 165?  I always heard 180?  Patty 180 and you'll have a very dry dinner. And Perseph: they always worked better for me.  Plus they have that nifty little holder so you don't burn yourself.

Thank you.  Betty says 180 so I always do 180.  Might be why I don't like chicken.  Patty

Quoted: Recipe Summary Yield: Serves 6-8. 4-5 lbs. chicken thighs 1/2 cup white vinegar 1/2 cup soy sauce 4 cloves garlic, crushed 1 tsp. black peppercorns 3 bay leaves Combine all ingredients in a large pot. Cover and marinate chicken for 1-3 hours. Bring to boil, then lower heat. Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover and simmer until sauce is reduced and thickened, and chicken is tender, about 20 more minutes. Serve with steamed rice. ------------------ I bone and skin the thighs first and don't serve the bay leaves on the rice.

Down here we call that dish ADOBO.  

ETA: Put a little water and sugar in it to compensate for the saltyness of the soy sauce. Great dish. Even gets better as you re-heat it as leftovers ... when the meat starts to fall off from the bone. Yumm. You can even use it as a filling for sammiches! Place it inside a toasted bun and you're good to go!

Quoted: Down here we call that dish ADOBO.   ETA: Put a little water and sugar in it to compensate for the saltyness of the soy sauce. Great dish. Even gets better as you re-heat it as leftovers ... when the meat starts to fall off from the bone. Yumm. You can even use it as a filling for sammiches! Place it inside a toasted bun and you're good to go!

D'OH!!!

Yeah the Recipe is called Phillipine Chicken Adobo where I got it from.

Simple and Safe.

Two chicken breasts.
One box Rice-A-Roni ( rice and vermicelli, chicken flavor)
1 tablespoon soy sauce in the rice

If you worry about getting the chicken done all the way through like I do, just cut the raw meat into chunks or strips and then cook it.

Brown meat, salt and pepper, add to rice. Easy, delicious and cheap!

(I also add a cup of frozen broccoli cuts to the rice)