Poached Chicken - How To Poach Chicken Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (2024)

Learn how to make easy poached chicken: tender, juicy, and so versatile. Once you know how to poach chicken, you’ll wonder how you ever lived without it!

Recipe Overview

Why you’ll love it: Poached chicken is invaluable. You can use it to make salads, sandwiches, casseroles, burritos, and more. It freezes well, too!

How long it takes: 35 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: shallow pan with cover, stove, instant read thermometer (optional)
Servings: 4 (easily doubled or tripled!)

Poached Chicken - How To Poach Chicken Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (1)

Table of Contents close

  • 1 Recipe Overview
  • 2 About this Recipe
  • 3 What you’ll need
  • 4 Straight-Sided Skillet
  • 5 How to make This Recipe
  • 6 Boil, Simmer, Poach
  • 7 FAQs
  • 8 Make It Your Own
  • 9 How to Use Poached Chicken
  • 10 Make Ahead Ideas
  • 12 More Chicken Recipes
  • 13 Get the Recipe: Poached Chicken – How To Poach Chicken

Tender, juicy, perfectly cooked chicken breasts all ready to use for weeknight meals – sound too good to be true? It can be so hard to come up with quick meals when you get home from work tired and hungry, maybe even a bit “hangry!”

Delicious pre-cooked chicken comes to the rescue! There’s no need to splurge on pricey, over-seasoned rotisserie chicken. Make your own low-sodium, low-calorie, and nutritious chicken (20 grams of protein!). It’s easy, convenient, and economical.

Buy a family-size package of boneless skinless chicken breasts and cook them up to use for several meals later on in the week. It takes about thirty-five minutes and you’ll only have to use one pan that is easy to wash. Basically, all you need is chicken and broth, or even plain water.

And when dinner time rolls around? All you have to do is put together a simple salad, add sliced chicken and your favorite homemade salad dressing (or bottled dressing!) and dinner is ready. Or make a pan of nachos, add the chicken, and bake until warm and crispy. Add the chicken to a bun with barbecue sauce, coleslaw, and a few slices of avocado. Make a barbecue chicken pizza! Or stuff it into a tortilla with some salsa, guacamole, and cheese. Add the chicken to canned vegetable soup for a really easy meal (or better yet, homemade vegetable soup). Stir it into a jar of pasta sauce (or again, homemade spaghetti sauce) and serve over spaghetti.

I have lots more ideas for you further down in the post so be sure to take a look at those!

About this Recipe

It’s very easy to poach chicken. Just follow the recipe and it will turn out perfectly every time. After a couple times, you probably won’t even need the recipe because it’s so simple. It’s really more of a “how to”. Once you learn the simple technique, you’ll use it over and over again.

The recipe is written for four servings. It’s easy to double if you have a large enough pan, so you can make a lot of cooked chicken that will last all week. It freezes well, too.

I’ll run you through the basics here and give you a few extra tips.

Look for the printable recipe card below, near the end of the post. It has complete instructions and nutrition information.

What you’ll need

  • Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts: The recipe is written for two chicken breasts but it’s easy to add more if you like, as long as you have a large enough pan for them to cook in a single layer. You’ll also find instructions on the recipe card for bone-in breasts, boneless skinless thighs, and bone-in thighs.
  • Water or Broth: You’ll need enough water or broth (or a combination) to completely submerge the chicken.
  • Kosher Salt: Salt is optional but it does season the chicken.
  • Optional Flavorings/Aromatics: If you’d like to flavor the chicken, add one or more of the following: lemon slices, bay leaf, garlic cloves, fresh herbs, shallots, or white wine.
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Straight-Sided Skillet

This type of pan works perfectly for poaching chicken. I use mine all the time! It works great for one pot pasta recipes, too.

Buy on Amazon

How to make This Recipe

Poaching chicken is really very easy and is mostly hands-off cooking. The most important thing to remember is “low and slow.” Keep the heat low and cook the chicken slow.

Choose a wide, shallow pan that has a lid. There should be enough room for the chicken to mostly fit in a single layer. If some of the thinner edges overlap a little, that’s fine. Place the chicken in the pan.

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Pour enough water or broth over the chicken so that it’s completely covered. I’ve given you a ballpark figure of about how much liquid you’ll need but it really depends a lot on the size of your pan and the size of the chicken breasts.

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Don’t be tempted to hurry things along by using hot water. It’s best to start with cool water right out of the tap or room temperature broth.

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Add salt and any aromatics you’d like to flavor your chicken. For the photos, we used lemon, garlic, and fresh thyme.

Turn the heat to medium. Again, don’t try to hurry things along by turning the heat way up. Remember, low and slow! Bring the contents of the pan to a gentle simmer. This should take about fifteen minutes but will depend on your pan and how much chicken is in it.

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Boil, Simmer, Poach

What’s the difference? It’s all a matter of temperature. Boiling is the hottest, at 212°F. You’ll see large steaming bubbles coming to the surface. Simmering is next hottest, with a temperature of 185°F to 205°F. There will be tiny continuous bubbles rising. Poaching requires the coolest temperature, just 160°F to 180°F. There may be some movement or shimmer in the liquid but not bubbles.

Once the chicken comes to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and cover the pan.

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After about 10 minutes, check the internal temperature of the thickest portion. If it’s 165ºF, hurray! it’s done. If not, continue cooking a couple of minutes.

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Once it’s cooked, remove the chicken from the pan using tongs and set it on a cutting board or platter. Allow it cool for 5 minutes or so before slicing, cubing, or shredding.

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FAQs

Is poached chicken the same as boiled?

While both methods involve cooking chicken in water or broth, there is a big difference between the two. Poaching is done at a much lower temperature than boiling. It’s a gentler way of cooking chicken and the results are much better: juicy tender chicken as opposed to tough dry chicken. Just remember “low and slow” and you’ll have tender, perfectly cooked chicken.

Is poached chicken the healthiest way to cook chicken?

Poaching is a very healthy way to cook chicken. There’s no added fat used in cooking the chicken, making it a very healthy source of protein (20 grams per 4 oz. serving) with only 4 grams of fat. Compare that to fried chicken with 14.9 grams of fat per serving!

How do you know when chicken is fully cooked?

The best way to determine if the chicken is fully cooked is to use an instant read thermometer. Insert it into the thickest part of the chicken. The internal temperature should be 165ºF or more.
If you don’t have an instant read thermometer, slice into the chicken to determine if it’s done (however,, this isn’t ideal since it doesn’t allow the chicken to rest). The chicken should be firm, opaque, and with no pink in the center. If it isn’t quite done yet, put it back into the poaching liquid for a couple more minutes.

Can you use chicken poaching liquid?

Yes, especially if you added aromatics (herbs, shallot, etc.). The cooking liquid will be like a very light chicken broth and is good for soups or cooking grains. Strain out any solids using a fine mesh strainer and refrigerate or freeze until you need it. It will keep for a week in the refrigerator or up to 6 months in the freezer.

Make It Your Own

Since this is more of a cooking technique than a recipe, it’s pretty basic. You can vary it by adding the aromatics listed above, or other flavorings you might have in mind.

  • Rather make chicken in your Instant Pot? Try this easy recipe for Instant Pot shredded chicken.
  • Use your oven. Try roasted bone in chicken breasts. They are really delicious as an entrée or to use later in recipes like the ones listed below.
  • Make chicken in your air fryer. Try air fryer chicken breasts, air fryer chicken thighs, or air fryer drumsticks.

How to Use Poached Chicken

Here are a few ideas for you but the list is by no means complete.

  • Southwestern BBQ Chicken Salad (best chopped salad!)
  • Healthy Curried Chicken Salad
  • Dill Chicken Salad
  • Southwest Chicken Salad Recipe
  • Healthy Chicken Salad with Walnuts and Grapes – with video!
  • Chicken Fajita Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
  • The Best Cauliflower Nachos
  • Southwestern Quinoa Bowl with Chicken
  • BBQ Chicken Burrito Bowls
  • Creamy Chicken Rice Soup

Make Ahead Ideas

Poaching chicken is a wonderful food prepping tool. It’s very easy to do and keeps really well. Store it in the fridge or freezer for many nutritious meals in the future. I almost always have poached chicken on hand.

Lunchbox Idea: Deli meat is expensive (9-10$ a pound!) and has added preservatives and lots of sodium. Why not replace it with homemade chicken breast slices? So much more economical and much better for you! It makes a hearty sandwich. Simply add mayonnaise, mustard, or your sandwich favorite toppings.

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Storage & Reheating Suggestions

Cool poached chicken for a half hour or so before refrigerating or freezing in a tightly covered container or resealable bag. It will keep up to four days in the fridge or 4 months in the freezer.

More Chicken Recipes

Roasted Chicken – the EASIEST recipe!Air Fryer Chicken NuggetsChicken Fricassee Recipe – One Pan!Air Fryer Chicken Thighs – perfect every time!

Browse all

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

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Recipe

Get the Recipe: Poached Chicken – How To Poach Chicken

4.75 from 8 votes

Prep Time: 5 minutes mins

Cook Time: 25 minutes mins

5 minutes mins

Total Time: 35 minutes mins

4 servings

Print Rate Recipe

Learn how to make easy poached chicken: tender, juicy, and so versatile. Use it to make salads, sandwiches, casseroles, and more!

Ingredients

  • 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, about 8 oz. each (see notes)
  • 6 cups water or chicken broth (more or less as needed)
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt (reduce to 1 teaspoon if using low-sodium broth, 1/2 teaspoon if using full-sodium broth)

Optional flavorings:

  • 1 lemon, cut into slices
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 cloves garlic, sliced
  • fresh herbs (sprig of rosemary, fresh thyme, or fresh parsley)
  • 2 shallots, peeled and cut in quarters
  • 1 cup dry white wine

Instructions

  • Pick a wide pan with a lid that is large enough for the chicken to fit in a single layer and be fully submerged in water or broth.

  • Place chicken breasts in pan and cover with cold water or broth. The amount of liquid you need will depend somewhat on your pan and how much chicken you're cooking. Add salt and desired optional flavorings.

  • Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer. This should take about fifteen minutes but will vary depending on your stove and pan. Don’t rush this step!

  • When it comes to a simmer, flip each piece of chicken over, reduce the heat to low and cover pan.

  • After about 10 minutes, check the temperature of the chicken using an instant read thermometer placed in the thickest part of the meat. When the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165ºF, remove from heat and transfer chicken to a cutting board.

  • Let chicken rest for 5 minutes before cutting or shredding.

Notes

  • Although the amount of sodium looks rather high in the nutrition information, keep in mind that most of it is in the cooking liquid. Very little sodium is actually absorbed by the chicken.
  • To Store: Cool poached chicken for a half hour or so before refrigerating or freezing in a tightly covered container or resealable bag. It will keep up to four days in the fridge or 4 months in the freezer.

To poach different cuts of chicken:

The process will be similar but the cooking times will vary. Remember that chicken pieces vary widely in size. Smaller pieces will be done more quickly than larger ones.

  • Bone-in skin-on breasts (about 16 oz. each): After water comes to a simmer, poach for 20 minutes.
  • Boneless skinless thighs (about 4 oz. each): After water comes to a simmer, poach for 8-10 minutes.
  • Bone-in skin-on thighs (about 7 oz. each): After water comes to a simmer, poach for 13 minutes.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 4oz, Calories: 72kcal, Carbohydrates: 3g, Protein: 12g, Fat: 2g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 36mg, Sodium: 1247mg, Potassium: 247mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 24IU, Vitamin C: 15mg, Calcium: 21mg, Iron: 1mg

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk

Poached Chicken - How To Poach Chicken Recipe - Rachel Cooks® (2024)

FAQs

How do you poach chicken breasts and keep them tender? ›

Place chicken breast in water, place lid on, bring back up to the boil. IMMEDIATELY remove saucepan from stove and set aside for 20 minutes (it's fine up to 45 min to 1 hr, won't overcook). Remove chicken from water. Slice and be amazed how perfectly juicy and tender the breast is!!

How long does it take to poach chicken? ›

How long does it take to poach chicken? It should take around 10-12 minutes to poach chicken breasts over a very low heat on the hob, or until the juices run clear when pierced in the thickest part. If the chicken breasts are very large, or your pan is on the small side, it could take a little longer.

Is it better to poach chicken or boil chicken? ›

Poaching is a gentle, low-temperature cooking technique that works especially well for chicken breasts. Instead of boiling, poached chicken is very gently cooked in liquid (like water or broth) brought to a temperature of 175 to 180 F.

Do you put chicken in cold water to poach? ›

Starting with cold water is key here: It allows the chicken to cook through more evenly than if you dumped them into boiling water.

What is the secret to tender chicken breast? ›

Step 1: Brine

This will boost the natural flavor and moisture of the chicken breasts and will leave you with a super tender piece of meat. This is the one step that will really ensure your chicken won't be dry or tough. If you're still not convinced, check out everything you need to know about brining.

Do you poach chicken covered or uncovered? ›

To poach chicken, cover chicken boneless, skinless chicken breasts with water (for added flavor add 1 cup of white wine), bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cover the pot with a lid.

Can you poach chicken too long? ›

If you boil chicken for too long, it will become overcooked and dry. The ideal time to boil chicken is between 3-4 minutes per pound. If you boil chicken for too long, the proteins will begin to break down and the chicken will become tough.

Why is my poached chicken tough? ›

If your chicken breast are tough, you cooked them too long. Chicken breasts are hard to get right because they have a fat end and a skinny end. The fat end takes a bit longer to cook. Cooked perfectly, a chicken breast is moist and tender, with no pink flesh in the middle of the thickest part.

What is the best temperature to poach chicken? ›

The ideal poaching temperature is between 170°F and 180°F. It's important not to let the cooking liquid come to a boil or even a vigorous simmer or else (for all sorts of science-y reasons having to do with heat and moisture) you risk ending up with a tough piece of meat.

Can you drink the water you poach chicken in? ›

And don't throw away the cooking liquid!

This method will make a lightly-flavored chicken broth, which you can use in place of chicken broth for other recipes or as the cooking liquid for rice and other grains. You can also sip it all on its own!

Can you poach chicken in a ziplock bag? ›

Season the chicken with salt and seal in a ziplock bag using the water displacement method. Place a small flat plate in the bottom of a saucepan. Place the ziplock bag of chicken on top and fill the pan with cold water. Cook over low heat until the water reaches 70˚C.

What can I do with the liquid from poached chicken? ›

In the case of chicken breasts, the best and most commonly used poaching liquid is chicken broth. It's a win-win: You use the broth as a cooking tool; then you can strain and reuse it for, say, a sauce or a gravy or a soup, or for cooking rice.

How do you keep poached chicken from drying out? ›

Refrigerate your chicken in its cooking liquid

Yes, it's really that simple. To prevent your boiled or poached poultry from drying out in the refrigerator, hang onto the liquid that boiled it. That liquid can be water, though stock or something with a little more oomph tends to work better for flavoring purposes.

How do you boil chicken breasts so they are not tough? ›

Bring liquid to a boil; reduce heat. Cover the pan and simmer until the chicken is no longer pink (165 degrees Fahrenheit). For boneless, skinless chicken breasts, it will take about 15 minutes. For bone-in, skin-on chicken, cook for about 30 minutes.

How do you keep chicken breast soft and moist? ›

Brine. Like a marinade, a brine helps chicken breast soak up as much moisture as possible before cooking. It only requires three ingredients: water, salt, and a pinch of sugar.

Does chicken breast get more tender the longer you boil it? ›

Most whole chickens become fully tender in about one hour on medium-low heat. Yes, chicken breast will get softer the longer you cook it, as long as it is cooked at a low enough temperature to prevent it from becoming dry and tough.

Does simmering chicken breast make it tender? ›

Yes, chicken breast can become softer the longer you cook it, especially if you cook it using moist heat methods such as braising or stewing. These methods allow the collagen in the meat to break down, resulting in a more tender texture.

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