We were talking the other day, as you do and we both remarked on how tasteless ordinary chicken has gotten. You might as well be eating a piece of paper for the amount of flavor it has. It only tastes like whatever you put with it. I told Todd that I thought free range, corn fed chicken had lots of flavour, and so I picked up a couple of free range, corn fed chicken breasts to put my theory to the test.
They, of course, cost twice as much as regular chicken. It is probably worth it in the end. I can remember when I was a girl, we hardly ever ate chicken. It was considered a real treat for us to have some chicken for supper. Now it is considered one of the cheaper sources of protein, but the higher availability and lower price tag has probably come at a huge cost to animal welfare practices.
And of course it also means that our chicken has had most of the flavor bred out of it because it is produced on an enormous, almost factory scale, on farms where the birds rarely see the light of day, or have a chance to exercise their muscles . . . an almost "concentration-camp" type of production.
When I really think about that . . . I am not sure I want to be eating that. I think I would rather eat less of it and have it taste better and know that at least the meat I am eating had a half decent life.
I chose to cook the organic free range corn-fed chicken breasts I had bought in the simplest manner, that I could so that we could really test the flavor of them. I simply rubbed them with oil and spices, and then roasted them at a high temperature for a short period of time.
The end result was a piece of chicken that was moist and tender . . . and well flavoured. Corn-fed really does taste much better, as does free-range organic. This makes sense really when you consider that regular chicken has very low standards of production whilst organic, free range and corn-fed by EU regulations must have free range outdoor access, and will be at least 72 days old, which provides a really great tasting, slow grown bird.
We both decided that the extra cost was well worth it in flavor. So we won't be eating as much chicken from now on and when we do, it will be free-range, organic and corn-fed. In short . . . chicken will now be a treat to eat, and probably a rare one at that, but at least when we do eat it we will enjoy it a lot more.
*Perfectly Baked Chicken Breasts*Serves 4Printable Recipe
Delicious,moist and quite simply executed. You can't ask for more than that.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts2 TBS rapeseed oil1 tsp fine sea salt1/2 tsp coarse black pepper1/2 tsp garlic powder (not salt)1/2 tsp onion powder (not salt)1/2 tsp mild chili powder
Mix together the salt, pepper, garlic, onion, and chili powders in a small bowl. Set aside.Preheat the oven to 225*C/450*F/ gas mark 7. Have ready a baking dish large enough to hold the chicken in one layer.Gently pound the chicken until it is evenly sized thickness-wise. Don't over-pound. You don't want it to tear.Put the oil into the baking dish. Place the chicken into it turning to coat with the oil. Sprinkle with the spice mixture and rub it into the chicken, top and bottom. Rearrange into a single layer.Roast for 15 to 20 minutes until cooked through and juices run clear. Cover with foil and let rest for about 10 minutes prior to serving.
I served it with some sliced fresh tomatoes and my Cheesy Broccoli Rice. The whole meal went down a real treat! We both really enjoyed it! Bon Appetit!
