Is it safe to cook frozen chicken?!

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It is usually best to thaw it as much as possible before cooking. Here are the three best methods for thawing your chicken. Note: #2 and #3 seem to be all you have time for.

Thawing methods and times
Never thaw chicken at room temperature or on the counter, as it provides the ideal environment for bacteria growth, and be sure to cook thawed chicken within 48 hours.

# 1 Refrigerator Thawing
Thawing in the refrigerator is the safest method of preparing frozen chicken but it also takes the longest. Chicken thawing in the refrigerator should be wrapped and placed on a large plate in the bottom of the fridge to avoid dripping on other food when thawing. For this method, you should plan on approximately 10 hours per kilogram of chicken or 5 hours per pound.

# 2 Microwave Thawing
Though it can sometimes dry out the edges of chicken, when you’re in a hurry and you’re preparing chicken pieces, microwave thawing is the best way to go. When defrosting in a microwave, chicken should be loosely covered and the pieces turned, separated and rotated several times during thawing to ensure even penetration.

It’s also important to defrost chicken on a low setting, otherwise the outside may cook while the inside stays frozen. Most microwaves have a poultry defrost setting, so use that if you have it. If not, a general rule to use is about 10 – 15 minutes per kilogram or 5 minutes per pound. Be sure to check your chicken often to ensure that it is thawing evenly and not overcooking or drying out.

#3 Cold Water Thawing
To thaw chicken faster, place it wrapped in a bowl of cold water in the sink. It is important that the water is cold, as warm water can encourage bacteria growth. Additionally, it’s important that the water be changed every 30 minutes to maintain the temperature of the water. This method typically takes 2 hours per kilogram, or 1 hour per pound, but exercise caution when using this method. Make sure that the sink and the surrounding area you are thawing in is cleaned immediately with a mild bleach solution when you’ve finished.

After you are done cooking, the best way to make sure the chicken is safe is to check to make sure that the chicken (or any meat really) is cooked properly with a thermometer with a probe to make sure that the safe internal temperature has been reached.

For chicken pieces that's 165 degrees F (or 74 C). For a whole chicken, make sure it gets to 185 F (85 C). For more information on food safety, including cooking times and temperatures, and hundreds of great chicken recipes visit http://www.chicken.ca.

Hope this helps.

Marty Brett
Chicken Farmers of Canada

http://www.chicken.ca/
http://www.chickenfeeds.ca/

Yes, cooking from frozen is perfectly safe as long as you cook it to the proper internal temperature, it'll just take longer than usual. Get yourself a good meat thermometer - I prefer the type with a metal probe that attaches to a digital readout/timer (see link below for an example). If you're just cooking breasts, you want a temp of about 150F to 155F. For a whole chicken, a probe inserted between the breast and thigh - but not touching any bone - should read 180F to 185F.

http://www.digitalcookingthermometer.inf…

I actually read it yesterday in a magazine, where they scaled from 1-5 on how you can cook frozen / slight frozen meat. Chicken and other birds scored the "most dangerous" when it came to bacteria etc. I am assuming that they know what they are talking about in a food magazine, because I sure don't.

Yes it is, simply place the frozen whole chicken in a pot of heated oil (make sure its hot enough or the chicken will just absorb the oil) and let it cook for about an hour. Delicious. Just be careful when taking the chicken out the oil's hot!

I do this all the time during thanksgiving. Frozen is fine!

If you thaw it sufficiently before cooking and then cook it very thoroughly, then you significantly reduce the risk of disease or infection as a result of bacteria. It's better to be a vegetarian, though.

Put the frozen chicken in a sealed plastic bag. Soak in warm water until thawed. It is now perfectly good to cook as you will.

Yes, just make sure that the chicken is completely thawed out before cooking. It should be fine after it is thawed.

mama's home cookin'

No

why not the FROZEN CHICKEN is so good when u cook it+healthy