How to defrost chicken or chicken fillet: quick ways, what not to do

Thawing chicken has become much easier and faster given the emergence of a large number of household and kitchen appliances, however, these methods have their drawbacks. Let's consider all the nuances of defrosting poultry, and also in what situations it is not recommended to do this.

The most effective way to defrost poultry is in a microwave or slow cooker, but not everyone has such equipment. For this reason, you can use standard kitchen items, the main thing is to follow the rules for defrosting.

How to quickly defrost fillet at home

Frozen chicken fillets are thawed by placing the frozen meat in a bag and tying it tightly. Then put it in a container filled with warm water and leave for 1-3 hours, depending on the weight.

If you use hot water, the fillet will become tough when cooked. It is necessary to place the product in a bag in order to preserve the beneficial elements contained in the pulp and to prevent the accumulation of liquid in the fibers.

We use a double boiler

Since you may need to quickly defrost chicken at home at any time, it’s worth exploring all the methods. Almost every housewife has a steamer. Some have an old aluminum one. Others have a modern one, with timers. But this does not play a special role. The main thing is that they are excellent at defrosting meat. What you will need for this:

• Remove the chicken from the packaging and place it in the steamer basket.
• Place it on the top tier. Your task is not to cook, but to defrost.
• You need to pour a minimum amount of water into the container. That is, approximately 1/4 of the volume of the bowl.
• We choose the manual heating function if we are talking about a modern double boiler.
• You can adjust the time manually. But even in this case, there is a risk of scalding the meat a little. How long does it take to defrost chicken? It all depends on its size and weight. Typically, in automatic mode, select 8 minutes.

Methods for thawing chicken in the microwave

A simple, convenient way to make a frozen carcass soft is to use the microwave.

Need to:

1. Remove film from chicken.
2. Remove the giblets.
3. Place the carcass on a large flat dish suitable for microwave use, back down.
4. Turn on the device to the “Defrost” mode, set the time – 3 minutes.
5. Leave inside without opening the door for 5 minutes. Then turn it over and turn on the microwave again for 3 minutes.
6. Repeat until the meat is tender.

When thawing poultry in the microwave, it is important to ensure that the meat does not dry out.

In the microwave, meat is defrosted in 10-15 minutes, depending on the power of the device and the weight of the chicken.

A whole carcass does not thaw well enough, so when cooking chicken, it should be thoroughly thermally treated to eliminate the risk of bacterial growth.

How long does it take to defrost?

First, it is necessary to clarify that if you simply leave the chicken to thaw in a room at normal above-zero temperatures, then this process will take quite a lot of time - about several hours. In addition, this also threatens that the product may quickly deteriorate due to the proliferation of microorganisms in it. Therefore, it is worth using faster methods if there is an urgent need to cook something from chicken meat.

Chicken is an indispensable way to feed your family quickly, tasty and satisfying.

It should also be said that the most natural way is to defrost directly in the refrigerator. Then the carcass will thaw without spoiling, as can happen when left just in the room. To do this, you need to place it in a deep bowl to drain the water and put it in the refrigerator overnight. With this option, it will best retain all its beneficial properties and not lose its unique taste. It is also important that it is undesirable to freeze and defrost one product several times, because this greatly spoils it.

In the microwave

On average, when using a microwave for this procedure, meat will defrost in 10-15 minutes if its weight is 1.5-2 kg. If the weight is greater, then, accordingly, the process will take a little longer.

The most popular means for defrosting chicken carcasses is the microwave.

In the oven

In the oven, the carcass is exposed to a temperature that penetrates it evenly. Therefore, when using a temperature of 180 degrees Celsius, it will take about 5-10 minutes to defrost the meat.

This method is usually used if you plan to bake the chicken in the future.

In water

Water can be used either cold or hot; if you soak the carcass in cold water, it will actually be used only after two to three hours. When using hot water, this indicator is much better, because everything will be ready in 10-15 minutes. That is, if you don’t have time, then it’s better to take hot water.

Fill the chicken with water. This is the most optimal way to defrost chicken meat, in terms of time-quality ratio.

Note. The lower the temperature at which defrosting occurs, the lower the risk that bacteria will begin to multiply in it, which could cause it to spoil.

How to defrost chicken without a microwave

Whole defrosting occurs in cold water.

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To do this you should:

1. Remove chicken from freezer. Leave the plastic wrap so that the meat retains its beneficial properties without being saturated with liquid.
2. Pour cold water into a large saucepan and place the chicken in it.
3. Leave for 2 hours.

Do you need to defrost chicken before cooking?

If the meat is not defrosted, it will become tough and dry after cooking. If there is a lot of ice on the chicken, then it may not cook at all. In extreme cases, you can do without defrosting when preparing broth so that the beneficial properties do not evaporate, but for use for other purposes, it is advisable to use long-term defrosting under running water or in the main compartment of the refrigerator. After the chicken has thawed, you can rinse it, so there will be no dirty foam.

There are a large number of options for defrosting chicken, but they have both advantages and disadvantages. Not every method will be suitable in a given situation, so the choice is yours.

Technology for thawing chicken in a water bath

A water bath is the most gentle way to defrost poultry, which thaws much faster when exposed to steam.

First you need to build a structure of two pans. One should be large, the second should be smaller, but the bird should fit in it. Place a large saucepan half filled with hot liquid on the fire, and place a small one inside. You must first remove the film from the carcass.

This method is best for chickens that are not too large. They will be ready for further use in 30-35 minutes.

Kitchen helper, multicooker

She helps out housewives in any situation. With its help, cooking becomes easy and relaxed. If you need an answer to the question of how to quickly defrost chicken without a microwave, then you can consider that you already got it.

• Take out the carcass.
• Place it on the stand.
• Set the appropriate program and wait 10 minutes.

Indeed, a very convenient and fast way. If your chicken is not whole, but in pieces, then the process will go even faster. There is no need to try to speed up cooking as much as possible through primary processing. If the meat is partially cooked, it will lose its juiciness. Therefore, the quality of the prepared dish will lose its charm. If you've tried chicken at a party, but it doesn't taste as good at home, it's possible that you're making this mistake.

Accelerated defrosting under the tap

Thawing chicken can be done under running water. Place the carcass in a plastic bag, tie it tightly, place the product in a bowl of cold water.

Place the dishes in the sink under the tap and turn it on. The meat will defrost much faster than if it were simply placed in liquid.

You can speed up the process by turning on warm water, but in this case the chicken will lose most of its nutritional properties. It is better if the liquid temperature does not exceed +15 degrees.

Defrosting minced chicken

The procedure for defrosting minced meat is similar to meat, but it should not be saturated with water. For this reason, it should always be kept in a tightly closed package and not be carried away by high temperatures, since the crushed structure loses useful components much faster.

If you want to maintain the consistency and beneficial properties of the minced meat, then use the cold water option. Also, without loss of quality, you can use room temperature for defrosting. This option takes the longest, but the minced meat will remain juicy. It is not recommended to use kitchen appliances for heating, as minced meat loses its beneficial properties faster than a whole carcass.

Defrost at room temperature

To reduce the thawing time for a whole carcass or fillet, you can leave the chicken at room temperature.

How to do it:

1. Remove the packaging and plastic wrap and place the chicken in a deep dish. Leave it on the kitchen table.
2. The process will speed up if you make several longitudinal cuts on the carcass.

The bird will be ready for further processing in 5-6 hours. If the room is very warm, this period will be reduced to 3-4 hours.

What determines the correct methods for defrosting chicken?

Experienced housewives know many ways to quickly defrost poultry. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages. However, before choosing the most acceptable option, we will try to understand some of the nuances of this matter.

How to defrost a carcass faster: in parts or whole

Tender chicken meat is truly indispensable in preparing lunches and dinners. Chicken is an almost universal find for a cook. But there is one not very good news: chicken meat takes a very long time to defrost. A large broiler carcass weighing 5–6 kg can take up to 30 hours to thaw. Of course, chickens sold in supermarkets weighing 1–1.5 kg defrost faster: 12–17 hours. This is why experts advise cutting up chicken before freezing. Wings, legs, breasts and backbone are frozen separately. Such portions are thawed for 30–60 minutes at room temperature.

It's easier to defrost a dressed bird

Which poultry is faster to defrost - boiled or raw?

We cooked a chicken leg or fillet, cooled it and put it in the freezer. And after a few days they decided to cook something delicious from them. Maybe in vain? And would fresh chicken defrost faster? Cooking removes most of the liquid from meat. It becomes drier and more fibrous. Fresh chicken contains a high percentage of water. If we bought frozen chicken, then it contains even more liquid - in the form of ice. Some production enterprises pierce the poultry with water and freeze it additionally for better preservation. Therefore, boiled chicken defrosts faster than raw chicken.

Raw meat takes longer to defrost than cooked meat

Types of freezing chicken meat

Blast freezing of chicken at home is carried out only if the refrigerator has a “quick freezing” function. The chicken quickly freezes through. But if you just put it in the freezer for blast freezing, without foil or a tight bag, then the chicken will get a cold burn. When defrosting, this will affect the structure of the meat, it will become more loose. But the taste, according to experts, is preserved when quickly frozen. The temperature regime remains the same as with regular home freezing: from -18 to -24 degrees. So the principle and time for defrosting a chicken after blast freezing is the same as that which was simply put in the freezer.

Deep industrial freezing of chicken takes place using special equipment, where the temperature drops to -32 degrees and faster air circulation occurs in the chamber. In chicken, with this processing, microelements and vitamins important for humans are preserved. Deep-frozen meat takes longer to thaw than what we freeze at home.

Fresh chicken frozen under normal home conditions thaws faster. Before the chicken goes into the freezer, it loses some liquid, which helps reduce the number of ice crystals when frozen. Additionally, if the chicken is cut up, it will also help it thaw faster. A whole chicken frozen at home can take 12 to 17 hours to thaw.

At home, a whole chicken carcass can take up to 17 hours to defrost.

Defrosting in a slow cooker, oven

A slow cooker or oven is a good place to quickly defrost poultry.

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Algorithm of actions:

1. Remove the product from the freezer.
2. Place the bird on a plastic steam cooking rack.
3. Pour the required amount of clean liquid into the multicooker bowl. Set the “Steam cooking” mode.
4. During the defrosting process, you need to turn the carcass over from time to time. In 10-20 minutes it will be ready.

Housewives note that the method really works, but this technique worsens the taste of chicken. In addition, it defrosts unevenly in the slow cooker.

The carcass is defrosted in an electric or gas oven.

What should be done:

1. Remove the store packaging.
2. Take an oblong glass bottle and fill it with water.
3. Place a bottle with a mounted carcass on a baking sheet.
4. Place in the oven preheated to +180 degrees. Leave for 5-10 minutes.

In the oven, the chicken is treated with heat and thaws evenly. You should carefully monitor the carcass: if you overcook it, it will become too dry on the outside, cooking inside under the influence of steam.

Shelf life

After defrosting, you can store the bird in the refrigerator for a limited time - 2 days maximum. Immediately after defrosting, the carcass must be placed in a sealed package; a plastic bag or plastic container of the required size is suitable for this. It happens that after defrosting, traces of spoilage of the product are noticeable on the carcass; the most common conditions of the bird can be seen in the table:

If the storage period is exceeded, the bird must be thrown away. If there are signs of spoilage, consuming such a product is dangerous to health. No additional processing of the product will help with mold stains, since fungal organisms penetrate deeply into the structure of the meat. Using it as food for pets is also fraught, because their bodies are no less susceptible to poisoning.

Which product cannot be defrosted?

After removing chicken from the freezer, you need to carefully inspect it for signs of spoilage.

You cannot defrost and subsequently prepare dishes from poultry that:

• stored in the freezer for more than 9 months,
• has a gray-pink tint to the skin, inclusions of brown color: this indicates the process of microbial proliferation in the fibers due to repeated defrosting and freezing, improper storage,
• has an unpleasant odor, a sticky surface (this is detected after complete thawing),
• moldy: the meat is affected by spores of fungal microorganisms,
• has a green, grayish-green color: the chicken was spoiled before freezing.

There are many methods for accelerated preparation of a product for heat treatment. The correct way to defrost a bird is not quick, but natural.

It needs to be removed from the freezer, the packaging and pieces of ice removed, placed in a deep container, and placed on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. The product is defrosted for 12-24 hours, while completely retaining its taste and beneficial properties.

Is it possible to bake frozen chicken?

This question worries many housewives, especially when guests are on the doorstep. And you need to deal not only with the main course, but also with salads and even dessert. You can also bake the chicken frozen. However, some consistency needs to be observed. First, the temperature in the oven should be at a minimum, for at least 10-15 minutes. After this, take out the chicken, rinse it from ice and blood, brush it with spices, turn up the heat and put the carcass back in the oven. If you put the chicken straight into a hot oven, it will not cook evenly.

Some housewives prefer to marinate the chicken in advance. If you bought fresh chicken, rinse and marinate it before freezing - brush with salt and spices before putting the carcass in the freezer. Then, when an emergency arises and you need ready-made and tasty food within an hour, you can wrap the chicken carcass in foil and put it in the oven. First, keep the meat on low heat until the chicken is defrosted, then simply open the foil and add heat. A tasty and ready-made dish will be ready in 40 minutes.

What can you cook from chicken?

Recipes with chicken are in every housewife's cookbook. Tender meat cooks very quickly and goes well with cheese and vegetables, rice and any other cereal. The most popular options are:

• Noodle soup.
• Chicken baked whole on a baking sheet.
• Chicken breast or thigh rolls with cheese or other filling.
• Fried chicken legs in a frying pan.
• Breast baked in sour cream.

The list goes on and on. But for all these dishes to turn out perfect, you need to know how to defrost chicken correctly. This is where the failures of novice housewives grow. They gain in time, but lose in quality. Today we have looked at quite a few methods, each of which is good in its own way. You can choose the one that will be more convenient in a particular situation.

What happens to meat during slow defrosting?

Slow defrosting

in the air is accompanied by large weight losses (up to 4%) due to the evaporation of moisture from the surface of meat carcasses.
... Moisture condenses on the surface of the meat
at the beginning of the process, and by the end
of defrosting
(temperature up to 1 ° C in the thickness of the thigh), the half carcasses have a dry surface and elastic consistency.

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What not to do

Using hot water is highly discouraged. Those who are in a hurry can use warm water

and defrost the meat in 20-30 minutes. It would seem that the easiest option is to throw it into a pan of boiling water. Why not, since it’s an almost instantaneous method?

You just get out of the boiling water an absolutely tasteless piece that resembles minced meat, not chicken.

A rapid drop will lead to disruption of the integrity of muscle fibers and loss of taste. This is comparable to shock therapy, with the same unpleasant consequences. Due to such high temperatures, protein denaturation occurs; secondary heat treatment of food will do little to improve it. If you're really in a hurry, use a bowl of lukewarm water.

.

Tips and tricks

The main rule in storing poultry and the mentioned meat products is rapid freezing. The best way to defrost a whole chicken carcass is on the top shelf of the refrigerator compartment - a positive temperature; at low temperatures it will lead to slow thawing of the meat. At a temperature set to 2-4 ° C, the duration of defrosting reaches 1 day. To get around the complexity of the product, it is better to follow these tips:

1. If the bird was defrosted quickly, then it needs to be cooked immediately, because some of the proteins have already coagulated and provided a good environment for bacteria and molds.
2. Once defrosted, the chicken should not be re-frozen. Therefore, when using partial meat (breast, ham, fillet), it is better to use bran meat (breast, ham, fillet.
3. To speed up the defrosting process, the bird can be left at room temperature for a limited period of 2 hours, and then moved to the lower part of the refrigerator compartment.

Attention! Repeated alternating exposure to low and high temperatures leads to disruption of all proteins. Such meat is edible only as calories. The taste of such meat will be at a low level, and there will be no practical benefit from the protein composition.

Sources

• https://OrenDinamo.ru/produkty-i-napitki/razmorozka-kuricy-v-mikrovolnovke.html
• https://kulinarka-tv.ru/produkty-i-napitki/skolko-razmorazhivaetsya-kurica-v-mikrovolnovke.html
• https://comp-plus.ru/hranenie/kak-razmorozit-kuritsu-ili-kurinoe-file-bystrye-sposoby-kak-delat-nelzya
• https://MullerHall.ru/napitki-i-produkty/kak-razmorozit-grudku-v-mikrovolnovke.html
• https://gotovim-v-mikrovolnovke.ru/kak-razmorozit-kurinoe-file-okorochka-grudku.html
• https://severdv.ru/sovety/razmorazhivaem-kuriczu-v-mikrovolnovke-ili-bez-nee/
• https://mikrovolnovochki.ru/poleznye-sovety/kak-razmorozit-kuritsu-v-mikrovolnovke/
• https://2banket.ru/produkty-i-pitanie/skolko-minut-razmorazhivat-kuricu-v-mikrovolnovke.html
• https://KonditerMagazin.ru/produkty-i-pitanie/razmorozit-kuricu-v-mikrovolnovke.html
• https://bzem1.ru/napitki-i-eda/kak-razmorozit-grudku-v-mikrovolnovke.html
• https://pinta-pub.ru/pishcha/kak-razmorozit-v-mikrovolnovke-kuricu.html
• https://naturlich-restoran.ru/napitki-i-produkty/razmorozka-kuricy-v-mikrovolnovke.html

Emergency method

If there is absolutely no time, you have to make some concessions. Of course, it’s good when everything is done using technology. But if you returned home, where a hungry family is waiting for you, and no one thought to take out the chicken, then the question is already posed bluntly. How to quickly defrost a whole chicken? Immerse it in hot water.

Let us immediately note that experts do not recommend using this method. When immersed in hot water, protein coagulation occurs in the upper layers of a piece of meat. Whether to use this method is up to everyone to decide for themselves.

• Leave the carcass in a plastic bag.
• Pour hot water into a pan and place the chicken in it.
• As the water cools, you need to change it to hotter water.
• After 10 minutes, the carcass can be removed and cutting can begin.

This method has a lot of disadvantages. Many chicken recipes emphasize that the carcass must be defrosted in advance. And this is not surprising, because with the method discussed above, the meat turns out dry and tough. Do not forget that you cannot repeat the defrosting procedure several times, regardless of the method used. In this case, you will not get tasty and tender meat.

Defrosting in the refrigerator

Perhaps the most correct option for preparing a frozen carcass for cooking is to gradually defrost it. In this case, the meat will turn out juicy and aromatic, melting in your mouth.

In order to do everything correctly, you need to unpack the purchased bird and put it in a deep bowl. This is necessary so that there is a place to collect the liquid that the carcass will release during the heating process.

Place the chicken in the refrigerator, preferably on the top shelf. According to the laws of physics, warm air predominantly collects at the top, everyone knows this. The refrigerator in this case is no exception.

Due to the fact that the poultry meat will defrost gradually, you will achieve the desired result in preparing the dish. It is worth saying that this process can take ten hours or more. It all depends on the size and weight of the bird. It would be wiser to defrost it overnight so that you get a chilled carcass in the morning.

And if you have an air fryer at hand

It would seem that this unit is not at all suitable for solving such problems. Place the chicken in the frying pan and it will immediately fry on top in the same manner. But no, an air fryer can actually prepare meat for cooking in an emergency.

• Place the bird in a baking sleeve. This will distribute the heat evenly.
• Set the temperature to about 50 degrees.
• Set the timer for 6 minutes. In this case, the air fryer lid should be slightly open.

The method is really very convenient. But you need to take into account that under the influence of high temperature, tender meat loses some of its properties and turns out less juicy. In a restaurant, a cook will never resort to the quick defrosting method. Otherwise, the number of satisfied customers may decrease.