How to Bake Chicken Breast

There are countless recipes for baking a chicken breast. Whether the chicken breast is boneless, the types of seasonings used and the many possible marinades all are decisions that must be made prior to baking. You may add your own personal touches to baking a chicken breast, but the standard method of completing your culinary masterpiece remains fairly straight-forward.

Steps

1. Defrost the chicken. There are several methods for defrosting chicken. Perhaps the most effective and safest is to place the breast in a refrigerator 24 hours before you intend to bake it. This allows the chicken to fully defrost but keeps it at a cool enough temperature to avoid any health dangers.
   
2. Marinate the chicken after it has fully defrosted. Use your favorite marinade of barbecue sauce, cream of mushroom soup, Italian dressing or season it as desired. Most marinade recipes require the chicken breast to sit over night. If this is the case, then allow sufficient time for the chicken to defrost prior to the full amount of time needed for the marinating process.
   
3. Pre-heat your oven. Different recipes may call for different temperatures and therefore different cook times. A standard oven temperature for baking a chicken breast is 450 degrees Fahrenheit (232 degrees Celsius).
   
4. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, and coat the foil with a non-stick cooking spray. This not only makes removing the finished chicken breast from the pan easier but will make the overall clean-up process faster.
   
5. Place the defrosted chicken breast on the baking sheet. This is where personal preference comes into play. Add any seasonings like lemon pepper or oregano. If you desire a neutral flavor, simply add salt and pepper to taste.
   
6. Bake at 450 degrees Fahrenheit (232 degrees Celsius) for 15 minutes, flipping the chicken breast halfway through. This will allow the chicken to be cooked more evenly. Watch until the juices from the chicken run clear. While the chicken is being cooked, its juice will have a white tint to it. When it has been fully cooked, it is easy to see the transition to a clear liquid.
   
7. Stab the chicken breast with a meat thermometer, and then wait a minute or two while the thermometer obtains a proper reading. Then check the temperature. The internal temperature of a fully-cooked chicken should read 165 degrees Fahrenheit (74 degrees Celsius). This method is slightly more involved but provides ultimate assurance that the chicken is safe for consumption.
   

Warnings

• Do not eat undercooked chicken. It can make you sick.
  
• Designate an area and utensils to be used only for the raw meat. Never re-use materials you used with the raw chicken again for the meat after it is baked. Raw chicken is a common carrier of salmonella, a bacteria that is removed during the thorough cooking of raw meat. It is also important to wash your hands and cooking area often with a kitchen cleaner that will kill germs.