I have read that to cook a chicken breast, it only take's 15-20 minutes in a fry pan. And this has worked for me. But then I see recipes for chicken breasts that are baked, and they are cooked for at least 45 minutes. Would they still be tender, and why so much longer a cooking time when they're in the oven?

They still come out tender if you bake them 45 minutes. It's nice if you bake them with water underneath, lifted up on a grill, either tented with foil or not. I'd go for thighs, though.

i've cooked my BS chicken breast in the oven for up to 20 minutes (depending on the thickness) and still had it come out moist and juicy. i don't pan fry a lot of stuff.

Are we talking boneless, skinless or with the bone and skin? The boneless ones are usually kind of thin and they cook quickly. The ones with bones still in are usually quite thick and take a lot longer to cook.

I would quickly broil boneless ones, maybe 5 minutes on a side. Or pan cook them. But the ones with bones I would generally bake. In a pan they're too thick, unless you want to just start off searing them, then move the pan to the oven to finish.

I'll be interested to see what other people say.

You know what's really good? Poached chicken breasts. I found it on a link in the FAQ section:

http://www.globalgourmet.com/food/k.../succulent.html

It comes out GREAT and so tender, and you end up with some nice chicken stock too. We make it twice a week.

Very interesting!

I have cooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts in the oven on about 375 for 40 minutes before and they came out really really moist and juicy. When I bake them for that long, I usually put a pat of butter and olive oil on top and cover it with foil the whole time. Never failed me And everyone always asks how my chicken stays so moist.

I microwave frozen boneless chicken breasts for about 20 minutes, with a couple of tablespoons of butter on top, and a veggie spread around it. Any LC veggie works. Some of the chicken juice and butter ooze around and flavor your veggie, and you're good to go, unless you want to put a nice fatty dressing on it all. That works fine in the oven too, but I live in AZ, where we try to avoid turning on the oven.

Meg

I cook chicken breasts for 35-40 minutes at 350, they never dry out at this temp and duration. My new trick is to put the breasts in a pan, and smother with a full fat salad dressing (ranch works well) and bake, and then put some grated cheese on top for the last 5 minutes. Come out very creamy. I hesitate to post this in the recipe forum as I don't know the carb count, but there ya go.

I also make a chicken recipe with either breasts or thighs, cover with salsa, crumble some bacon on top, then bake for about 35 minutes. Again, add cheese on top for the last 5 minutes, and serve with sour cream. It's very good.

LOL79, I've been using that method to make chicken for salads and dipping and lettuce tacos now for a month. It's terrific! Thanks for finding it.

I'm going to try it with boneless skinless breasts next for chicken salad.