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Among the meat dishes we eat, chicken is the favorite for most of us.
It is the most consumed meat globally: the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, (FAO) estimates that 133 million tons of chicken meat was consumed globally in 2021. In India it is more than 41 lakh tonnes.
In Latin America, the world’s third-highest consumption of this food, an average of 32.7 kg of chicken was eaten per person in 2019. The figure was 40.6 kg in Brazil and 40.4 kg in Argentina.
Chicken has become popular due to its low cost and low fat content. Also, there are less religious and cultural barriers to it.
Apart from these, plenty of protein, vitamins and minerals are also found in this meat. It is also rich in monounsaturated fats which are good for the body. These fats help keep the heart healthy.
But, there are many doubts and misconceptions about how to eat this chicken.
For example, chicken skin is known to contain high levels of fat. So, is it better to eat chicken with the skin on or should it be removed before cooking?
“Chicken skin is 32 percent fat. So in 100 grams of chicken skin, it has 32 grams of fat,” said Maria Dolores Fernandez Pazoz, a nutritionist at the Meat Nutrition Information Center in Argentina.
About two-thirds of these fats in chicken skin are known as “unsaturated fats.” Nutritionist explains that it helps in improving the level of cholesterol in the blood.
A third of these fats are “saturated fat”. It increases the amount of “bad” cholesterol in our body.
“If you eat chicken with the skin on, the calories increase by almost 50 percent,” says the expert.
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For example, eating 170 grams of skinless chicken adds up to 284 calories, according to data from the US Department of Agriculture and Nutrition. 80 percent of these calories come from protein and 20 percent from fat.
If the chicken is eaten with the skin on, the number of calories reaching the body will be 386. 50 percent of calories come from protein and 50 percent from fat.
If you don’t want to add extra calories and fat, it’s a good idea to remove the skin from the chicken before eating, says nutritionist Dolores Fernandez.
Experts say, “Healthy and physically active people can leave the chicken skin on while cooking and remove the skin before eating. Because the chicken skin is present during cooking, the curry gets the right taste and texture.
Frozen Is it OK to re-chill the chicken?
“No. Don’t refrigerate frozen chicken,” says the nutritionist.
“The goal of freezing food is to prevent the growth of microbes in the food. So by thawing the food, those microbes can start growing again.”
And this advice applies to all types of frozen meat. The only safe way to refrigerate them is to refrigerate them after cooking.
“Thus, when properly cooked, we eliminate the presence of microorganisms. And we can freeze the meat, thereby ensuring organoleptic properties and preservation,” says Dolores Fernandez.
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How to thaw frozen chicken?
Experts say the best way to thaw chicken is to refrigerate it.
“Keeping it thawed at our room temperature will increase the growth of the microbes we mentioned earlier.”
Since chicken thaws slowly in the refrigerator, it can take about 24 hours for a whole chicken to thaw. So, you need to plan ahead to get the chicken out of the freezer and cook it.
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Experts stress that chicken should not be thawed at room temperature or in hot water.
Why do some stores sell yellow chickens and others pink? Which is better?
The color of chicken meat varies depending on the pigments in the grain used in its diet, explains the CINCAP expert.
Grains like sorghum have a higher concentration of pigments than white corn or wheat.
And in some countries, due to consumer preference, a natural pigment is routinely added to chicken feed to give the meat a yellow color.
But nutritionally, “there’s not much difference between yellow and white-pink chicken,” points out Dolores Fernandez.
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How to avoid chicken meat poisoning?
Chicken is one of the most nutritious, popular and consumed foods in the world. But this food is more likely to become poisonous.
Campylobacter bacteria, Salmonella and Clostridium perfringens are also formed in this meat.
That’s why eating undercooked chicken or eating raw meat with other food can lead to food poisoning.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that approximately one million people in the United States become ill each year from eating contaminated chicken.
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Here are some basic tips from an expert at the Poultry Nutrition Information Center:
Always wash your hands before preparing all types of food. Wash your hands frequently when cooking, especially when raw and cooked foods are handled at the same time.
When handling chicken and other foods, use different utensils and utensils. Also avoid placing cooked and/or ready-to-eat foods nearby.
Clean the chicken from the bones and joints, free of pink.
If there is leftover chicken from one meal, it should be reheated and eaten for the next meal.
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