Chicken has become one of the most used ingredients in cooking thanks to its wonderful flavor and plethora of nutritional benefits. Unfortunately, many of us don’t take the time out to make the most of this truly unique ingredient when there are some incredibly simplistic methods of cooking capable of bringing the best out of it.

You don’t have to be a gourmet chef to make your chicken taste great every time you throw it in the pan, stew it in a pot or roast it in the oven. In fact, messing around with a few customized cooking recipes can be quite enjoyable. Here are a few ways you can adjust the standard methods associated with cooking chicken to achieve the ultimate satisfaction. It’s incredibly simple, so why not give it a go?

Fried Chicken

It’s commonly associated with fast food restaurants such as KFC and Popeyes and the majority of chicken-lovers just can’t go without it. So how can we transfer such incredible flavors to our own kitchens? Well first things first, they probably don’t consider the health of their customers, nor do they care very much for what goes into the typical marinade. Thankfully, there are a few ways we can achieve these outstanding flavors without increasing our chances of obesity. Try the following:

1. Place the raw chicken breast in a non-stick pan with a little bit of oil, a few herbs, some garlic, seasoning and a small cube of unsalted butter. You can use some vegetable stock paste as an instant coating of flavor if you haven’t used a marinade beforehand. Fry the chicken for a couple of minutes until whitened on either side.
2. Cover the pan with a suitable lid and turn the heat down to low. Set a timer for 10 minutes exactly and leave the chicken to cook.
3. Return after 10 minutes and turn the heat off, but keep the lid where it is. Let the chicken rest in the pan for another 10 minutes. Once 10 minutes have past, get ready to enjoy the juiciest fried chicken you’ve ever tasted!

Roast Chicken

There’s nothing better than some lightly salted, well seasoned roast chicken on a Sunday afternoon. But how can we change this particularly popular method to really enhance the flavor and turn a standard Sunday roast into more of a special occasion? Here are a few things to consider when roasting chicken:

1. Seasoning is vital when roasting. Throwing a few herbs onto the roasting tray will allow these unique flavors to circulate throughout the oven, so you’re essentially cooking your chicken in the beautiful aromas.
2. Essential herbs to use include rosemary, thyme, chives, sage, parsley and tarragon. Always follow this up with a light sprinkling of pepper, a dash of sea salt, a squeeze of lemon juice, some garlic and a delicate coating of olive oil.
3. You can throw a few vegetables on the tray to roast alongside your chicken to bring all the wonderful flavors together. Carrots, parsnip, butternut squash and sweet potato work particularly well, so give this a go the next time you’re serving up a wide selection of foods.