Poaching and Steaming
Cooking Skills: Chicken 1
Chapter 5 · Poaching and Steaming
Skill goal
Cook chicken gently in liquid so it stays moist, tender and ready to shred or slice.
Shopping list for this chapter
The basics
Poaching is the gentlest way to cook chicken and the most forgiving. The chicken goes into cold liquid with aromatics (onion, bay, peppercorns, ginger), comes to a bare simmer with just a few bubbles, and cooks quietly for 15 to 20 minutes. A hard boil toughens the meat and makes it stringy. The resulting chicken is tender enough to shred for salads and sandwiches, and the cooking liquid is a free light stock.
Steaming is the other moist method, cooking over simmering water, so nothing is lost to the liquid. It suits thin pieces and a ginger and spring onion flavouring. Poached chicken needs a sharp or rich accompaniment to shine: a sesame dressing, a tarragon cream sauce (see Cooking Skills: Sauces 1, chapter 3 for velouté sauces), or a spoon of the broth. For soups with poached chicken see Cooking Skills: Soups and Stocks 1, chapter 3.
The method
- Start in cold liquid with aromatics and a little salt; the meat cooks evenly from cold.
- Bring to a bare simmer, cover, then lower the heat to the gentlest possible.
- Cook 15 to 20 minutes for breasts, then check 75°C in the thickest part.
- Let it cool in the liquid for 10 to 15 minutes to stay juicy.
- Shred or slice against the grain, and use the broth for soup or sauce.
| Method | Best for | Time (approximate) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poached breast | Salads, sandwiches | 15 to 20 minutes | Moist, tender, easy to shred |
| Poached in cream sauce | Dinners | 20 minutes | Silky, rich |
| Steamed, thin pieces | Light meals | 12 to 15 minutes | Delicate, clean-tasting |
| Poached whole thighs | Shredding | 25 to 30 minutes | Very tender |
Raw chicken, hot liquid, steam and allergens
Raw chicken: the safety rules: raw chicken often carries campylobacter and salmonella. Never wash it (the splashes spread bacteria around the kitchen), keep it covered on the bottom shelf of the fridge, use its own board, knife and tongs, wash your hands, boards and tools in hot soapy water afterwards, and never put cooked food back on a plate or board that held raw chicken. Use it by the use-by date, or freeze it on the day you buy it.Poaching is gentle, not raw: poaching uses water at a bare simmer (about 80 to 90°C), not a boil. The chicken must still reach 75°C in the thickest part, so check with a thermometer, not just the clock. Keep the lid on, never leave a pan of hot liquid unattended, and lift the chicken out with a slotted spoon, not by pouring.
Hot steam: steam scalds worse than boiling water. Lift lids away from your face, use oven gloves, open foil and steamer lids slowly, and keep children well back. A bamboo steamer over a pan is hot all round.
Sesame and peanuts: sesame is one of the 14 major allergens, and peanuts are a common one. Check labels on tahini, sesame oil and peanut butter, tell guests what is in a dish, and use clean spoons and boards.
Try it
Level 1 · Start here
Poached chicken breast
The foundation. Poach in lightly salted water with aromatics, and the chicken is tender and moist, with a bonus pot of broth. Slice it for a salad, shred it for sandwiches, or serve warm with a sauce. Keep the heat low: the water should barely move.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 4 skinless chicken breasts (about 150 g each)
- 1 litres cold water or low-salt chicken stock
- 1 onion, halved
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 peppercorns
- 1 tsp flaked sea salt
- 1 carrot, halved
- Put the chicken, water, onion, bay, peppercorns, salt and carrot in a pan. Bring slowly to a bare simmer, skimming any foam.
- Cover and cook over the lowest heat for 15 to 20 minutes. Check the thickest part reads 75°C and is white all through.
- Switch off and leave in the liquid for 10 minutes, then lift out and slice or shred. Keep the broth for soup.
Raw chicken, hot liquid and temperature
Raw chicken: the safety rules: raw chicken often carries campylobacter and salmonella. Never wash it (the splashes spread bacteria around the kitchen), keep it covered on the bottom shelf of the fridge, use its own board, knife and tongs, wash your hands, boards and tools in hot soapy water afterwards, and never put cooked food back on a plate or board that held raw chicken. Use it by the use-by date, or freeze it on the day you buy it.Poaching is gentle, not raw: poaching uses water at a bare simmer (about 80 to 90°C), not a boil. The chicken must still reach 75°C in the thickest part, so check with a thermometer, not just the clock. Keep the lid on, never leave a pan of hot liquid unattended, and lift the chicken out with a slotted spoon, not by pouring.
Is it cooked? Use a thermometer: chicken is safe when the thickest part reaches 75°C (or 70°C held for 2 minutes), the meat is white all the way through with no pink, and the juices run clear (general guidance, in line with current FSA advice). Push a probe thermometer into the thickest part without touching bone, and for a whole bird check the thickest part of the thigh. If in doubt, cook it longer.
Hot pot and hot steam: a big pan of simmering stock or soup is heavy and scalding. Keep the handle turned in, use a ladle rather than pouring, lift the lid away from your face, and keep children and pets out of the kitchen while you move it.
Level 2 · Salad
A shredded sesame chicken salad
Cold poached chicken, shredded, with crunchy cucumber, carrot and spring onion, in a nutty sesame and peanut dressing. Shred the chicken while it is still slightly warm so it takes up the dressing.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 3 poached chicken breasts (recipe 1), shredded
- 1 cucumber, cut into thin sticks
- 2 carrots, grated
- 4 spring onions, sliced
- 2 tbsp peanut butter or tahini
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 tsp honey
- 2 tbsp warm water
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
- Whisk the peanut butter, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, honey and warm water to a pourable dressing.
- Toss the shredded chicken with the dressing, then fold in the cucumber, carrot and spring onions.
- Scatter with the sesame seeds and serve cold or at room temperature.
Cooked chicken, sesame and allergens
Leftover chicken: cool cooked chicken quickly (within about 1 to 2 hours), cover and refrigerate, and eat within 2 days. Reheat only once, until steaming hot all the way through. Never leave chicken on the table for more than 2 hours. Cooked chicken can be frozen for up to about 3 months.Sesame and peanuts: sesame is one of the 14 major allergens, and peanuts are a common one. Check labels on tahini, sesame oil and peanut butter, tell guests what is in a dish, and use clean spoons and boards.
Allergens: chicken itself is not a major allergen, but the dishes around it often contain milk, gluten, egg, mustard, celery, soya and sesame. Check stock cubes and sauces, tell guests what is in a dish, and use separate tools for anyone with an allergy.
Allergens: contains peanuts or sesame, soya, gluten and sometimes honey.
Level 2 · Cream
Poached chicken in a tarragon cream sauce
A French-style dinner. Poach the chicken in stock with aromatics, then use a ladle of that stock to make a silky, tarragon-flavoured sauce. It is a velouté in miniature (Cooking Skills: Sauces 1, chapter 3). Serve with rice or new potatoes.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 4 skinless chicken breasts
- 500 ml low-salt chicken stock
- 1 onion, halved
- 30 g butter
- 30 g plain flour
- 100 ml double cream
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
- 1 lemon, juice
- Poach the chicken in the stock with the onion for 15 to 20 minutes at a bare simmer until 75°C. Lift out and keep warm. Strain and keep 350 ml of stock.
- Melt the butter, stir in the flour for 1 minute, then add the hot stock gradually, whisking, and simmer for 5 minutes until thick. Stir in the cream and tarragon.
- Season with lemon juice and salt, slice the chicken and spoon the sauce over.
Hot liquid, raw chicken, cream and allergens
Poaching is gentle, not raw: poaching uses water at a bare simmer (about 80 to 90°C), not a boil. The chicken must still reach 75°C in the thickest part, so check with a thermometer, not just the clock. Keep the lid on, never leave a pan of hot liquid unattended, and lift the chicken out with a slotted spoon, not by pouring.Raw chicken: the safety rules: raw chicken often carries campylobacter and salmonella. Never wash it (the splashes spread bacteria around the kitchen), keep it covered on the bottom shelf of the fridge, use its own board, knife and tongs, wash your hands, boards and tools in hot soapy water afterwards, and never put cooked food back on a plate or board that held raw chicken. Use it by the use-by date, or freeze it on the day you buy it.
Hot milk and cream: milk and cream boil over in seconds and burn worse than water. Keep the heat low, stay at the pan, and add dairy at the end. Never boil a soup once it has cream, or it may split.
Allergens: contains milk, gluten and celery.
Level 3 · Steam
Ginger and spring onion steamed chicken
Thin pieces of chicken steamed with ginger until silky, then topped with fresh ginger and spring onion, and a spoonful of hot oil poured over to release the aroma. A Cantonese classic that is simple and clean. Serve with rice.
Ingredients (4 portions)
- 4 boneless chicken thighs, skin on, sliced into 3 cm strips
- 2 tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp cornflour
- 4 spring onions, finely shredded
- 2 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- Mix the chicken with half the ginger, the soy sauce and cornflour. Arrange in a single layer on a heatproof plate.
- Steam over simmering water for 12 to 15 minutes until no pink remains and the chicken is 75°C.
- Scatter with the remaining ginger and spring onions. Heat the oils until shimmering and pour over the top. Serve at once.
Steam, hot oil and raw chicken
Hot steam: steam scalds worse than boiling water. Lift lids away from your face, use oven gloves, open foil and steamer lids slowly, and keep children well back. A bamboo steamer over a pan is hot all round.Hot oil and spices: oil poured over ginger and spring onion spits and sizzles. Heat it until it shimmers, not smokes, pour it slowly away from you onto the aromatics, and keep your face back.
Raw chicken: the safety rules: raw chicken often carries campylobacter and salmonella. Never wash it (the splashes spread bacteria around the kitchen), keep it covered on the bottom shelf of the fridge, use its own board, knife and tongs, wash your hands, boards and tools in hot soapy water afterwards, and never put cooked food back on a plate or board that held raw chicken. Use it by the use-by date, or freeze it on the day you buy it.
Is it cooked? Use a thermometer: chicken is safe when the thickest part reaches 75°C (or 70°C held for 2 minutes), the meat is white all the way through with no pink, and the juices run clear (general guidance, in line with current FSA advice). Push a probe thermometer into the thickest part without touching bone, and for a whole bird check the thickest part of the thigh. If in doubt, cook it longer.
Experiments
Experiment
Water or stock
Flavour.
- Poach one breast in water and another in stock, both with the same aromatics.
Look for: Stock gives a savoury breast and a stronger broth; water is cleaner and leaves the chicken tasting purely of chicken.
Experiment
Simmering or boiling
Texture.
- Cook two breasts, one at a bare simmer and one at a hard boil, for the same time.
Look for: The boiled breast is tough and stringy; the gently simmered one is tender and moist.
Experiment
Cooling in the liquid
Juiciness.
- Lift one breast out immediately and let another cool in the liquid for 15 minutes.
Look for: The cooled-in-liquid breast stays moist; the lifted-out one dries at the surface.
Experiment
Steamed or poached
Taste.
- Cook strips of thigh by steaming and by poaching, then compare.
Look for: Steamed chicken keeps more flavour and a silkier texture; poached chicken is softer and gives a broth.
Tasting notes
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poached chicken breast | ||||
| Shredded sesame chicken salad | ||||
| Chicken in a tarragon cream sauce | ||||
| Ginger and spring onion steamed chicken | ||||
| Water or stock | ||||
| Simmering or boiling | ||||
| Cooling in the liquid | ||||
| Steamed or poached |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Tough, stringy chicken | Boiled | Keep to a bare simmer and take it off at 75°C |
| Bland chicken | Plain water, no aromatics | Add onion, bay, peppercorns and salt, or use stock |
| Raw in the middle | Pieces too thick | Slice thick breasts or check with a probe |
| Rubbery thin pieces | Steamed too long | Check at 12 minutes |
| Lumpy cream sauce | Cold stock into hot roux | Add hot stock slowly and whisk |
| Dry shredded chicken | Overcooked or cooled out of the liquid | Cool it in the liquid |
Hot liquid, leftovers and allergens
Poaching is gentle, not raw: poaching uses water at a bare simmer (about 80 to 90°C), not a boil. The chicken must still reach 75°C in the thickest part, so check with a thermometer, not just the clock. Keep the lid on, never leave a pan of hot liquid unattended, and lift the chicken out with a slotted spoon, not by pouring.Leftover chicken: cool cooked chicken quickly (within about 1 to 2 hours), cover and refrigerate, and eat within 2 days. Reheat only once, until steaming hot all the way through. Never leave chicken on the table for more than 2 hours. Cooked chicken can be frozen for up to about 3 months.
Allergens: chicken itself is not a major allergen, but the dishes around it often contain milk, gluten, egg, mustard, celery, soya and sesame. Check stock cubes and sauces, tell guests what is in a dish, and use separate tools for anyone with an allergy.
Checkpoint: can you do this now?
- I can poach chicken at a bare simmer.
- I can check poached chicken is 75°C.
- I can shred chicken for a salad.
- I can make a sauce from poaching liquid.
- I can steam chicken safely.
Next chapter
Cooking Skills: Chicken 1, chapter 6 is Stews and Casseroles: browning, simmering and thickening.