Chicken breast can end up chewy and tough for a variety of reasons. It’s frustrating when you put time into preparing a chicken dish only to end up with meat that’s hard to chew. Luckily there are some simple tips and tricks you can use to prevent and fix chewy chicken breast.
What Causes Chicken Breast to be Chewy?
There are a few main culprits behind chewy chicken breast:
Overcooking
One of the most common reasons chicken breast turns out chewy is overcooking Chicken breast is lean and prone to drying out. It only takes a few extra minutes in the oven or on the grill for it to go from juicy to chewy
Chicken breast should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165°F. Once it hits that point, it’s important to remove it from the heat immediately to prevent overcooking. Using a meat thermometer is the best way to test doneness and avoid overcooking.
Undercooking
While less common, undercooked chicken can also turn out chewy. Poultry needs to reach a high enough temperature for the proteins to sufficiently denature and turn the meat tender.
Undercooked chicken is unsafe to eat, so it’s important to fully cook chicken breast to 165°F internal temperature.
Woody Breast
Some chicken breast just seems to turn out chewy and tough no matter what. This can be caused by a condition called “woody breast.” Woody breast occurs when the breast meat has dense, fibrous areas that make it difficult to chew.
It’s thought to be related to how rapidly chickens are grown. Buying chicken from local farms or organic brands can help avoid woody breast.
Using the Wrong Cooking Method
How you cook chicken breast also impacts tenderness. Dry heat methods like grilling, broiling, baking and pan frying can easily cause meat to dry out and toughen.
Moist, slow cooking methods like poaching, braising and stewing are gentler on chicken breast and help keep it tender.
Tips for Preventing Chewy Chicken Breast
Luckily, it’s easy to avoid chewy chicken breast with a few simple tricks:
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Don’t overcook: Use a meat thermometer to accurately gauge doneness. Remove chicken from heat at 165°F.
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Brine or marinate: Soaking chicken in a saltwater brine or marinade helps it retain moisture.
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Cook with moist heat: Methods like poaching, braising and stewing prevent chicken from drying out.
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Cook skin-on: Leaving the skin on helps seal in juices and prevents the meat from drying.
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Rest before slicing: Letting chicken rest 5-10 minutes after cooking allows juices to redistribute.
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Pound chicken breasts: Evening out thicker parts of the breast helps prevent over and undercooking.
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Buy air-chilled chicken: Air chilling (versus water chilling) produces chicken with better texture.
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Don’t reheat: Reheating cooked chicken breast can exacerbate chewiness.
How to Fix Chewy Cooked Chicken Breast
If your chicken breast already turned out chewy and tough, there are a couple remedies:
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Slice or shred: Cutting chicken into smaller pieces makes it less noticeable if it’s chewy.
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Use in casseroles or sandwiches: Disguising chewy chicken breast in dishes with sauce or other ingredients helps hide the texture.
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Make chicken salad: Chopped chicken breast mixed into chicken salad is hard to mess up.
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Add sauce: Serving chewy chicken breast with flavorful sauces like gravy or curry sauce can improve taste and moisture.
While chewy chicken breast can’t be reversed, shredding, sauces, and mixing it into other dishes helps make it more palatable. It’s still perfectly safe to eat, even if the texture is less than ideal.
Frequently Asked Questions About Chewy Chicken Breast
Is chewy chicken breast undercooked?
Not necessarily. Undercooked chicken is chewy, but overcooked chicken can also turn out chewy and tough. Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature and determine if undercooking is the issue.
Can you make chewy chicken breast tender again?
Unfortunately, once chicken breast is overcooked and chewy, there’s no way to make it tender and juicy again. Your best bet is disguising it by shredding, adding sauce or using it in dishes like chicken salad or casseroles.
Is chewy chicken breast safe to eat?
As long as chicken breast reached a safe internal temperature of 165°F, it is safe to eat even if the texture is chewy. Overcooking makes chicken tough, but it doesn’t make it unsafe. Just avoid eating chicken breast that is undercooked.
Why is my chicken breast chewy on the outside but raw inside?
This happens when chicken breast is cooked at too high of heat. The outside dries out and toughens before the inside cooks through. Use gentler heat and cook chicken breast more slowly to prevent a chewy exterior and underdone interior.
How can you tell if chicken breast is undercooked?
Check the internal temperature using a meat thermometer. Undercooked chicken will be below 165°F. It may also look translucent and pink or have red juices. Always cook until chicken breast reaches 165°F internally to ensure safety and proper doneness.
How to Cook Tender, Juicy Chicken Breast Every Time
Follow these simple tips for enjoying tender and juicy home-cooked chicken breast:
- Pat chicken dry before cooking for better browning
- Use a meat thermometer to accurately determine doneness
- Cook over medium-low, gentle heat
- Bake, poach or braise chicken instead of grilling or broiling
- Brine chicken in a saltwater solution before cooking
- Marinate chicken in an acidic ingredient like lemon juice or vinegar
- Coat with a little oil before cooking to seal in moisture
- Let chicken rest before slicing into it
Properly preparing and cooking chicken breast may take a little more time and effort, but it guarantees a tender, mouthwatering meal. With the right techniques, you can avoid chewing your way through dry, rubbery chicken breast.
Why is my chicken breast rubbery?
Overcooking chicken and buying woody chicken breast are two of the main causes behind rubbery chicken.
You can stop this from happening by:
- buying “slow-growing” chicken
- cooking your chicken in moisture
- marinating the chicken in brine for 20–30 minutes before cooking
Rubbery chicken is still safe to eat in most cases — it’s just a little bit like chewing a dog toy… which generally sucks, unless you’re a dog.
We tucked into the truth behind why your chicken gets rubbery. Find out how to keep your tenders tender.
There’s more than one reason your chicken came out rubbery.
Overcooking might play a role in your chicken’s tire-like texture. Leaving chicken in a pan, oven, or grill for just a little too long can suck the moisture right out and leave you with a dry, rubbery bird. Without moisture, the protein fibers in the chicken become elastic. The types of chicken you buy at the store can also make a difference. “Woody breast” and “white striping” are two conditions farmed poultry can experience that affect the texture of the meat. (Oh, how selfish — birds going and getting diseases that make them harder to eat. Poor widdle humans.)
According to a 2016 review, woody breasts occur when the chicken has a tougher consistency due to bulging muscles. These are harder to chew than non-woody chicken in the same way The Rock is tricky to eat without at least mayo.
White striping is a condition that creates white fatty stripes that run parallel to the chicken muscle fibers on the breast, thigh, and tender muscles.
Both can affect the overall quality of your chicken.
Is rubbery chicken safe to eat?
As long as the rubbery texture comes from overcooking and not undercooking, the chicken is still edible (although not the best eating experience).
To compensate for the dry, rubbery texture, make a sauce that you can serve on your chicken to add moisture and flavor. Go with a creamy Alfredo sauce, BBQ sauce, or soy-based sauce, and — *chef’s kiss* — you won’t even notice the rubbery consistency.