Baked Chicken Basics and Asian Chicken Wraps

I usually start any cooking prep for "30 minute meals" about 29 minutes before dinner should be ready.  I like the pressure.  I scanned down the ingredient list and saw "chicken breast, cooked" ....sonofabitch. That should not be allowed to be an ingredient. Chicken breast is the ingredient and cooking it should be part of the instructions!

Regardless, here is my favorite way to cook basic chicken breast for any recipe that calls for cooked chicken breast or, my favorite cop-out, rotisserie chicken.

Basic Baked Chicken Breast

Adapted from Gimme Some Oven
It's seriously juicy.

• chicken breast, defrosted or raw
• salt water (1 quart water to 1/4 cup kosher salt ratio)
• olive oil
• salt, pepper, garlic powder, smoked paprika (or any spices)

Place the raw chicken breast in the salt water for 15 minutes (or refrigerate for up to 6 hours). Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F.

Remove chicken from water and pat dry with a paper towel. Rub olive oil over and under each piece of chicken and place on a baking dish. Salt, pepper, and season.

Bake for 18 minutes (or until the internal temperature reaches 170 degrees F.

Remove from oven, loosely cover with foil, and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Slice parallel from the pointy tip. 

Asian Chicken Wraps

Serves 4

Adapted from Simply Whisked

Sauce:

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 3 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon soy suace
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
• 1 large garlic clove, minced

Wraps:

• 2 1/2 cups shredded cabbage
• 2 cups shredded carrots
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 2 green onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup peanuts, chopped
• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
• 3 cooked chicken breasts (see above), thinly sliced
• 4 burrito tortillas

In a medium bowl, whisk together sauce ingredients.

In a large bowl mix the cabbage, carrots, bell pepper, onion, peanuts, cilantro. Pour the sauce over, mix, and let sit. (If you are planning on having left over cabbage mixture, don't mix that portion with the sauce.)

Nook the tortillas for 10 seconds in the microwaves.

Lay tortillas flat, layer chicken, then sauced cabbage mixture. Roll up like a burrito, toothpick it to stay, and slice in half deli-style.