The Original White Meat

We eat almost twice as much chicken today as we did 20 years ago. In fact, chicken has recently become the most frequently served meat on America’s tables. And the per-capita consumption of turkey has increased at an even faster rate--it nearly doubled in the last 10 years. This dramatic increase in the popularity of poultry is not surprising. Chicken and turkey are inexpensive and appeal to almost everyone. And the white meats of both are low in fat and calories.

Many supermarkets offer several cuts of boneless chicken and turkey. For quick, everyday meals, I find these an ideal choice because they cook so rapidly. Lean chicken breasts, the most widely available cut, have become a favorite on my dinner table, and not just for routine, get-something-on-the-table-after-work meals. In classic French cuisine, boneless breasts, which are called supremes, are the most esteemed cut of chicken and are paired with such noble ingredients as asparagus and wild mushrooms.

But the French also use boneless breasts to make an extremely quick, basic dish-- poulet a la minute, or minute chicken, in which the meat is sauteed and served with its pan juices accented with parsley and lemon juice. This technique is ideal for cooking boneless chicken. The oil in the pan and the brief cooking time help prevent the meat from becoming dry, and the flavorful pan juices form the basis of a quick sauce.

The sauce doesn’t need to be complicated or high in fat. With a few ingredients--lemon wedges and parsley for the French specialty, or onion, garlic, prepared tomato sauce and a dash of cumin for Middle Eastern-style chicken--you can turn simple sauteed chicken breasts into a tasty entree in no time.

Even faster cooking than chicken breasts are fillets, the tender strips of meat from the bottom of the breasts. They can be found in some markets packaged as “chicken fillets” or “chicken breast tenders.” They take only about two minutes per side to cook and are wonderful mixed with sauteed mushrooms, pepper strips, zucchini and other quick-cooking vegetables.

Turkey breast slices or cutlets are also becoming a preferred meat for quick meals and make a good, less costly substitute for veal scaloppine. Leaner than chicken breasts, they have a shorter cooking time, as they are cut into thinner pieces. For finer-textured slices, you can instead buy larger breast pieces called “turkey tenderloins” and cut them into thin slices on the diagonal.

Boneless chicken thighs, which have delicious dark meat, are now available in many markets. Of course, thighs are not as lean as breasts, but many people prefer their rich texture and flavor. They can be prepared with the same recipes as boneless breasts, and they take just a few minutes longer to cook.

When sauteing chicken, choose a heavy skillet large enough so the chicken pieces do not touch each other. If they are crowded together, their juices might boil and toughen the meat.

While the chicken is cooking, I often prepare a basic Mediterranean-style salad of diced tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers, or I might cook spinach, zucchini or broccoli. I serve the chicken with rice, pasta, couscous or just good crusty bread. The result is a freshly cooked chicken dinner that’s ready in minutes.

This is the fastest French chicken recipe I know. The chicken is sauteed in oil and butter, set on a platter, sprinkled with its cooking oil and chopped parsley and served with lemon wedges. I find it also very tasty made with olive oil instead of butter. You can use boneless chicken breasts with or without the skin.

FRENCH “MINUTE” CHICKEN

2 boneless chicken breast halves, patted dry

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon butter or 2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

1/2 lemon, cut into 2 wedges

Season chicken to taste on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat oil and butter in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and saute, pressing occasionally with flat spatula, until chicken has changed color throughout, 5 or 6 minutes per side. Cut to see if chicken is done. If juices start to brown during sauteing, reduce heat to medium.

Transfer chicken to plates and sprinkle with parsley, then with cooking juices. Serve with lemon wedges. Makes 2 servings.

Each serving contains about:

270 calories; 203 mg sodium; 56 mg cholesterol; 22 grams fat; 0 carbohydrates; 18 grams protein; 0.03 gram fiber.

A Middle Eastern tomato sauce flavored with cumin, sauteed onions and garlic makes a delicious partner for sauteed chicken. Serve the chicken with rice, couscous or fettuccine and with a green or spinach salad.

CHICKEN BREASTS WITH CUMIN-TOMATO SAUCE

4 boneless chicken breast halves, patted dry

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 tablespoons vegetable oil or olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 large cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup tomato sauce, homemade or canned

Season chicken to taste on both sides with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon cumin. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add chicken and saute, pressing occasionally with flat spatula, until no longer pink inside, about 5 minutes per side. Remove with slotted spatula.

Add onion to pan and saute about 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and remaining 1 teaspoon cumin and saute 30 seconds. Stir in tomato sauce and simmer over low heat 2 minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste. Return chicken to sauce. Cover and heat gently about 3 minutes, turning once. Makes 4 servings.

Each serving contains about:

391 calories; 557 mg sodium; 112 mg cholesterol; 23 grams fat; 7 grams carbohydrates; 38 grams protein; 0.66 gram fiber.

This dish makes good use of lean turkey breast meat, and only a minimal amount of fat is added. (The oil from sauteing is discarded before the teriyaki sauce is added to the pan, so it’s not part of the sauce.) Mirin, a Japanese sweet rice wine, can be found in the Oriental section of supermarkets. Serve the turkey with rice and a vegetable--carrots, sugar snap peas, peas or broccoli.

TERIYAKI TURKEY

1 pound (1/4-inch thick) turkey breast slices, patted dry

3 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons mirin

1 teaspoon sugar

2 teaspoons grated ginger root

Freshly ground pepper, optional

1 tablespoon thinly sliced green onion, optional

Cut each turkey slice into 6 or 8 strips. Place on paper-towel-lined plate. Heat oil in large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of turkey pieces and saute, stirring often, just until color changes throughout, about 1 minute per side. Cut piece to check for doneness. Transfer turkey to plate and keep warm. Repeat with remaining turkey pieces.

Mix together soy sauce, mirin, sugar and ginger root in small bowl. When all turkey pieces are cooked, drain any fat from pan. Add soy sauce mixture to pan and bring to boil, stirring. Cook over medium heat until thickened, 1 minute. Return turkey to pan (without adding liquid from plate) and heat gently in sauce, turning pieces over several times, about 2 minutes or until coated. Spoon any remaining sauce in pan over turkey when serving. Season to taste with pepper and green onion and serve. Makes 3 to 4 servings.

Each serving contains about:

197 calories; 546 mg sodium; 54 mg cholesterol; 11 grams fat; 2 grams carbohydrates; 23 grams protein; 0.01 gram fiber.