Tons of people like to eat chicken, but to cook it? That can be a different story. A quick scroll through social media finds a whole bunch of folks who are wary at best (and flat-out fearful at worst) to prepare the poultry themselves, since they’re afraid they might serve it undercooked and get sick.
A little caution isn’t a bad thing, since the pathogens that can be found in a raw or undercooked bird are no joke—48 million people contract foodborne illness every year, and in many cases, bacteria like salmonella and campylobacter found in chicken are to blame, Wade Syers, MS, extension specialist for food safety at Michigan State University, tells SELF. And that can lead to wildly unpleasant symptoms like diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps.
Problem is, lots of folks aren’t exactly sure what counts as cooked when talking poultry. Many rely solely on the visual indicator you’re probably quite familiar with: If the chicken’s pink, it’s not safe to eat. Turns out, that’s not always the best way to gauge doneness. Some chicken that might look kinda pink might actually be completely cooked, while others might appear in the clear may not be at all, Darin Detwiler, PhD, an associate teaching professor of food policy at Northeastern University and author of Food Safety: Past, Present, and Predictions, tells SELF. Sounds confusing, right? Here’s what you really need to know to cook your chicken safely.
The pink test doesn’t always work with chicken, especially if you’re cooking dark meat.
A whole host of factors can play a role in your chicken’s hue, says Dr. Detwiler. Poultry in general comes in a lot of different shades and textures, even when fully cooked. “The color of chicken doesn’t always change uniformly due to various factors like the cooking temperature, the part of the chicken being cooked, and its natural variation,” says Dr. Detwiler.
Both the age of the bird and what it was fed can have an impact on how it appears on your cutting board even after it’s cooked, he explains. For instance, younger chickens have thinner skin and more permeable bones, which means the flesh within is more likely to be tinted pink by cooking gasses. Older chickens may have pink spotting because of areas where the fat in their bodies broke away from the skin.
What’s in their feed can also affect internal coloring in chickens across the age spectrum, he adds. In Europe, where it’s more common to include yellow and red carotenoids (fat-soluble pigments) in chicken feed, the resulting meat and egg yolks have a darker, orange hue.
The way a chicken is cooked or stored can also change its color. Freezing bone-in chicken parts can cause marrow to swell and leak out as it defrosts, resulting in a darker shade than you’d get from fresh chicken. And smoking a bird tints its flesh different hues as the gasses seep through the skin, especially if what you’re burning already had a vibrant shade to start—like wood chips from a cherry tree, for example.
Color variations can also happen from one part of the chicken to another, which means the hue can be different when you’re cooking a breast versus a leg. In general, pieces like the thighs, legs, and wings are considered dark meat because they’ll stay slightly pink (or even a purple or gray shade) or have little streaks of blood thanks to a higher concentration of myoglobin, a protein in muscle that holds oxygen and can remain even after cooking. Plus, they’re closer to the bone, where there’s more blood to begin with, Dr. Detwiler says. On the other hand, chicken breasts don’t contain this specific protein, so they should almost always be white when cooked. If they’re still looking pink afterward, you’ll need to use another means to ensure they’re safe to eat.
One thing to keep in mind: Undercooked pink and safely cooked “pink” often have some textural differences that can clue you in to doneness, says Dr. Detwiler. The pink in raw chicken tends to be more uniform and pronounced across large portions of meat—plus it can have kind of a slimy, wet texture—whereas the pink in a cooked bird that comes from the myoglobin often presents in streaks or spotting, rather than big swaths, he says. Plus, the properly cooked stuff will be firmer and springy to the touch.
If that all sounds subjective and confusing, you’re in luck: There’s an easy, objective way to tell if your chicken is done.
Taking your chicken’s temperature will always tell you whether or not it’s safe to eat, Dr. Detwiler says. You’ll just need a thermometer for kitchen-use only.
“This method is reliable because it does not rely on appearance, which can be deceiving, but on temperature, which is a direct indicator of whether the meat has reached a heat level sufficient to kill harmful bacteria,” he explains.
Opt for instant-read thermometers specifically designed for meat for the quickest read. When it comes time to use it, place the point into the deepest, center-most spot of the chicken piece you’re cooking, where the temperature should be no lower than 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
If you’re prepping a whole chicken, make sure to check that it reaches this safe temperature in all the different spots. If one part is already done (like the breasts) but another (the thighs) needs more time, cover the safe part with foil before putting it back in the oven so it doesn’t overcook while the rest finishes up.
Sure, it might be a pain to get another kitchen tool, but it’ll definitely hurt less than having to throw out a perfectly good piece of meat because you were too afraid to eat—or worse yet, getting sick because it wasn’t as done as you thought.
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