Parboil Chicken

When I took to cooking, I came across a number of terms, which sounded Greek and Latin to me. I would get flustered and scrap the recipe altogether. Till there came a day, when I decided to decipher the meaning of all these Greek and Latin sounding words. One such word was parboil. Well from the word itself, we can understand, that it has something to do with boiling.

Parboiling is very similar to boiling. In parboiling, the liquid (often water) used to parboil is separated from the food. In most normal cases the liquid is poured off, which can later be used to make some other dish. One point, which distinctly separates boiling from parboiling is the heat used to boil. When parboiling the heat is left at simmer, on the other hand, while boiling the heat used is often full. The time required will depend on the type of chicken you are parboiling. It takes approximately 30 to 40 minutes to parboil a whole young chicken. If you use chicken pieces, then the time required is much less as compared to parboiling whole chicken. Depending on the size of the pieces to be parboiled, you may need about 15 to 20 minutes.

Parboil Chicken Before Grilling
Many a time, it so happens, that we choose not to grill chicken, as the entire grilling procedure, takes way too long for our liking. However, if you parboil chicken before grilling, it will reduce the cooking time a great deal. For this, place them in cold water and bring the water to a boil. When the water comes to a boil, turn down the heat and let them simmer for about 20 to 22 minutes. Then skim the impurities, that will form the top layer of water. Remove the pieces from the pot and place it on the grill, till the skin starts to become crisp. Coat the crisp side with sauce and turn the pieces over to the other side. Repeat the procedure on the other side as well. Leave the chicken on the grill, till the sauce on both the sides is caramelized. Before you remove the pieces from the grill, make sure that the pieces are well cooked. Eating undercooked meat may not be the best idea.

Parboil Chicken Wings
Are you planning to make chicken wings for dinner tonight? Whether you plan to grill chicken wings or you plan to bake chicken wings, wouldn't it be great, if you could finish cooking at the earliest? Well, the trick is to parboil it before you make chicken wings. Fill a sauce pan with water and add chicken wings. Bring the water to a boil and let it simmer for anywhere between 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the chicken pieces from water and let it drain and cool for some time. Then you can use the regular procedure to make chicken wings. If you want you can also add onion pieces and cloves to the water, when you are parboiling chicken wings.

Parboil Chicken Before Frying
Fried chicken is very heavy to digest, due to the amount of oil required to fry it. However, if you parboil it before frying, not only will it require less amount of oil, but it will also cook faster and taste better. In a pot, place the chicken pieces and pour water on the pieces, till the pieces are well submerged in water. Bring the water to a boil on high flame, reduce the heat to simmer and let it cook for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the pieces from the water and place it on a kitchen tissue and let it dry. Once there is no water on the pieces, follow the normal procedure to fry chicken.

The water that remains after you parboil chicken can be used to cook rice or noodles or as chicken stock. Some people choose to remove the fat that accumulates and then use the chicken stock. If you want a specific taste to the chicken, you can add the condiments of your choice to the chicken, when you are parboiling it.