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Dave Smith
 
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=86 cal wrote:

> i quite often find that when i bake a turkey breast or a roasting
> chicken the meat turns out tough.
>
> Is it the bird or am i overcooking or undercooking?
>


You're doing something wrong :-)
You aren't giving us much to go on, but my bet would be that you are
overcooking because if you were undercooking you would be complaining
about the thigh meat being raw.

I roast a chicken almost every week and have tried cooking them low
and slow and I have done them hot and fast, and it doesn't make a big
difference unless it is a larger bird, in which case low and slow is
the way to go. Breast meat tends to get dry and tough if you overcook
a bird.

I like the hot way to do small chickens. I season the cavity with S&P
and toss in a clove of garlic and a slice of lemon, then rub the
outside with olive oil and season with more S&P. Put the bird on a
rack in a baking pan with about 1/4 inch of water and pop it into a
425 degree oven for 1 1/2 hour. If the water runs out add more.

When the chicken is done, remove the garlic and lemon and tent the
bird. Squeeze the lemon and mash the garlic into the drippings and
thicken for gravy. Cut the chicken into serving pieces and serve on a
platter.