Conference turris::cooks

    Is this a joke?  You REALLY dont know which part of the chicken
    is white vs dark????
    
    Well, the legs are dark, along with the thighs....breasts are white
    as well as the wings.
    
    As for frying, the only bad part of frying is the OIL.....since
    olive oil is one of the lowest in cholersteral, all you have to
    do is heat up some of that in a pan, about 1/2 inch or so, and
    put in the chicken parts.....dip them is a beaten egg, with a little
    milk or water, salt & pepper to taste, then into any of your favorite
    bread/cracker crumb misture.....put in hot oil, reduce heat to medium
    and cook, turning every ten minutes or so, till golden brown all
    over....
    
    Good luck
    
    Rick

    FWIW, which part of the bird is light meat and which is dark meat
    varies with the species and is directly related to the primary means of
    locomotion.  
    
    Chickens move around mainly by walking, thus the leg
    muscles are more developed and have more blood vessels making them
    "dark" meat.  The breast and wings are less developed and are
    considered "white" meat.
    
    Ducks which swim and fly use all their muscles and are all "dark" meat. 
    The legs of birds which primarily fly are "white" meat, while their
    breasts are "dark."
    
    How's that for trivia!
    

    More trivia ..
    
    Also, dark meat has more fat than white meat.  A 3 oz portion of
    chicken breast contains 1 gram of saturated fat whereas a 3 oz
    portion of dark meat contains 4 grams.
    
    Larry

    and, to beat a dead fowl, dark meat has a lot more iron than
    light meat does, which may be important, especially to pregnant
    women.
    
    --Louise

RE: .1

>    As for frying, the only bad part of frying is the OIL.....since
>    olive oil is one of the lowest in cholersteral,

All vegetable oils have zero cholesterol.  Olive oil is one of the lowest in
saturated fats.

>    put in the chicken parts.....dip them is a beaten egg, with a little
>    milk or water, salt & pepper to taste, then into any of your favorite

You don't want to be playing around with beaten egg and milk if you're being
picky about cholesterol....  One egg and you've negated any possible benefit
from using the "right" vegetable oil in the frying.

--PSW

    How about either roasting the chicken or steaming it.  The the skin
    off after the process, and you'll have even less fat to worry about.
    I remember eating it either way, and it was delicious. When you
    steam it, no problem about dry meat. 
    	I say "I remember" because now I am a vegetarian.

    Dip in Eggbeaters, plain or the new spicier one, and you have
    the properties of egg with no cholesterol.  You can also use
    Eggbeaters in a batter.
    
    I remove the skin before cooking.  The fat drips into the meat
    while cooking if you leave it on.  Then I make a low-cal bbq 
    brush and use that to keep the meat moist.  I know I put the
    recipe in here - check in various notes on barbeque or bbq - 
    I think I used the keyword.
    
    --Louise

    If you don't have a high level of cholestral or high blood pressure and 
    aren't currently on a strict diet, having real fried chicken 
    once in awhile is not going to cause damage.  The problem is folks that eat
    foods saturated in fat ALL the time.  Not all foods are 'bad' for you; just
    remember to eat in moderation.   A dietician told me that most of the
    people in this country do not.  For an example, McDonalds uses a
    mixture of beef lard and vegetable oil to fry foods.  Once in awhile
    it won't hurt but for those who eat there more than that (1 or 2 times
    a month while eating sensibly other times) are in for a rude awakening.
    The same rings true for ice cream and passtries - even salad!  An
    imbalance of any kind is not recommended (I lost 35 lbs this way).
    
    As for cutting out eggs in fried chicken  batter - use the whites not the
    yolk since that's where most of the fat and cholestral is.
    
    If you are still dead set against frying you can make the chicken in
    the oven with a little different method by using breadcrumbs.  I make
    mine from bread but if time is of the essence then you can find the 
    premade, preseasoned at the grocery store.  Be sure to buy a reputable
    brand or the chicken will not be AS tasty and sometimes, may have a 
    bit of a *funny* aftertaste.   Make a *eggwash* mixture, eggs whites
    mixed with skim milk, then place the bread crumbs in a large bowl, not
    all, just a small mound each time.  Using a plate is fine but it
    certainly can create a heck of a mess!  Put the chicken into the *egg
    wash* one piece at a time, then roll a frew times in the breadcrumbs.
    If you want to add more spice, such as savory, pepper, etc, do so
    before you put it in the oven.  After each piece is done place in a
    covered dish and refridgerate for an hour or so.  If you want crispy
    coated chicken, refridgerating the chicken before hand allows the
    coating to adhere to the chicken, then you can take it out and add it
    BACK into the *eggwash* and into the breadcrumbs.  The coating will
    be much more crispy.  Sprinkle any other seasoning to the chicken then
    place in a preheated oven, For sweeter meats I like to cook at 325 or
    below.  This prevents the coating from darkening too quickly and then,
    near the end of the cooking time, turn the temperature up bit for more
    of a crunchy coating.  You can also put the chicken in the oven for a
    3/4of an hour, take it out then fry it in a little bit of oil.  
    
    I much prefer making fried chicken with buttermilk and flour with green
    onions and adding spices to it for real cajun fried chicken.  
    
    /gail

    Try this recipe - it was given to me by a former mother-in-law
    
    Rinse chicken parts (your choice)
    Dredge/coat (or some how cover them with the following mixture:
      flour
      paprika (for color)
      dry italian dressing (Good Seasons)
    Put enough oil in a baking pan to coat the bottom less than 1/8
    inch.
    Place the chicken parts in the pan, skin side down.
    Cook for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
    Turn the chicken over and cook 30 minutes more.
    Blot the chicken on paper towels when done & serve with whatever.
    
    Its not greasy at all, and very flavorful.
    Experiment with different spice/herb combinations in the flour.
    
    Bon Appetit

    Try the recipe in 2188.  Its quite an alternative, but not necessarily
    good cold.