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Where to buy frozen chicken

Can you cook frozen chicken ?

It is important to handle frozen chicken carefully when cooking to avoid food poisoning. If chicken is cooked while still frozen there is the risk of it not cooking through to the right temperature .

Here are safe ways to handle frozen chicken

• Leave it to thaw completely before cooking, don’t leave it sitting in the liquid that comes out of it as it defrosts (to prevent bacterial growth).
• If you need to cook immediately, you can thaw in the microwave and cook straight away (this must also be done carefully to prevent contamination as well as to make sure the chicken does not start to cook in the microwave).
• You can move it from the freezer to the fridge and leave it to thaw there.
• Make sure the heat cooks through the chicken before serving it.
• Cook not more than 24hrs after defrosting.
• If you decide to cook frozen chicken, don’t do so with the whole chicken, make sure it is diced into small pieces and without bones.

Does frozen chicken weigh the same as thawed ?

Definitely not, when chicken thaws, the liquid that drains out of it takes away of some of its weight causing it not to weigh the same as it did when it was frozen.

Does frozen chicken go bad ?

When stored with constant electricity, frozen chicken is able to keep for up to 9 months. However, flavor and taste is lost with length of storage. Also chicken stored in the freezer needs to be properly sealed to avoid freezer burn (freezer burn does not make frozen chicken inedible , it only affects the taste. It is therefore important to make sure frozen chicken is stored under the following conditions- At temperature 0 F (18 degrees centigrade), packed air tight and labelled properly.

Making sure frozen chicken is packed air tight in the freezer not only helps its retain taste and flavour, it keeps the juice that drains off the chicken from contaminating other items in the freezer.

Fastest way to thaw frozen chicken

The fastest way to thaw chicken is in the microwave. This must be done carefully to prevent contamination and here’s how;

• Place a few pieces of the frozen chicken in a microwave bowl and transfer into the microwave.
• Place the defrost setting on the microwave to about one minute, repeat this till the chicken has thawed but monitor closely so the chicken does not start to cook in the microwave.

Once you have been able to defrost the chicken in the microwave, you will need to cook it immediately .Be careful not to use the wrong setting or leave the frozen chicken in the microwave for too long so it does not start to cook or become contaminated .

How to thaw frozen chicken

There are 3 safe ways you can thaw chicken

• In the fridge ; Once you take out the frozen chicken from the freezer, leave it packed in the (freezer/nylon) bag, place in a bowl and leave in the fridge for a few hours or overnight to thaw, after the chicken thaws , it can still be left in the fridge for up to 24-48 hours .
• In water ; Run cold water into a bowl, submerge pack of chicken in the bowl of water, change water every 30 minutes until chicken completely thaws.
• In the microwave (as described above).

Here are some Frequently asked questions about frozen chicken

There are 2 general sizes for cartons of (hard) chicken laps in the Nigerian market – Normal and Orobo.

The gross weight of each carton of chicken is 10kg.

A carton of “orobo” chicken laps usually contains between 12-14 pieces of full chicken thighs. You can cut each one into 4-6 medium sized chunks (or less) depending on your personal preference.