The Easy Fork Trick For Amping Up The Flavor Of Marinated Chicken

Americans eat around 117 pounds of chicken and turkey per person every year, that's more than double the annual consumption of beef. But many Americans have a love-hate relationship with chicken. On one hand, chicken is relatively simple to prepare and typically pleases even the pickiest of eaters. On the other hand, chicken often has an unfair reputation for being bland, boring, and underwhelming. But that's usually more due to problems with the way chicken is prepared. A properly cooked bird can be juicy, tender, and explosively flavorful. When overcooked, chicken can easily become dry and rubbery, and if not properly seasoned, then it will come out pretty tasteless, too.

The solution? Give your chicken a quick dip in a flavorful marinade. And although this technique is not particularly revolutionary, it does require some nuance. The type of marinade is important, but equally critical is the way the marinade gets into the meat. By simply pricking the chicken with a fork, you are allowing marination to bypass the skin and better penetrate the meat. The result: juicy and tasty chicken. And the best part is that this technique works well with any variety of marinades or cooking methods.

A marinade or brine can help tenderize chicken while keeping it moist and full of flavor. Using a fork to poke a few sets of holes into your raw chicken helps your marinade — whether it's yogurt, a salad dressing, or an easy, homemade barbecue sauce – permeate and cling to the meat. This technique is convenient if you're pressed for time. You can add elements such as acid, sweetness, heat, and umami to the meat by marinating boneless chicken for only 15 minutes. However, don't overdo it: Marinating for more than 12 hours for bone-in chicken or 2 hours for boneless runs the risk of over-tenderizing the meat, making it mushy and unappetizing.

Another benefit to poking fork holes in your chicken is that the holes can prevent the skin from shriveling or shrinking as it cooks, which can preserve more of the crispy skin and earn you some presentation points. There is a misconception that poking holes into raw chicken allows the moisture to escape from the meat during the cooking process, but it doesn't. Just don't poke so many holes that the chicken loses its shape and structure.

Now that you've used this easy fork trick on your chicken, it's time to pair it with the right marinade. Chicken is more or less a blank canvas when it comes to accepting flavor. This means you can pull from a variety of cuisines and ingredients when coming up with a chicken marinade. An Italian-inspired marinade that uses balsamic vinegar, garlic, olive oil, and Italian seasoning is basic but effective, and easy to pair with any number of side dishes, like roasted potatoes or sautéed greens. For something sweet and spicy, a combination of honey, sriracha, and lime juice can do the trick. This is a great idea if you're roasting or baking your chicken as it will result in a crispy and caramelized exterior.

If the chicken is destined for the grill, marinating it first in Jamaican jerk sauce will infuse it with a smoky sweetness. Try complex flavor pairings, such as orange and Chinese 5-spice or a sesame-chili sauce marinade with pears, or opt for something a little subtler. Marinades that pair fresh herbs and citrus fruits, like cilantro and lime or lemon and oregano, typically won't overwhelm the meat. Whichever marinade you choose, poke a few holes in your chicken with a fork before you soak it to take full advantage of its flavor.