How to Poach Chicken for Pulled Chicken Dishes

Shredded chicken is a very versatile ingredient. It's also easy to make, especially if you have a crockpot. Once you finish, you have meat for sandwiches, salads, casseroles, soups, and even chicken and dumplings. A bonus to this recipe is the delicious broth you'll have when you're done. Use the broth for gravy or soup, or freeze it for another time.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Chicken (whole or in pieces)
• Pot deep enough to hold the chicken plus an inch
• Liquid to cover the chicken
• Flavoring vegetables (your choice)
• Flavoring herbs and spices (your choice)

1. First you must rinse your chicken. Trim any hanging pieces of skin or fat, but don't skin the chicken before poaching. Make sure you remove the bag of giblets and neck if you're using a whole bird.

2. Put your rinsed, trimmed chicken into the pot.

3. Add any flavoring vegetables that appeal to you. The standard is onion, celery and carrot. Add them to the cavityin between the pieces or around the perimeter of the bird. These will add flavor to the chicken and broth, and then be discarded (or liquified as part of a gravy or sauce).

4. Add any herbs or spices that strike your fancy. Classics are parsley, sage, marjoram, rosemary or thyme. Be cautious with rosemary as it's a very strong flavor. Citrus peel can be a great addition. Don't forget salt and pepper, if you can use them.

5. Now, fill the pot with water (or other liquid) to cover the chicken. Water is the usual, but you can also use chicken stock or broth to end up with a double-flavored broth.

6. Cook, barely simmering, until the chicken is thoroughly cooked and pulling away from the bones. Allow it to cool in the broth, then remove the meat from the bones and skin. Remove the fat from the top of the broth.

Tips & Warnings

• The best way to do this is overnight or all day in a crockpot. Put it together, turn it on low,and let it cook.
• On a stove top, allow about 2 hours on a low flame for a whole bird, and about 1 hour for pieces.
• Once you've disassembled the bird, you can put the meat in one freezer bag and the broth in another. Freeze the broth flat, and you'll have it on hand in an easy-to-store form. You can also freeze the broth in ice cube trays; then store the cubes in a bag.
• Don't let animals have the cooked chicken bones. They can splinter and be fatal to dogs and cats.

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