Boiling is a popular way to cook chicken breast that effectively preserves the juiciness of the meat while cooking it quickly. However, boiling it correctly is the only way to produce these desirable results. Going about this method the wrong way can yield dry, rubbery chicken. If you want to avoid such undesirable outcomes, the first question to ask is, “How long to boil chicken breast?” or “How long does it take to boil chicken breast?” In this comprehensive guide, we will delve into how to do so the right way and provide a detailed step-by-step approach to guarantee your chicken breast is perfectly cooked every time.
How Long to Boil Chicken Breast in 7 Easy Steps
- Thaw
Before you even think about how long to boil chicken breast, thaw the chicken in the fridge overnight if it was previously frozen.
- Prepare the Chicken
You want the chicken to taste as fresh and clean as possible, and a huge determining factor aside from the quality of chicken you purchase at the grocery store is how you prepare it. Incorporating lemon juice into your chicken breast prep is impactful. Instead of rinsing the chicken under cool water, transfer it to a bowl or plate, drizzle lemon juice all over it, then rub the juice into the chicken, making sure to get into all the nooks and crannies. The acidity of lemon juice neutralizes undesirable flavors and makes the chicken more delicious.
- Choose Your Seasonings and Aromatics
You can’t go wrong with some kosher salt, peppercorns, a bay leaf or two, and a few sprigs of your favorite herbs; however, you can use anything you like. Carrots, onion, celery, bell pepper, garlic—you name it.
- Select the Liquid
There is a choice of water, chicken broth, or a combination. Water is great if you want to keep the flavor neutral or plan to create your own flavor profile with aromatics. Broth, on the other hand, boosts the flavor of the chicken. Afterward, you’ll also be left with an enhanced broth for soups or stews.
- Cook
To start, add the chicken that you cleaned with lemon into a pot. Follow with your selected seasonings and aromatics, and pour in enough liquid to cover the chicken. From there, boil over high heat, cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid, and lower the heat slightly to bring the liquid to a gentler boil. Then, leave the chicken to boil for about 10 minutes. Yes, 10 minutes is the answer to, “How long does chicken breast take to boil?”
- Temp
To confirm that the chicken is cooked through, remove one chicken breast from the pot and insert an instant-read thermometer into the center to ensure that the internal temperature is 165°F.
- Serve
You can shred boiled chicken breast or cut it into slices.
Factors that Affect Cook Time
The ten minutes mentioned more so applies to how long to boil boneless chicken breast, but as you know, chicken breast halves, which are bone-in, are commonly sold and can be boiled. Bone-in breasts just take longer to cook. Instead of 10 minutes, they require 20-30 minutes. Another critical point to mention is that when boiling bone-in breasts, you’ll notice a lot more foamy scum collecting at the top, so you want to skim that off periodically.
Additionally, breast thickness affects cooking time. Thinner breasts will cook more quickly than thicker ones, so keep that in mind when you set your timer (set it for 7 minutes if the breasts are thinner and 10 if of average thickness) and consider uniformity if you plan to boil more than one chicken breast so they are done at the same time. Despite the factors mentioned, quantity has the most significant impact on cooking time.
The table below answers the questions, “How long to boil 2 chicken breasts?”, “How long to boil 3 chicken breasts,” and more.
| Quantity | Boneless | Bone-in |
| 1-2 | 10-12 minutes | 20-30 minutes |
| 3-4 | 13-15 minutes | 31-40 minutes |
| 5-6 | 16-17 minutes | 41-50 minutes |
No matter the quantity you choose, use a pot large enough to accommodate all the chicken breasts. If they are cramped in a small pot, the chicken will take longer to cook, may cook unevenly, or worse, the liquid in the pot may evaporate before the chicken is cooked since the poultry-to-liquid ratio will be off, meaning you’ll have to add more.
Tips for Success
- Trim – Trim any excess fat from the chicken breast before boiling, and if using bone-in skin-on breasts/breast halves, remove the skin unless you plan to use the leftover boiling liquid as a broth/stock. The skin will be discarded anyway due to the gummy texture it develops.
- Ensure that you use a tight-fitting lid – Even better, use a transparent tight-fitting lid to see what’s going on in the pot. If you don’t have a lid, tightly covering the pot with heavy-duty aluminum foil is the next best thing.
- Remove the chicken from the pot before checking the internal temperature – This is the only way to get a truly accurate reading. Better yet, take the internal temperature of the largest one.
Now that you know how long to boil chicken breast, what will you do with your newfound knowledge? Will you boil chicken to shred and use in tacos or pulled chicken sandwiches, cook chicken breasts for soup, stew, or maybe an impressive batch of chicken chili? Whatever you choose will be delicious! Enjoy.
