Cooking Frozen Chicken Breast - The Ultimate Guide

Learn how to cook frozen chicken breast. There are several simple methods to do it: bake, pan-fry, boil, grill, air fry, or pressure cook frozen chicken breast pieces.

Cooking frozen chicken breast has saved dinner many, many times. No matter how good I am at planning meals, I often forget things like thawing chicken or soaking beans in time. So, it can be pretty frustrating when you want to start cooking and realize that the main ingredient is not ready to go.

But luckily, cooking chicken breast frozen is easy, reliable, quick, and delicious.

Is it safe to cook chicken from frozen?

Yes, according to USDA, you can do that as long as you follow a few simple rules:

• Allow more time for cooking, about 1 ½ time as long. So, if the recipe requires you to cook the fresh breast pieces for 20 minutes, you will need about 30 minutes when starting with frozen pieces.

• It’s preferable to cook breast pieces that have been frozen individually and not those frozen in a lump.

• Always check if the meat is cooked through, even after the indicated cooking time is up. The safe internal temperature for chicken is 165°F/ 74°C; measure that with a meat thermometer.

What do you need?

• Boneless, skinless chicken breast pieces that have been frozen individually.
• Spices: depending on the method you are using and on your taste.
• Oil: Some of the described methods require a couple of tablespoons of oil. I usually have canola or olive oil.

How to season frozen chicken pieces?

• When boiling the chicken or cooking it in the Instant Pot, you will add the seasoning to the pot.

• Rubbing frozen meat with seasoning won’t work that well, but you can still season the chicken. Sprinkle the pieces with spices generously on the underside. Flip them and place them on the tray or into the kitchen gadget you plan to use. Season the upper side as well.

• Or mix the spices with a few tablespoons of oil and brush the breasts with this mixture.

• You can also baste the meat with sauce or marinade. However, you should only do that during the last 15 minutes of the cooking time so that the sauce won’t burn.

Check out Baked Chicken Drumsticks for more seasoning ideas.

What method to use for cooking frozen chicken breasts?

You can use several methods, all tested, all easy, and all delicious. Frozen chicken breasts can be boiled, pan-fried, baked, or grilled. They can be cooked in the air fryer or instant pot. Let’s go through all these methods right now!

Boiled

Expert Tips

• Use the stock to add to soups or make a small sauce or gravy. You can freeze for about three months.

Pan-fried

Step-by-step instructions

• Heat the oil in a large skillet (I use a cast-iron skillet most of the time, but a regular pan is fine).
• Cook the frozen pieces for 10-15 minutes.
• Season the upper side with salt, pepper, and chicken seasoning, flip the pieces, and season the other side as well.
• Cook for another 10-15 minutes or until cooked through. Check the internal temperature.
• Rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

Baked

Expert Tips

• The cooking time depends on the size of the pieces (and often on your oven). Here is a small chart to help you.

• Small pieces (4-6 oz/ 110-170 g): 30-40 minutes
• Medium (about 8 oz/ 225 g): 35-45 minutes
• Larger than that: 45-55 minutes.

Grilled

Expert Tips

• You have to start grilling the pieces on indirect heat to give them a chance to thaw on the inside before the outside is already charred.
• Try to keep the thinner ends of the meat away from the flames, so they don’t dry out too much.
• You can baste the chicken pieces with sauce during the last 5 minutes of the grilling time.

Step-by-step instructions

• Preheat the grill to 350°F/ 180°C.
• Grill the frozen chicken breast pieces on indirect heat for 10-15 minutes (depending on their size), flipping them halfway. The pieces should be thawed by now (or almost there).
• Sprinkle the breasts with spices on both sides.
• Move them to direct heat and grill them for another 10-15 minutes, flipping halfway or until cooked through. Check the internal temperature.
• Rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

Air fryer

Expert Tips

• The cooking time depends on the thickness of the pieces. Here is a small chart to help you:

• Thin (1.2 cm/ ½ inch thick): about 10 minutes
• Medium (2.5 cm/ 1 inch thick): about 15 minutes
• Thicker (4 cm / 1 ½ inches): about 20-22 minutes
• Very thick (5 cm/ 2 inches): about 28–30 minutes

Instant pot

Expert Tips

• The cooking time depends on the thickness of the pieces. Here is a small chart to help you:

• Small (6-8 oz/ 170-225 g): 10-12 minutes at high pressure + 10 minutes natural release.
• Medium (9-10 oz/ 250-300 g): 13-14 minutes at high pressure + 10 minutes natural release.
• Large (12 oz/ 350 g or a bit more) 15-16 minutes at high pressure + 10 minutes natural release.

• Check out Frozen Chicken Thighs in the Instant Pot or Frozen Ground Beef in the Instant Pot.

Step-by-step

• Place 1 cup/ 250 ml chicken stock and the frozen chicken breast in the inner pot. Sprinkle with seasoning.
• Close the pot and turn the valve to “sealing.”
• Cook on high pressure for as long as indicated above (depending on the size of the pieces).
• Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes.
• Turn the steam release valve to the “venting” position to release the remaining steam.
• Remove the lid and the chicken and allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Recipe FAQ

How to serve?

• As a main dish with any potato side dish, rice, or pasta. Try these delicious Crispy Smashed Potatoes, Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes, Caramelized Potatoes, Butter Parmesan Noodles, Carrot Rice, Pumpkin Rice, Spicy BBQ Rice, and so on.

• Serve on top of a salad with Yogurt Dressing or Raspberry Vinaigrette. Make an Easy Yogurt Mint Sauce.

• Make sandwiches, chicken salad, enchiladas, burritos, tacos, and so on.

More ways of cooking frozen food