[Best Value Ingredients Part 1: Chicken Breast] - Frugal Writer x Financial Planner's Money-Saving Tips 6

Hello! I am NA_RU⁺, a frugal writer and financial planner.

Well, this time, I've decided to occasionally run a series on money-saving, budget-friendly ingredients.

First up, for our first installment, the most excellent ingredient in the meat industry, which is also healthy and offers outstanding value! That is "chicken breast".

When you hear "chicken breast," I imagine many of you might think of it like this.

"It's dry and doesn't taste good, right?"
"If I'm going to eat meat, I want juicy thigh meat."
"Karaage absolutely has to be made with thigh meat, no question!"

I used to think that way too. I hardly ever reached for chicken breast at the supermarket.

However, having realized how versatile chicken breast is, I now make sure to buy a large pack of it every 10 days.

I would like to share the bottomless appeal of "chicken breast" with you.

1. The value is just too good! Could it be under 100 yen per 100g!?

When you go to the meat section of the supermarket, what do you look at before buying? In most stores, I think you'll see labels like "[Meat Name], [Price] yen per 100g" lined up.

Pork and the like are probably 200 to 300 yen these days. When it comes to beef, it easily goes for 500 yen or more. Even chicken thigh, a housewife's ally, is considered cheap if it's 180 yen or more.

However, look at the chicken breast... I see labels saying 98 yen! Some supermarkets even have it in the 70-yen range! So, please buy chicken breast in bulk. A large pack of 1kg is fine; even then, it might be sold for around 700 yen.

You might wonder what to do with such a large pack of chicken breast, but there is no need to worry. Chicken breast, the savior of the household, is a dream ingredient that can be cooked in many different ways.

2. First, turn half of it into chicken ham!

Let's say you bought 1kg. To preserve it, let's turn half, or 500g, into ham right away. Chicken ham is very easy to make.

The recipe I use is:

1. Rub salt into the chicken breast, then rub sugar on top, and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap (securing it with rubber bands, etc.).
2. Store in the refrigerator for 1 to 3 days.
3. Take it out and steam or boil it.

.With just this, you can easily make delicious chicken ham. Steaming it in the microwave is easy, but I prefer to boil it in hot water and then leave it to sit, allowing the heat to penetrate slowly over time. It turns out moist and delicious.

You can eat chicken ham as is, put it in salads, sandwich it in bread, or add it to ramen or soup. It also keeps for about a week, so it is incredibly versatile.

3. Use the rest for upcoming meals (Samgyetang-style soup, Oyakodon, chicken nuggets, etc.)

Let's use the remaining 500g for upcoming meals. I'm sure you can find many breast meat recipes if you look them up, but I'd like to introduce three recipes that I make often.

1. Samgyetang-style soup

This is a very simple, delicious, and gentle-on-the-body soup.

Cut the breast meat into chunks and simmer slowly starting from cold water. If you don't have time, a pressure cooker works too. First, add garlic & ginger, and whatever vegetables you have on hand like Chinese cabbage, green onions, carrots, or daikon radish and simmer with Chinese soup stock or chicken bouillon powder.

If you have them, adding goji berries, pine nuts, or jujubes makes it an authentic Samgyetang-style soup. It's perfect for when you're feeling weak or on a cold day. You can also use the leftovers to make porridge by adding cold rice, just like traditional Samgyetang.

2. Oyakodon (Chicken and Egg Bowl)

Oyakodon is a staple, time-saving dish that every housewife appreciates. Since we are using breast meat this time, I'll add a little trick. First, after cutting the breast meat into chunks, make a few small incisions in them. Then, coat them in potato starch.

After that, follow the standard preparation: add store-bought mentsuyu + water and 5g of sugar, then add the onion and the breast meat to the pot, simmer, and once cooked through, finish it off with beaten egg (1 egg). That's it. If you have it, topping it with Japanese honewort (mitsuba) is the best.

The extra step of using potato starch makes the whole dish tender. It gives it a texture close to thigh meat, so it's very satisfying. Please give it a try.

3. Chicken Nuggets

There's an image that breast meat gets tough if you just fry it as is, but if you turn it into chicken nuggets, it becomes juicy and a dish that children love.

There are many recipes for this as well, but I prefer a simple flavor, so I put the breast meat, 1 tbsp mayonnaise, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 egg, 5g flour, salt, and pepper into a food processor and blend them. Then, I scoop the mixture with a spoon and drop it into the oil to fry.

Serve with a mixture of ketchup and tonkatsu sauce. It becomes a staple side dish that kids love. If you want to add more punch, you can add garlic, or if you want to make it healthier, adding firm tofu is a great idea.

Summary

Here, I introduced recipes that are simple and can be made even when you don't have much time, but I'm sure there are many others if you look up recipes from culinary experts and the like.

One kilogram of chicken breast provides enough side dishes for a family of four for about two days. The cost is around 700 yen, which is pretty great, right?

Beyond that, "chicken breast" itself is said to be a very healthy ingredient. It is rich in nutrients such as protein, vitamins, and minerals.

In terms of health benefits, it is said to help with fatigue recovery, promote metabolism, and boost immunity. It also has anti-aging effects due to its antioxidant properties. Along with chicken tenderloin, it can be considered a medicinal food among meats.

It is a great ingredient for everyone, from growing children to the elderly!

You really shouldn't pass it up. Please try incorporating "chicken breast" into your family's meals starting tonight.

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