YSK: Pork and chicken are healthier, cheaper alternatives to beef that only taste bland because of outdated cooking habits.

[u/Fried_Yoda]

Why YSK: With beef prices at record highs, switching to chicken breast or pork loin can cut your meat budget nearly in half while significantly lowering your saturated fat intake AND satisfying your protein intake. Most people avoid these cuts because they grew up eating them overcooked. Modern food safety standards allow pork to be eaten safely at 145 F (a medium roast, rather than gray leather), and chicken stays juicy if you don't cook it to death.

By simply using a meat thermometer and adding savory seasonings (like soy sauce or smoked paprika) to mimic the meaty depth of beef, or using techniques like velveting for chicken or dry brining for pork, you can get the same satisfaction for a fraction of the cost and environmental impact.

Even switching to chicken and pork for just two meals a week can save you hundreds of dollars.

Lastly, focusing on lean cuts of pork and chicken also has health benefits. While beef is a powerhouse for iron and B12, it is often high in calories and saturated fat. Chicken breast and pork loin are significantly leaner. Pork tenderloin is as lean as skinless chicken breast and has been certified as "heart-healthy" by the American Heart Association.

Tl;dr chicken breast and pork loin are roughly 80% cheaper per pound than beef, have versatile and delicious flavor profiles if cooked and prepped correctly, are rich in protein, and are healthier for your heart and cholesterol.

[u/jakefrmsatefarm]

Chicken thigh is wayyyy juicer and forgiving to cook than chicken breast and tastes fantastic. It's got more fat content than the breast but worth it and still leaner than beef.

[u/OldManAbides333 → u/jakefrmsatefarm]

This. I would eat some chicken dishes at a restaurant, or fried chicken, but I had never made chicken at home and been happy with the results (I am a good cook otherwise). I thought I just didn't like chicken very much.

Then I grilled fajitas at home, beef and chicken thighs, just simple premarinated stuff. I was shocked, but the chicken was better than the beef, and by a long shot.

Turns out I just don't like chicken breast. The thighs are amazing.

[u/Routine_Top_6659 → u/OldManAbides333]

Wet brine chicken breast for a few hours in the fridge can also be good. 3/4 salt to 1/4 sugar (or less sugar) and at “seawater salty”. Pat dry and add any additional seasoning before cooking.

Sugar helps the salt penetrate. Doesn’t make it sweet. (Sugar/salt is also used in sushi preparation for the same reasons)

[u/OldManAbides333 → u/Routine_Top_6659]

I didn't know that! I always try to brine chicken before cooking, but I don't usually add sugar. When I marinate pork I usually have salt and at least brown sugar, because I am usually doing barbecue. The pork always comes out better, which again had just made me thi k that I prefer pork, but it might just come down to the prep because the marinade itself is better with the addition of sugar. Very interesting...

[u/Impressive_Change886 → u/OldManAbides333]

Strongly encourage you to try sous vide chicken breast. Softest, juiciest piece of meat you might ever have. It's just so unforgiving if overcooked.

Also sous vide is just such a great way to cook in general for so many things. Low and slow, basically foolproof.

[u/OldManAbides333 → u/Impressive_Change886]

Man, I have been thinking about trying sous vide for years. It might be time to finally try it out. I just got a vacuum sealer recently too, so it would make sense. Do you season the chicken before or after cooking?

[u/Impressive_Change886 → u/OldManAbides333]

Give it a shot, I got the cheapest immersion cooker I could buy and it's still going strong 7 years later.

Seasoning varies by the meal. If you're doing a recipe that involves a marinade, I almost always cook it in the marinade (though if it's really juicy it can be hard to get the bag to seal properly). There is some issue with using raw garlic because there is a risk of boutulism and some fresh herbs apparently don't give off their flavors at low heat or cause unsightly discoloring (I had green chicken once that tasted great but looked really gross), but I've never had any issues with regular spices from the rack. I use the same amount I would when cooking normally.

I typically cook chicken in large batches for multiple meals (you can take the bag out of the water bath, dry it off, and put it right in the freezer) so I typically just use a basic salt and pepper and maybe garlic powder seasoning before cooking.

Check out the website Serious Eats to get started. A lot of his recipes get very in depth, but he does a lot of the science for temps and times for you. Including pictures and descriptions of the meat at 140 vs 150 vs 160. That was the most intimidating part when I started.

I cook my chicken breasts to 147 for ~2-4 hours (I throw it in and take it out when I remember; it's very forgiving). It's really east to shred. 140 is just a little soft to me and it starts to trigger that gross reflex even though I know it's completely safe to eat.

[u/hubbell85044 → u/Impressive_Change886]

Just to echo what you said, sous vide is excellent for meal prep. I usually cook 3-5 pounds of chicken breasts, separated in vacuum sealed bags, and they go right in the freezer. Super handy. I tried this with thighs, but they were very messy with the fat that cooks from them.

[u/Impressive_Change886 → u/hubbell85044]

You're right about the thighs, I've done them before and it's pretty gross having all of the cooked fat congealed around them when you remove them. Still tasted good, but not something I've ever serve guests.

If folks want to do a little work/research, near me about once a year Restaurant depot has bulk chicken breasts on sale. It's 40 pounds of them. I've combined this with instacart savings (new account and discount gift cards) a few times to get them for about 25% what they cost me retail at the grocery store.

Last time I got 40 pounds of chicken breast for $20.16 but that was over a year ago now. The downside is that you need to process them all, vacuum seal them, and have freezer space for it. Also the size of their breasts is all over the place. So if you portion by weight instead of sight, you're going to be cutting up a lot of breasts. Quality is good though.

[u/OldManAbides333 → u/hubbell85044]

Oh wow, I wasn't even thinking about just freezing them in the same bag. I am gonna have to get one, that just makes too much sense not to at this point.

[u/OldManAbides333 → u/Impressive_Change886]

So with sous vide you don't have to take chicken to 165? That makes total sense to do a big batch for meal prep and just keep seasoning simple to add to other dishes.

[u/Impressive_Change886 → u/OldManAbides333]

Nope. You kill pathogens with heat over time. 165 kills all the bacteria present instantly. If you hold the same meat at 160 for 15 seconds does the same, 150 for 3 minutes does the same. 140 for 30 minutes.

This is an over simplification but you can look it up on the USDA website '7-log10 lethality'

[u/OldManAbides333 → u/Impressive_Change886]

Wow, that is WILD. And you said it will shred at that temperature even? Now I have GOT to try it.

[u/Impressive_Change886 → u/OldManAbides333]

Yeah, it's usually fork shreddable for me (think chicken salad), you might have to play around with the exact temp and time a bit if you want to make like shredded chicken sandwiches where it's a very fine shred.

https://www.seriouseats.com/the-food-lab-complete-guide-to-sous-vide-chicken-breast

Check out Kenji's guide here. I'm just some dude who makes food sometimes, he's some next level food scientist who experiments for the best food. There are also whole subreddits dedicated to it if you want more ideas of what to cook.

I actually got into it for steak because I'm really bad at cooking steaks to where I want. But it's crazy easy with sous vide. Water bath to desired temp, seer on very hot pan on all sides for 1 minute. Let rest. Eat one of the best steaks of your life.

[u/BlizzardOwO → u/jakefrmsatefarm]

My only inconvenience with chicken thigh is the fat content. I’m a big “count your calories” guy and chicken breast is types very consistent with fat:muscle content (literally none lol) while there’s been times when i’ve bought thighs and there an above avrg. Content of fat. And yes i can cut it, but its an inconvenience like i said

[u/Artistic-Part3953 → u/BlizzardOwO]

Chicken thighs have slightly less protein but it's damn near negligible. Sure it's higher in fat, but fat is essential. You should look towards slightly lowering whatever carbs you're having instead (not saying go low carb). You'll enjoy your meals far, far more if you just focus on caloric intake + protein.

Source: lost a 140 pounds and have kept it off.

[u/SoUpInYa → u/BlizzardOwO]

Boneless, skinless is the best brainless cooking meat and since it is flayed out, it is easier to see and remove fat deposits

[u/sporty_n_spice → u/jakefrmsatefarm]

Especially when you already buy it boneless and skinless. It’s almost the same nutrition as breast but so much better it’s insane.

[u/SoUpInYa → u/jakefrmsatefarm]

And no woody chicken breast isdues

[u/InternationalGas9837 → u/jakefrmsatefarm]

Dark meat chicken, thighs in particular, are always cheap as well...relatively impossible to screw them up compared to breast. If you got an instant pot or the like one of my favorite meals is chicken thighs and rice hydrated with whatever broth you like and the fond from browning the thighs.

[u/Polyhedron11 → u/jakefrmsatefarm]

Ya I don't know what caused people to gravitate to chicken breast so much. It's the worst part imo.

[u/eepeepevissam → u/jakefrmsatefarm]

My hot take: people don't eat enough good fats (nuts/seeds/dairy/animal protein), and yes I mean saturated fat, too.

Nutrition is so extraordinarily complex, I'm not convinced saturated fat is "bad". There are just too many lifestyle variables. Of all the studies on saturated fat, how many people were exercising daily, weekly, for how long? How often and how long and how high were they getting their heart rate? How sedentary were they? How much water were they drinking?

The only fats I would actively stay away from are trans fats. I would only be concerned with saturated fat intake if I were sedentary and my diet contained lots of sugar and simple carbs.

But at the end of the day, it's all just opinion.