How to reheat baked chicken

How To Reheat Baked Chicken

The good old chicken, you can bake, fry, grill, or make it to ground chicken. There are a million recipes that involve chicken, but by far, the best and the healthiest way to cook chicken is by baking it. While baking is great, how to reheat baked chicken?

Baking a chicken removes the excess fat and yet remains juicy. Also, baking a chicken is very simple. Baking a chicken only involves seasoning it and putting it in the oven with the right settings. Presto! You now have a baked chicken. 

In your excitement, you might have baked too many, and now you have some leftovers. Since you have leftovers, why not save them for tomorrow? But how do you reheat your baked chicken, though? 

Heating it is one thing, but can you bring out the juiciness of it again? Also, it is best that you only reheat once to get the best results. You don’t want a dry and stiff chicken.

Reheating Baked Chicken

Reheating your chicken is a must if you are going to eat it the next day. After all, nobody wants a cold and stiff chicken. However, it’s not just about putting the heat back in. You also need to make sure the chicken does not dry out. A dry chicken isn’t juicy and is hard. It’s not disgusting, but it sure is not the ideal chicken.

As a general rule in reheating chicken, you need to reheat the chicken the way it was cooked. So for baking a chicken, you are most likely going to use an oven to do it. Since you baked using an oven, do you reheat in the oven? Yes, it that simple.

But is it really that important to reheat your chicken in the oven? Is there any other way? Reheating your chicken in the oven brings back the chicken’s juicy taste.

Using any other method like a microwave, for example, dries out the chicken. It’s hot, but the meat is stiff. But if you have no choice, and you need to use a microwave, you can. Pour some olive oil or water before putting it in the microwave. That way, it doesn’t dry out that much, 

With that said, here is how you can reheat your baked chicken. 

Reheating Baked Chicken In The Oven

First, remove the chicken from the fridge and allow the chicken to settle at room temperature. It will avoid making the chicken cold on the inside but warm on the outside. Next, preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cooking in a preheated chicken allows for quicker cooking and a more even heat distribution. 

After prepping, place the chicken in a high-sided baking dish. Add ¼ inch water to the baking dish as a precaution in avoiding drying out the chicken. If you have chicken broth, use those instead to add more taste to the chicken. 

Now place the chicken in the oven and wait for it to heat up. How long to reheat chicken in oven at 400 degrees? A good indicator that the chicken is ready is when the liquid is now boiling and the chicken hot throughout. Make sure that every part of the chicken is evenly hot. You are going to look for 75 degrees Fahrenheit throughout.  

Reheating Baked Chicken In Separate Parts

You might not have stomach or guests to serve an entire chicken and may want to reheat it in different parts. Well, you can reheat the chicken in different parts, and here’s how. 

It’s easy to reheat the chicken in several parts, either the breast, wings, or legs. But since it is not a whole chicken, cooking is much faster. So make sure to keep an eye on it from time to time. To have a more precise reheat, grab a thermometer and check it. We want to make sure that we only reheat the chicken and not recook it. Otherwise, it will dry out or get burned. 

Reheating your baked chicken is still the same, except for the wings and legs. The chicken breast still needs water to keep the meat moist and juicy. As for the wings and legs, they are can be reheated without water to make them crispy. Then again, it’s up to your preferences. 

If you are reheating much smaller pieces, wrap them in tin foil and bake them. 

Different Ways To Reheat Your Baked Chicken 

But perhaps, your baked chicken is from a family reunion, and you took it home. However, you don’t have an oven at home. Well, there are other ways to reheat your baked chicken which we will explore. 

Reheating Baked Chicken In A Air Fryer

Prepare your baked chicken beforehand by removing them from the fridge and let it settle until it warms up to room temperature. While doing so, preheat the air fryer up to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, coat the chicken with non-stick spray and put it in the air fryer. Reheat the chicken for four minutes. 

Reheating Baked Chicken Using A Skillet

Remove the chicken from the fridge and allow it to settle at room temperature. Next, prepare your skillet over medium heat and add a bit of water or preferably chicken broth at the bottom. Once the water starts to simmer, place the chicken. Stir the chicken until it is nice and hot.

Many recipes use a skillet. If you are hunting for skillet related recipes, see our 10 Cookbooks For Cast Iron Skillets

Conclusion

Baking a chicken is one of the best ways to cook a chicken. It removes the unnecessary fat and yet still allowing the chicken to be juicy and tasty. But if you had your fill and want to save it the next day, it’s perfectly fine! Reheating your chicken once is no problem at all. But if you can, avoid reheating chicken twice because it would ruin it. 

You don’t have to reheat your chicken all at once. Reheat only when you need to. Satisfy what you need for the meal, and use the rest for the next meal. Simply carefully the instructions above, and you are on your way to reheating baked chicken simple and easy. 

Baking a chicken can be done in several ways, and here are some of our recipes. If you are a beginner, here are our simple recipes for baked chicken.

About The Author

Scroll to Top