Many types of chicken on the menu

I think there are too many types of chicken breasts sold in the modern grocery store. From the traditional bone-in, skin-on half breast, we now see a wide range of selections: skinny tenders, thin slices, individually wrapped filets, already grilled (or painted with grill marks), chopped into chunks, ground and (my favorite) boneless, skinless, beautifully trimmed breasts.

Depending upon your recipe selection, there may be a place for each of these, but I think some of them offer convenience over quality. For deep-fried, oven roasted, or a complex dish like chicken adobo (marinated, braised, then browned) you need to select bone-in, skin-on pieces.

For other recipes, such as the rolled, stuffed chicken in the photo, it was less costly to purchase boneless, skinless breasts, instead of a package of thin slices. The pieces sold sliced tend to be random in size and shape, often sporting ragged edges. Both of these features can be avoided by starting with a boneless breast and slicing through horizontally to create uniform pieces.

A similar issue occurs with chicken tenders (both the name of the dish and the part of the chicken). If you've ever seen a package of tenders, you may have noticed they have an unattractive nub of tendon at one end, which cooks into a chewy piece of gristle, so you will want to snip it off first. The actual tenderloin is about an inch or so wide and about 5 inches long, attached to the underside of the breast. If you have boneless breast halves, you will want to remove the tender, as it cooks more quickly and can become dried out. Collect them in a freezer bag until you have enough to make breaded tenders for the family. Or, you can make your own "tenders" by cutting that boneless breast into uniform pieces about one-half-inch thick.

No matter what type of chicken breast you buy, you'll likely want to do a little cleaning up to remove anything white, yellow or bloody left by the butcher. Often, despite deboning and removing the skin, the breast meat will still have a thin layer of clear or white connective tissue. You'll want to remove this by sliding a boning knife under the skin strip and tugging off the entire layer.

The next step is removing the tissue where the cartilage met the wing bone. This is usually recognizable for the deep red of residual blood vessels and the white or yellow skin and cartilage. Again, use your boning knife to slice along beneath it, while your other hand tugs and maintains tension to cut it cleanly away.

Now you're ready to cut that lovely breast meat into tenders, slices or chunks, or leave it whole to poach, braise or bake seasoned with a variety of spices. For this week's recipes, I've included the chicken pinwheels in the photo. These are stuffed with a mixture of goat cheese, fresh basil and sun-dried tomatoes, served with a richly seasoned tomato puree.

For chicken chunks (either purchased already cut or trimmed from whole breasts) here's a good appetizer option for sesame chicken nuggets with peanut dipping sauce. The final recipe is good when you want to get something on the table swiftly or have on hand for lunch the next day.

Chicken Pinwheels

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
2 oz goat cheese
1/4 C shredded basil leaves
1 T chopped sun-dried tomato
1 minced shallot
1/2 t oregano
1/2 t parsley
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1/2 t melted butter
1 T Parmesan cheese
seasoned tomato puree

Preheat oven to 350 F. Coat the inside of a small baking pan with nonstick cooking spray; set aside. Cut through the chicken breasts horizontally into 2 or 3 slices. Place the chicken between sheets of wax paper and pound gently to 1/4-inch thick; set aside. In a small mixing bowl, combine goat cheese, basil, sun-dried tomato, shallot, oregano, salt and pepper into a smooth paste. Spread the cheese mixture evenly onto the chicken pieces. Roll up chicken and place in the prepared baking pan, seam side down. Brush the tops of the pinwheels with melted butter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake until cooked through, about 25 to 30 minutes. Served drizzled with tomato puree and additional Parmesan cheese.

Sesame Chicken Nuggets

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 t olive oil
2 T creamy peanut butter
2 T soy sauce
2 T seasoned rice wine vinegar
1/2 t toasted sesame oil
1/2 t crushed red pepper flakes
2 T sesame seeds

Cut the chicken into 1-inch chunks. Heat the olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken chunks and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned. While chicken is cooking, whisk together peanut butter, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil and red pepper until well blended; set aside. When chicken is cooked, toss with sesame seeds to coat.

Plate with decorative toothpicks and serve with peanut sauce for dipping.

Deviled Chicken Breasts

2 T honey
2 T grainy mustard
2 t Dijon mustard
1 T red wine vinegar
1/2 C breadcrumbs
1/2 t tarragon
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
4 skinless, boneless breast halves
1 T olive oil

In a shallow bowl, whisk together honey, both mustards and vinegar; set aside. Combine the bread crumbs, tarragon, salt and pepper, and spread on a plate.

Dip the chicken pieces in the mustard mixture, coating completely. Dredge each piece in the bread crumbs; set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium. Add the chicken pieces and cook, turning once, until golden outside and cooked through, about 6 to 8 minutes.