# How to make chicken chunks in curries more tasty **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 9, 2018, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498 "2018-02-09T05:27:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Fear\_the\_Turtle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_the_turtle/32/2926_2.png) [@Fear\_the\_Turtle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_the_Turtle)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2018, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/41 "2018-02-13T17:05:23Z")
> [@Mr\_Downtown](#): > > Now I’m sorry I only brought back one packet of the paste. I’ve had good luck with curry pastes I’ve gotten from Amazon: [https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb\_sb\_ss\_c\_1\_20?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=curry+paste+mae+ploy&sprefix=curry+paste+mae+ploy%2Caps%2C389&crid=3DUJRVJTRPIE3&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Acurry+paste+mae+ploy](https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_20?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=curry+paste+mae+ploy&sprefix=curry+paste+mae+ploy%2Caps%2C389&crid=3DUJRVJTRPIE3&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Acurry+paste+mae+ploy) Seems similar to what you describe above. Of course anything slightly better than “Bachelor Chow” is a feast for me. But if I can make it, anyone can. The are directions and recipe ideas right on the container. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2018, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/42 "2018-02-13T18:55:24Z")
> [@Fear\_the\_Turtle](#): > > I’ve had good luck with curry pastes I’ve gotten from Amazon: > [Amazon.com : curry paste mae ploy](https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_20?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=curry+paste+mae+ploy&sprefix=curry+paste+mae+ploy%2Caps%2C389&crid=3DUJRVJTRPIE3&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Acurry+paste+mae+ploy). Yeah, Mae Ploy are the curry pastes we use around chez pulykamell when we’re doing Thai. You can order on Amazon, but you can find them in various stores here in the Chicago area, too. ---
**Author:** ![YamatoTwinkie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/cc9497/32.png) [@YamatoTwinkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YamatoTwinkie)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2018, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/43 "2018-02-13T22:18:23Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > Kenji @ Serious Eats seems to prefer dry brining (salting and keeping cold for a while) over a brine soak. Although for his [Chicken Tikka Masala](http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/06/chicken-tikka-masala-for-the-grill-recipe.html) recipe, he uses a yogurt,lemon juice, ginger, and garlic marinade. ---
**Author:** ![Tabby\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tabby\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabby_Cat)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2018, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/44 "2018-02-14T00:44:04Z")
> [@Mr\_Downtown](#): > > I used up the rest of the breast tenderloins tonight in a Thai red curry, from paste I’d bought in Bangkok last year. Being a paste, I couldn’t marinate in it—plus, I procrastinated until dinner time. I pondered the various seasonings recommended upthread, but didn’t want to wander very far from whatever flavor the paste would give. I browned the cubes a bit more, and sprinkled them lightly with Lotta Zing® (mostly MSG) before adding the red curry paste and coconut milk (my first time cooking with either compound). > > The results were excellent! The chicken chunks may not actually have been much different from last week’s Tandoori curry, but the tout ensemble was very pleasing. Now I’m sorry I only brought back one packet of the paste. Good for you! I just wanted to say, though, that you can absolutely marinate something in paste. Just rub it on, it’s like a dry rub. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2018, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/45 "2018-02-14T02:13:53Z")
Last time I made a similar dish I put the seasoned chicken in zippies and dropped those into a water bath heated with an immersion circulator. Not properly sous vide because it’s not under vacuum. IIRC it was a 65C bath. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2018, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/46 "2018-02-17T00:06:10Z")
Dark meat or a mix of white and dark. White is great if you’re just eating a piece of chicken, but in a dish using chicken, dark can add needed flavor. I don’t eat “curries” but did like McNuggets a lot better before they new and “improved” them to “100% white meat”. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2018, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/47 "2018-02-17T00:18:20Z")
> [@TBG](#): > > Dark meat or a mix of white and dark. White is great if you’re just eating a piece of chicken, but in a dish using chicken, dark can add needed flavor. I don’t eat “curries” but did like McNuggets a lot better before they new and “improved” them to “100% white meat”. I don’t understand the preference for white meat. Apparently a lot of people don’t like strong flavors. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2018, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/48 "2018-02-17T05:42:12Z")
I don’t understand the preference for McNuggets. Have they started making them out of food yet? ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2018, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/49 "2018-02-17T12:22:55Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > I don’t understand the preference for white meat. Apparently a lot of people don’t like strong flavors. I know some people cling to the “it’s healthier” nonsense. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2018, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/50 "2018-02-17T12:51:39Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > I don’t understand the preference for McNuggets. Have they started making them out of food yet? Yes. They’re made of chicken (breast, tender, skin, and rib meat is what they specifically use.) And the coating has your usual stuff like flour, leavening agents, oil, spices, etc. And they’re delicious. I sometimes make my own nuggets out of chicken thigh chunks here at home, and they’re delicious, too, but I wish I could make a proper McNugget clone with ground-up chicken. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2018, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/51 "2018-02-17T13:12:00Z")
To make the chinks more tasty, use something other than breast meat. Breast meat is the most unsuitable part of the chicken for curry. The thigh is the best Other things you can try are to marinate in yogurt or crushed stewed tomatoes before cooking. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2018, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/52 "2018-02-17T14:59:18Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > I don’t understand the preference for white meat. Apparently a lot of people don’t like strong flavors. I’m reminded of the part in _Methuselah’s Children_ where the group finds an ‘ideal’ planet. There are plants that grow any kind of food (analogue), much like the food replicators in _Star Trek_ can; only the ‘fruit’ grows instead of being replicated and IIRC it’s not shaped like what it tastes like. The family were astounded at how good the food was. The indigenous inhabitants of the planet created the plants by probing minds to see what humans eat. They chose the memories of Lazarus Long because he was old enough to remember what foods were supposed to taste like. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2018, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/53 "2018-02-17T15:00:23Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > To make the chinks more tasty… I am _ **not** _ going to make a Chinese food joke here. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2018, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/54 "2018-02-17T19:20:28Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > I am _ **not** _ going to make a Chinese food joke here. You just did. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498/55 "2018-02-18T00:55:46Z")
> [@Mr\_Downtown](#): > > Thighs have bones that have to be removed at some point. Not when you’re making chicken curry. Just leave the bones in. Chicken curry is supposed to have bones. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-chicken-chunks-in-curries-more-tasty/808498.md?page=2)