Chicken: The Most-Eaten Meat That Supports Muscle and Brain–How to Get the Most From It

Chicken’s health benefits reach far beyond protein, and it’s no surprise it’s the most popular meat.

Illustration by Ran/The Epoch Times

Illustration by Ran/The Epoch Times

Chicken has quietly become America’s favorite meat, with consumption more than tripling since the 1960s. Beyond its role as a basic protein, chicken also provides essential nutrients including niacin, vitamins B6 and B12, zinc, selenium, and iron.

“Chicken is valuable because it delivers all of these micronutrients in a single source,” Gretchen Zimmermann, a registered dietitian and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, told The Epoch Times in an email.

Whether you fill your plate with a skinless breast, juicy dark meat thigh, or crispy wing, this humble bird delivers.

Illustration by Ran/The Epoch Times

Key Nutrients

“The most common misconception is labeling white meat as good and dark meat as bad. The nutritional differences between them are actually quite small,” Zimmermann said.

Here’s how a standard 3.5-ounce serving—about the size of a deck of cards—of both light and dark meat cooked chicken stack up:

Illustration by Ran/ The Epoch Times

Health Benefits

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Chicken offers a range of benefits that support muscle health, satiety, and overall long-term health.

“As a practicing dietitian, I often recommend including chicken as part of a balanced eating pattern,” Jessica Clancy-Strawn, a registered dietitian nutritionist, told The Epoch Times.

Supports Muscle Mass

Chicken protein supports muscle maintenance and growth in older adults, especially when combined with resistance exercise. A randomized trial published in Physiology Reports studied senior women and found that combining resistance training and eating about 22.5 grams of protein from chicken three times a week led to greater increases in muscle strength and lean body mass than either intervention alone. Eating chicken alone also modestly increased lean mass.

Chicken is a complete protein, meaning it provides all nine essential amino acids that your body cannot make on its own, including leucine, a key amino acid that helps stimulate muscle protein synthesis.

“For muscle maintenance and healthy aging, this complete profile is essential,” Zimmermann said.

As we age, we naturally lose muscle mass and function, she said. Eating high-quality protein, such as chicken, helps counteract decline by providing the building blocks needed to repair and retain lean tissue.

“In terms of body composition, this supports a higher metabolic rate, since muscle burns more calories at rest than fat tissue, making it easier to maintain a healthy weight and functional strength over time,” Zimmermann added.

Leucine activates the mTOR pathway, the body’s signaling system for building new muscle, especially when combined with resistance training.

Helps Keep You Sated

Both white and dark meat chicken can help promote fullness and support appetite control by lowering ghrelin, the primary hunger hormone, and increasing GLP-1 and other satiety-related hormones.

A 2020 meta-analysis found that hormonal changes from high-protein meals were associated with increased feelings of fullness and reduced hunger, desire to eat, and expected food intake in healthy adults.

“Protein suppresses hunger hormones and takes longer to digest,” Zimmermann said.

May Offer a Brain Boost

Chicken may also support aspects of cognitive function. A 2021 meta-analysis published in Nutritional Neuroscience found that daily consumption of “essence of chicken,” a concentrated chicken extract, was associated with modest improvements in cognitive function, particularly working memory.

“Chicken is an excellent source of choline, a nutrient the brain uses to create acetylcholine. This chemical messenger is essential for memory, mood, and learning,” Zimmermann said.

Tryptophan, the amino acid that is often linked to post-Thanksgiving turkey sleepiness, is also used to make serotonin. Pairing chicken, a source of tryptophan, with carbohydrate-rich foods may help more tryptophan enter the brain and support serotonin synthesis.

Additional Benefits

Chicken can help your body turn food into energy. White meat, especially, is an excellent source of niacin and vitamin B6, two B vitamins that help convert carbohydrates, fats, and protein into usable energy.

Meanwhile, dark meat can be especially useful nutritionally for athletes, women with heavy menstrual cycles, and those at risk of iron deficiency because it contains nutrients involved in red blood cell production and oxygen delivery. “It contains more iron,” Clancy-Strawn said.

Chicken may also play a role in healthy aging through both its nutrient profile and its place in overall dietary patterns. It naturally contains carnosine and anserine, compounds concentrated in muscle tissue that are being studied for their antioxidant properties and potential roles in aging processes, including oxidative stress and muscle function. Higher levels are found in breast meat than in other cuts. Researchers are also exploring functional food approaches to enhance the levels of these compounds in chicken meat.

In a study of nearly 20,000 older adults with frailty, each additional 25 grams per day of unprocessed poultry was associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality, whereas processed meat was associated with the opposite.

How to Increase Absorption

Chicken’s protein and micronutrients are already highly bioavailable, so no special preparation or food combining is needed to absorb most of the key nutrients. However, there are ways to maximize its nutritional benefits:

• Don’t Overcook It: One of the most common culinary mistakes, according to Isaac Bernal, executive chef of the representation of Spain to the United Nations, is overcooking chicken. Excessive heat can reduce some B vitamins, particularly niacin and vitamin B6. Cook to the proper internal temperature of 165 F and avoid prolonged high-heat cooking when possible. “Allowing the meat to rest for a few minutes after cooking also helps keep those natural juices where they belong,” Bernal told The Epoch Times in an email.
• Eat the Dark Meat Too: Chicken thighs and drumsticks generally provide more iron and zinc than breast meat.
• Eat Protein Throughout the Day: For muscle growth and support, research suggests it’s generally more effective to eat adequate protein at multiple meals rather than getting most of it at once.

Optimal Storage

How you store chicken depends on whether it’s raw, cooked, or whether you’re freezing either:

Raw Chicken

• Store raw chicken in the refrigerator in its original packaging or place it in a leak-proof container.
• Place it on the bottom shelf to reduce the risk of drips contaminating other foods.
• Cook within one to two days.

Leftover Cooked Chicken

• Refrigerate leftovers within two hours of cooking and store in an airtight container.
• Eat within three to four days.

To Freeze Raw or Leftover Cooked Chicken

• Wrap tightly in freezer-safe packaging or airtight containers to prevent freezer burn.
• Raw chicken can typically be frozen for up to nine months, while a whole chicken can be frozen for up to a year.
• Cooked chicken can be frozen for two to six months for maintaining the best texture.
• For the best quality, thaw frozen chicken in the refrigerator rather than at room temperature.

Pro Tips

Nutritionally speaking, the cooking method for chicken matters. “Baking, roasting, and grilling preserve the nutrients without adding unnecessary fat,” Zimmermann said.

For juicier meat, keep the skin on while cooking—it can be removed afterward if you prefer a leaner result. “I often cook with the skin on because it protects the meat, helps retain moisture, and develops fantastic flavor,” Bernal said.

While skin does add fat, the impact is moderate. “The calorie difference between skinless and skin-on is relatively small,” Zimmermann said.

Most of the fat in skin is unsaturated fat, including oleic acid, the same heart-healthy fat found in olive oil. About 30 percent is saturated fat, while the remainder is monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat.

“Keeping [the skin] on for flavor and moisture is a perfectly reasonable choice within a balanced diet,” Zimmermann said.

Marinades made with yogurt, citrus, olive oil, herbs, or mild spices work by helping improve both flavor and texture, Bernal said.

Grandma was right—chicken soup may really help fight colds. Simmering chicken bones releases the amino acid cysteine, which helps thin out mucus.

Keep a bag in the freezer for leftover bones and carcasses, then use them to make homemade broth. In addition to reducing food waste, bone broth creates a nutrient-rich, cold-fighting base for soups, stews, and sauces.

For maximum benefits, limit highly processed chicken products and frequent use of high-risk cooking methods such as deep frying, which can add excess sodium, unhealthy fats, and harmful compounds formed during high-heat cooking.

For better texture and flavor, try searing chicken on the stovetop first, then finishing it in the oven. This two-step method creates a crispy, golden exterior while keeping the inside juicy, and it also reduces the risk of smoking out your kitchen from high-heat pan cooking alone.

Chicken breasts are naturally teardrop-shaped, with one end thicker than the other, which can cause them to cook unevenly. To ensure more even cooking and prevent dryness, you can gently pound them to a more uniform thickness before cooking.

Recipe: Balsamic Dijon Wings

Balsamic Dijon wings stay naturally juicy and tender thanks to the dark meat and are baked in a simple marinade that doubles as a lightly sweet, sticky glaze.

Balsamic Dijon Wings

Total Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Servings: 3 to 4

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon avocado oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 to 2 pounds (about 12 to 18 bone-in split wing pieces)
• Chopped cilantro for garnish, optional

Instructions 

1. Combine Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar, avocado oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a small bowl and mix well. Set aside 2 tablespoons of the mixture to use as a glaze later. Pour the remaining marinade over the chicken wings in a large container or a zip-top bag, then toss to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 425 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove wings from the marinade and arrange in a single layer on the baking sheet.
3. Bake wings for 20 minutes, then flip, brush with the reserved glaze, and bake for an additional 20 minutes, or until cooked through with an internal temperature of 165 F. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro, if using.

Precautions

1. Cook chicken thoroughly to reduce the risk of foodborne illness, such as Salmonella.
2. Preventing cross-contamination is equally important during prep. “Use separate cutting boards, wash knives and utensils thoroughly, and never place cooked chicken back onto a plate that previously held raw chicken,” Bernal said.
3. Don’t rely on color alone to judge doneness—always use a food thermometer. “Chicken should always reach an internal temperature of 165 F,” Bernal said.
4. “Individuals with reduced kidney function should consult a nephrologist or registered dietitian to determine safe protein intake,” Clancy-Strawn said.

Fun Facts

• Chickens are the closest living relatives to the T-rex.
• Chickens have a complex vocabulary of 30-plus clucks and calls.
• White meat versus dark meat is about the chicken’s level of exercise—their thighs are darker than their breasts because chickens walk more than they fly. The leg muscles need more oxygen, so they contain more myoglobin, which gives dark meat its color.
• You can determine the color a chicken egg will be by looking at the chicken’s earlobe.

Tips for Kids

Make chicken more engaging for kids by serving it in fun ways such as kabobs, dippers, or mini sliders. It also works well as a vehicle for nutrient-rich dips such as guacamole, hummus, Greek yogurt ranch, and even applesauce.

Instead of relying on fast-food-style nuggets, homemade versions can be a simple alternative.

“You can slice chicken tenders, coat them lightly in whole wheat breadcrumbs, and air fry them at home,” Zimmermann said.

Illustration by Ran, The Epoch Times

For dinner, pair chicken with complex carbohydrates such as sweet potato wedges, whole-grain pasta, or brown rice. Healthy carbs may help support the natural tryptophan–serotonin pathway, which plays a role in melatonin production and helps them settle down for bedtime.

For younger kids and toddlers, large chunks of meat can pose a choking risk, so shredded chicken is often a safer and more versatile option.

Clancy-Strawn also added that the naturally higher fat content in dark meat adds moisture and tenderness, making it easier for them to chew, swallow, and digest it.

Another kid-friendly option is to make meals interactive. “Deconstructed taco bowls are a fun way to serve chicken,” Zimmermann said. “Set out small bowls of shredded chicken, black beans, corn, diced avocado, and a little cheese, and let kids build their own taco bowl or fill whole wheat tortillas. It makes mealtime more engaging and less intimidating for picky eaters.”