Chipotle Just Revealed Its Top 3 Tips for Juicier Chicken, And Our Test Kitchen Pros Have Thoughts

Whether you’re using it for copycat Chipotle dishes or for your favorite classic chicken recipe, these tips for better, juicier chicken from the culinary pros at Chipotle will come in handy.

Even with our best-laid meal prep plans, we’re sometimes left lunchless on the busiest of workdays. Yes, we know it’s almost always healthier and more affordable to assemble something ourselves rather than resort to fast food when the clock strikes noon—but sometimes we forget or run out of time. When this situation arises, we’ll gladly take a grab-and-go option over skipping a meal any day.

One of our most frequent fast-casual stops is Chipotle. It’s customizable, quick, and crowd-pleasing, which means we can grab takeout for the entire team or even outsource catering for lunchtime meetings.

We’ve ordered it so many times that we now find ourselves trying to recreate some of its MVP menu items—from guacamole and pico de gallo to barbacoa and carnitas—in our Test Kitchen so we can savor similar flavors at home on taco night. (And, of course, so we can share these tested and perfected recipes with you!)

Sometimes, Chipotle is kind enough to reveal the tricks of the trade on social media. Earlier this summer, we spotted their 15-second video about their top three tips for juicy chicken, which has since racked up more than 2.5 million views on TikTok and more than 18,300 likes on Instagram. Clearly, we’re far from the only ones who give a cluck about Chipotle’s recipes and techniques.

Chipotle’s Top 3 Tips for Juicier Chicken

Of course, we had to take notes before immediately taking off to the Test Kitchen to ask our expert recipe testers and developers if they agree—and if these insider tips could get us closer to replicating the brand’s secret recipe.

Related: Delicious Copycat Recipes That Are Even Better Than the Originals

1. Choose Chicken Thighs Over Breasts

Compared to leaner chicken breasts, “chicken thighs tend to be more tender, juicier, and more forgiving on the grill or griddle,” says Sarah Brekke, MS, a Better Homes & Gardens Test Kitchen culinary specialist. (Chipotle sears them on a flat-top, but grilling or cooking chicken thighs in a cast iron skillet will provide similar results.) “The dark meat has a higher fat content and can retain more moisture during the cooking process.”

Chicken thighs are also typically thinner, with a more consistent thickness edge-to-edge—this allows for more even cooking.

“How many times have you placed a chicken breast on the grill or in a pan, only to notice one side of the breast is tapered or thinner?" says Brekke, agreeing wholeheartedly with this Chipotle-backed tip. "By the time the thicker side is safely cooked, the thinner end is overcooked and leathery. This happens far less often when working with thighs."

Test Kitchen Tip

You can avoid some of these challenges with chicken breasts by putting in a little more effort: Either use a meat mallet to pound each chicken breast to an even thickness (like we do with Lemon Butter Chicken Breasts) or use a sharp knife to butterfly the chicken breasts (see our recipe for Ham-and Asparagus-Stuffed Chicken).

Plus, when working with thinner pieces of chicken (which you'll get when you opt for boneless, skinless chicken thighs), you'll naturally be supplied with more surface area. “More surface area means more flavor from seasonings or marinades and more browning,” says Brekke.

2. Flip When It’s 70% Cooked

Speaking of browning, that’s the goal with this second chicken tip from Chipotle. The brand recommends cooking chicken thighs 70% of the way through on one side before using tongs to flip them to the other side until the meat reaches a safe cooking temperature (165°F to 170°F, says Brekke).

As you flip the chicken thighs, the seared side should look charred to the point that it's reminiscent of root beer in color, says a Chipotle cook in the viral video.

“Letting the chicken cook undisturbed a majority of the way on one side allows for lots of color and flavor development," says Brekke. "This is due to a process called the Maillard reaction during which, as the meat cooks, the proteins in meat react with carbohydrates often found in marinades and seasoning blends."

This natural chemical reaction results in browning, rich flavor development, and delicious aromas. Resist the temptation to flip the chicken multiple times; the longer it cooks on one side, the more time this Maillard magic will have to take place, says Brekke.

Related: 14 Delicious Mexican Chicken Recipes to Add to Your Meal Rotation

3. Cut Skin-Side Down in Bite-Sized Pieces

We’re a little stumped about the final tip: “Cut with skin-side down and aim for bite-sized pieces.”

Chipotle’s chicken recipe features boneless, skinless chicken thighs, so we’re guessing they’re implying seared-side down. That means placing the darker side, the one that was 70% seared, face-down on the cutting board.

“I haven’t come across any evidence that it really matters how you chop it up after cooking,” Brekke says. We reached out to Chipotle to clarify what they meant about this, but as of press time, we have not received a response.

What really matters at this point, she admits, is allowing the meat that has been cooked to 165 degrees F to 170°F to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before chopping. This allows the proteins to relax a bit, which will encourage all of those tasty juices to stay put instead of flooding the cutting board.

In terms of cutting into bite-sized pieces to recreate Chipotle’s chicken, this is the move. If you use these chicken cooking tips for another recipe, slice, chop, or leave whole as recommended for that specific dish.

The Bottom Line

Two out of three isn’t bad—and there’s nothing officially wrong with the last tip. If you place the side that originally had skin on it facing the cutting board, that’s A-OK, it just doesn’t really make the chicken juicer or better than if you sliced it when flipped the other way around.

Now that you have these restaurant chicken tips in your repertoire, you’re all set to conquer these flavor-packed chicken recipes to bring along for lunch or to share with your family any night of the week. Or you can get going on recreating Chipotle chicken in your own kitchen!

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