Why You Should Skip Buying This Cut Of Chicken At The Grocery Store

When it comes to buying raw chicken, the meat section of the grocery store can be intimidating. There are countless packages all advertising different cuts of chicken at different prices, with breasts and tenderloins often shelved next to each other. You may think that buying chicken tenderloins for making tenders makes more sense than getting breasts, but if you're focused on saving money, it's best to skip past the tenderloins.

Chicken tenderloins are actually poorly named, because they don't represent the same cut of meat as the tenderloin on a cow or pig. For chickens, the tenderloin is located underneath the breast, separated by a large tendon. While the shelving in a grocery store may make it seem like it's simply a thinly sliced chicken breast, the tenderloin is actually an entirely different part of the animal. The breast is one large part of the bird that gets sold as two pieces, while there are two small tenderloins per chicken. The price for tenderloins gets marked up because it's easier to take out of the package and use right away, so you're paying more for convenience than value.

When you're shopping for raw chicken, the breasts are generally the most economical option and have the most protein out of any cut of chicken. While you may feel like you only need the thinner cut tenderloins, buying breasts will give you more meat to work with, without losing out on anything the tenderloin offers. It is a bit of extra work, but it's very approachable and will open the door to many different uses for your chicken.

Even though chicken breasts and tenderloins are closely related, they do have their differences. Their proximity to each other on the bird means that they taste about the same, but the tenderloin is generally a bit more tender – go figure — to bite through than the breast. Even if sliced the same way though, the breast takes a bit longer to cook because the meat is thicker than that of the tenderloin.

To emulate the tenderloin with a chicken breast, simply butterfly the breast by slicing it longways down the middle into two flat halves, then slice those halves against the grain into tender-sized strips. That way, you can get more chicken tenders for your money, and if you wind up with more than you were planning to use in one sitting, simply store your raw chicken in the fridge until you're ready to use it. Just be aware that raw chicken is only good in the fridge for 1-2 days, so any longer than that and it should be frozen or prepared.

While there's nothing wrong with buying the pre-sliced chicken tenderloins from the grocery store, just know that you'll be paying more for less meat. If you're looking to make chicken tenders, you're going to get more food for your money if you opt for buying the breast and doing some slicing than if you just buy the tenderloins. They can be prepared the same way, it'll save you money, and if you know how to properly grill chicken tenders, nobody will know the difference.