Chicken leg
Dark meat that actually benefits from a higher core temperature.
Rare
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Medium rare
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Medium
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Well done
Rest time
Cooking helper: how long to go?
Check the core temperature of your chicken leg now and then. After two readings the helper works out when it will be done. Then start the rest timer.
1. Pick your doneness
2. Measure the core temperature
Measure every 5 to 10 minutes at the thickest point. Your readings are kept if you close the page.
3. Let it rest
Tip: large cuts rise another 2 to 5 °C while resting, so take them off a little before the target.
All internal temperatures in one chart · Resting meat: how long and why
About Chicken leg
A chicken leg is thigh and drumstick together, bone in and skin on. It is entirely dark meat, which means you can take it further than breast without drying it out.
The reason is connective tissue. Leg meat contains considerably more collagen than the breast, and that collagen only starts converting to gelatine above 70 degrees. At 74 degrees the leg is safe but still a little firm; around 78 degrees the conversion has progressed far enough for the meat to feel soft and juicy.
The bone complicates measuring. Heat travels inwards along the bone faster than through the meat, so a probe touching it reads too high while the meat just beside it is still behind. Insert it into the thickest meaty part and deliberately keep half a centimetre clear of the bone.
If you want crisp skin, dryness matters more than heat. Pat the legs dry, and if you have time leave them uncovered in the fridge for a few hours; surface moisture has to evaporate before anything can brown.
Tips
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Most voted
Donker kippenvlees wordt op 78°C malser dan op 74°C, omdat het bindweefsel dan pas omzet.
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