When the chicken remains undercooked, you can microwave it for complete its cooking. But you need to be careful when you microwave undercooked chicken as it is neither raw chicken nor cooked chicken nor frozen chicken. So, you can microwave undercooked chicken but with some conditions.
You can use the stovetop or convection oven or air fryer or microwave to prepare your favorite chicken. If the chicken is partially cooked and partially raw, you cannot take it for eating but you can recook it for a while to complete its cooking process and then serve it in the meal plate and eat it.
What is Undercooked Chicken?
Undercooked Chicken is partially cooked and partially raw. When you cook chicken, you must take care of the cooking temperature. If the chicken doesn’t receive enough temperature, it may remain undercooked in some parts.
When some parts of chicken are cooked properly and others are not, you can call it undercooked. The undercooked chicken is in a complicated condition that you must resolve by cooking it completely. You can microwave undercooked chicken to finish its cooking to get the original taste, color and texture.
Can You Eat Undercooked Chicken?
NO, you cannot eat undercooked chicken because it is quite dangerous. The chicken must go through a proper cooking process to get the inside bacteria destroyed.
If the chicken is undercooked, it means that it is not cooked completely and the bacteria still exist in that chicken.
If you eat undercooked chicken, it will cause food poisoning to make you sick. Not only that, you can get affected by food poisoning if you eat or drink something that came in direct contact with raw or undercooked chicken earlier.
The undercooked chicken doesn’t taste like the delicious cooked chicken. So, it is never a good idea to try eating undercooked chicken even if you don’t have any gadget to cook it. It is better to throw undercooked chicken in a dustbin than eating it without finishing its cooking process.
Can You Microwave Undercooked Chicken?
Yes, you can microwave undercooked chicken to finish its cooking safely and properly. When you get the chicken out of oven or stovetop and it is undercooked, you have a doubt if it is safe to microwave undercooked chicken or not. The answer is YES, it is safe to microwave undercooked chicken to get it cooked properly.
Not only the microwave, you can use a convection oven or stovetop or other cooking gadgets to recook undercooked chicken as soon as possible.
Can You Microwave Undercooked Chicken the Next Day?
No, you cannot microwave undercooked chicken the next day as it is not safe to cook or eat. When you cook chicken properly and you find out that it’s undercooked at the end, you should immediately finish its cooking to get it ready to eat or store.
You have to microwave undercooked chicken within 2 hours of completing its original/first cooking process. If you want to eat chicken the next day, it is better to finish cooking today and store it cooked in your refrigerator. Then you can reheat it the next day when you want to eat it.
In case you miss to finish cooking of undercooked chicken within 2 hours, it is not safe to recook in the microwave or any other cooking gadget.
How to Microwave Undercooked Chicken
Now, you know that you can microwave undercooked chicken but don’t know the step-by-step process. To help on how to microwave undercooked chicken safely and properly, here I provide a guideline for you.
Make sure that you have a food thermometer to check temperature of chicken at the end of the process. It will help you know that the chicken cooking is completed and safe to eat.
Step-1: Cut the Chicken into Pieces
If the undercooked chicken is a whole chicken, you should cut it down into pieces. Because the chicken pieces get cooked faster than the whole chicken.
Step-2: Place the Chicken Pieces in a Plate
You need to place the chicken pieces in a microwave-safe plate and keep the large pieces on outer side of the plate and small pieces on inner side. It will help large chicken pieces to get more heat to get cooked properly.
Step-3: Put the Chicken Plate in the Microwave with a Cup of Water
You should put the plate in the microwave and make sure that you keep it in the center of the microwave interior. You need to place a cup of water in the microwave so that the heat waves won’t dry out your chicken.
Step-4: Cover the Chicken with a Lid
You need a lid to cover the chicken plate. You can use another microwave safe plate as a lid to cover the plate. Make sure that you don’t block the possibility of heat waves to pass through chicken otherwise your microwave may build up pressure inside which may lead to an explosion.
Step-5: Microwave the Chicken at Medium Power Level
Set your microwave at medium (50%) power level and run it for 5 to 8 minutes for one pound of chicken. If the chicken quantity is more than one pound, you need to microwave it for longer.
Step-6: Monitor the Cooking Process
Some microwave ovens are more powerful than others. So, you should keep an eye on the chicken to monitor the cooking process. At any point, if you notice that the chicken is cooked well, you should turn off the microwave.
Step-7: Get the Plate Out and Flip Chicken Pieces
On completion of timer, you should open the microwave door and get the plate out. You should use the kitchen towel or any other tool to get the chicken plate out of the microwave without burning your fingers.
You should flip all chicken pieces so that they can get cooked on the other side as well. Use a spoon or fork to flip chicken pieces safely.
Step-8: Microwave the Chicken Again
You should put the chicken plate in the microwave and run it at medium power level for 5 to 8 minutes again.
Step-9: Check the Temperature
As the cooking cycle ends, open the microwave door and check the inner temperature with a food thermometer. You can place the thermometer on one of the chicken pieces to check the temperature. If it is nearby 165°F then the chicken is cooked properly.
After completing 9 steps of microwaving undercooked chicken safely, the chicken will be ready to serve and eat for your family.
How Long Should You Microwave Undercooked Chicken?
You should microwave undercooked chicken for 5 to 8 minutes or more depending upon the size and quantity. In addition to quantity, it is important to check how much the chicken is cooked before you put it into the microwave oven.
The minimum cooking time for undercooked chicken is 5 minutes but you should keep an eye on the microwave if there are small chicken pieces. The small pieces get cooked faster in the microwave compared to large pieces.
The power level of your microwave plays an important role. If you microwave undercooked chicken at low temperature, it may take longer than 10 minutes. On the other hand, the chicken may take less than 5 minutes if you microwave it at full power.
What is an Ideal Temperature to Microwave Undercooked Chicken?
An ideal temperature to microwave undercooked chicken is 165°F i.e. 73.9°C. The food experts recommend to cook or recook chicken at 165°F to get it properly cooked without any mistake.
Some microwave ovens mention the temperature level with each power level but not all. So, you need to check the inner temperature manually to set an ideal temperature for cooking undercooked chicken in your microwave.
Why is My Chicken Undercooked in the Middle?
Your chicken is undercooked in the middle because you tried to cook it at high temperature. Some people believe that cooking chicken at high temperature or full power can get it ready quicker but it is not true.
When you cook chicken at high temperature, the sides of chicken absorb more heat and the middle part gets limited heat. As a result, the sides of chicken gets cooked properly and shows up good color & texture. On the other hand, the middle part of chicken remains half-cooked (undercooked) and it doesn’t get any color or texture.
So, you should always cook chicken at medium power level to cook it properly and evenly without leaving any part undercooked.
How Can I Cook Chicken Completely at Once?
You should have enough knowledge about cooking chicken and the cooking gadget to cook chicken completely at once. It means that you should have learned how to cook chicken and for how long for different quantities.
When you have complete knowledge and some experience of cooking chicken, you can cook it completely in one time. In case you want to check if the chicken is cooked completely, you need to get a food thermometer to check its temperature.
The food thermometer is a safe device that lets you check temperature of any food. You just need to use the food thermometer to check if the chicken temperature is 165°F or below. If it is 165°F then it is completely cooked otherwise cook it for a few more minutes.
FAQs about Microwaving Undercooked Chicken
When you notice that your chicken is undercooked, you need fix it immediately. But you are not sure about how to recook undercooked chicken safely and you doubt if it’s safe to microwave or not.
Microwaving undercooked chicken is safe but you have to do it within 2 hours of last cooking process. To answer your queries regarding undercooked chicken, here I provide some FAQs and their answers in brief as follows.
Q.1 What do I do if my chicken is not fully cooked?
You should microwave chicken immediately if your chicken isn’t fully cooked. Microwaving your chicken for a few minutes will cook it completely, then you can eat it with your family.
Q.2 Can you Recook chicken that wasn’t fully cooked?
Yes, you can recook chicken that wasn’t fully cooked within 2 hours of cooking. If the chicken stays at room temperature for 2+ hours after partially cooked, it is not safe anymore for recooking.
Q.3 Can you put slightly undercooked chicken in the microwave?
Yes, you can put slightly undercooked chicken in the microwave to cook it completely to get its original taste and texture when eating it.
Q.4 Is it safe to microwave undercooked chicken?
Yes, it is completely safe to microwave undercooked chicken but do it within two hours of getting it out from any cooking gadget.
Final Verdict: Microwave Undercooked Chicken Safely
Undercooked Chicken is neither tasty nor safe to eat as it will cause food poisoning issue. Therefore you should microwave undercooked chicken within 2 hours of original cooking process to finish cooking it completely.
To microwave undercooked chicken safely, you should follow the guideline I have shared above. It will help you recook undercooked chicken in the microwave properly so that you can get the original chicken taste when eating it.
You need to microwave undercooked chicken for 5 to 8 minutes only. Make sure that you won’t burn it or dry it while cooking in the microwave. In case you are not sure, use a food thermometer to cook the chicken at 165°F to get it cooked properly.
