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Depending on the cut of meat you use while cooking chicken will directly affect the manner in which you cook it. As a lean protein with not too much fat content to keep the meat moist or tender while being exposed to a heat source, it can be quite a delicate challenge to maintain a few precautions while cooking with it. The style in which you cook the meat also determines the ideal temperature to look out for along with the time it would take to cook chicken. Bone-in cuts of chicken typically need to achieve an internal temperature of 82 degrees Celsius, and boneless cuts of chicken are usually cooked fully at a temperature of 76 degrees Celsius.
Cooking a whole chicken, depending on the size of the bird, should take between 55-70 minutes and allowed to rest for a minimum of 20 minutes before being carved into. Bone-in chicken cuts might require between 20-40 minutes when cooked in a pan whereas boneless cuts might not need more than 10-12 minutes. Conversely, boneless chicken when grilled should need about the same time as cooking them in a pan whereas bone-in chicken might need a solid 15-30 minutes. An important measure one can take while cooking bone-in chicken is to brine the meat beforehand, with or without the skin. If you find yourself short on time and unable to put the chicken in a brine, you could also generously salt the surface of the protein and leave it in an open dish overnight to allow the saline to draw out the moisture in which the chicken will cook eventually. Make sure to wash off the excess before you season further or flavour the meat.
Having a solution made with salt, sugar, some whole spices and aromatics like lemongrass and garlic, along with an acidic source like lemon juice or vinegar, allows to lock-in the moisture in the meat intact as it cooks for longer periods of time. For a boneless chicken by-product like mince, adding a bit of stock or water to make a sauce or covering the pan in which the mince cooks, with a lid, helps retain the flavour and moisture without letting it dry out too much. Stuffing a whole chicken or adding bits of lemon wedges, not just helps tenderize the fibres in the lean chicken but also activate juices that keep cuts like chicken breast to stay moist once cooked. Whenever a recipe calls for chicken cuts and does not specify which particular cut of meat to use, try to pick the chicken thigh as opposed to a steak of chicken breast. Not only is it a cheaper cut of meat, but also full of flavour.
