Chicken breasts have little connective tissue; that means they can be cooked quickly because the long cooking time needed to soften connective tissue isn't necessary. They also have little fat, which means they can become dry if cooked too long. One way to ensure juicy, moist chicken is to brine it before cooking. To brine chicken, place thawed chicken breasts in a solution of salt and water for about 1 hour in the refrigerator. The cells will absorb water through osmosis. Laura Dolson, About.com's Low Carb Diets Guide told me that Trader Joes pre-brines their chicken as part of the koshering process. If your chicken has been pre-brined, I do not recommend brining again.

Many experts recommend that chicken breast meat must be cooked to an internal temperature of 170 degrees F, but others say 160 degrees F is fine. You will have moister chicken if you cook to 160 degrees F. According to Dr. O. Peter Snyder, the chicken has to reach a temperature of 160 degrees F for 5.2 seconds to kill pathogens. Now the USDA is recommending that, because of bird flu fears, chicken should be cooked to a temperature of 165 degrees F. Remember that the meat will continue to cook after it's removed from the heat; the internal temperature will rise about 5-10 degrees in the first few minutes it's off the heat.