You can keep shredded chicken moist by adding water or chicken stock to a bowl or pot of shredded chicken and covering it while keeping it warm.
Store any shredded chicken in a Ziploc bag or tightly covered airtight container.
You can fix tough shredded chicken by slow cooking it such as in a slow cooker or simmering it slowly in a pot of water.
Overcooking the shredded chicken is a common cause of tough shredded chicken.
Your shredded chicken can become rubbery or tough when it's cooked too long or cooked too fast at too high a temperature.
Slow cooking the chicken at a lower temperature or slow cooking the chicken in a slow cooker can prevent your chicken from becoming rubbery.
You can fix rubbery shredded chicken by putting the rubbery chicken in a braising liquid of any kind or even water and spices and allow it to cook low and slow which completely breaks down the protein fibers and makes the chicken soft and tender again.
There is no real difference between shredded chicken and pulled chicken other than the name as shredded chicken and pulled chicken are really the same thing.
Other than the chicken being pulled along the meats grain instead of shredding it with something such as a blender they both are the same thing.
Shredded and pulled chicken are very popular in tacos, pizzas, soups, sandwiches, enchiladas and casseroles and can also be added to salads.
The cut of chicken that is best for shredding is boneless, skinless chicken breasts as their fibers are perfectly aligned so the breast shreds easily and quickly.
To make the chicken breast shred more easily cook it for around 20 minutes and cut the breast in half crosswise before you shred it and shred it while it's still hot or warm.
It is better to shred chicken hot instead of cold as the hot chicken will shred and break apart more easily than cold chicken.
Allow the chicken to cool a minute or two and then shred it while it's still warm or hot.
Chicken only needs to rest for a few minutes before shredding so that it cools down enough to handle but you still want the chicken to be somewhat warm when shredding so that it breaks apart easily.
You can shred chicken within a few minutes after cooking once it has somewhat cooled down.
Boiling chicken to shred takes up to 20 minutes to be cooked enough so that it's soft enough and easiest to shred.
It's better to let chicken cool a bit before shredding but not completely cool as the chicken should be a little warm to shred it the best.
The hack to shredding chicken is to use a hand mixer or electric hand mixer and let the chicken cool a few minutes after cooking before shredding.
Place the chicken in a large and deep bowl and use an electric hand mixer on the low speed setting to gently break apart the chicken into shreds.
The best way to shred chicken is to place the cooked chicken in a deep bowl.
Then use a hand mixer on low speed to shred the cooked chicken by carefully breaking apart the cooked chicken into shreds.
During the shredding of the chicken with the electric hand mixer you may need to shred some larger pieces of chicken apart with your hand then use the mixer again to shred the chicken further.
If you don't have an electric hand mixer to shred the chicken you can also use your hands to shred the chicken.
To shred the chicken by hand first let the chicken cool until it's comfortable to handle, but still warm.
Then place the chicken on a cutting board. Using your fingers, pull the meat apart into shreds.
This method gives you the most control over the size and uniformity of the shredded chicken.
It's best to shred chicken when it's hot or warm and not when it's cold.
It's much easier to pull the chicken apart with your hands or forks when it's warm. However, if you are cutting or slicing chicken, it's easier to do so with a knife when it's cold.
Chicken should be boiled for at least 20 minutes before shredding so that it cooks soft enough to shred easily.
Once the chicken has totally cooked, let it sit for a minute or two to cool before shredding.
But don't wait too long.
For easy shredding, it's best to pull the chicken apart while it's still warm.
You can shred chicken or steak along the grater and quickly turn it into freshly ground meat just make sure your grater is sharp and high-quality for the best results.
Using a blender to shred chicken is not recommended.
The sharp blades of your blender will cut through the meat instead of pulling it apart for the desired shredded effect.
A blender will finely chop or even puree the meat instead of shredding it.