Onion Marinated Chicken

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Apart from salt, the three main things that have a tenderizing effect on meat proteins are : 

Alkaline solutions - e.g. baking soda, in my Simple Soy Chicken Marinade

Acidic solutions - e.g. yogurt or tomato marinade like this Indian Inspired Chicken Marinade

Enzymes  - e.g., proteolytic enzymes in onions. Inspired by this post on reddit, I had forgotten about the effect that onions had on meat. I had mainly avoided enzymatic tenderizing with defrosting meat, because long marinades tend to make meats very mushy after a long marinade. Also, many fruit marinades tend to impart fruity flavor to the meat. Onions have a wonderful flavor, and 48 hour marinades (at least on chicken thighs) doesn't turn the meat to mush. 

There's an extra tender steak dish calls Chaliapin Steak in Japan, which uses pounded steak that's been sliced, with minced onions. This dish aims to replicate that effect, but starting with a piece of frozen skinless chicken thigh / breast. If using fresh chicken, score the meat and marinate for a minimum of 30minutes. 

I like to do an overnight marinade for my frozen meats, to give them ample time to defrost properly and absorb the marinade. The flexibility of having marinated meats in the fridge that can be made into a "tiny sheet pan mean" by baking them for 10-15minutes means I always have a healthy snack ready. Raw marinated meats can be safely kept in the fridge for 2 days according to the USDA. Pork, beef, lamb, veal, is good for 3-5 days. 

As always, the other trick to tender meat is to not overcook everything. Get a cheap instantread thermometer or fancy wireless thermometer, and time how long it takes everything to reach your desired temperature (so you don't need to measure next time). Everybody's equipment and meat thickness is different, and this is the only way to guarantee your food is not overcooked, yet safe. 

This is a simple marinade, pairing oyster sauce with minced onions (some garlic and a touch of ginger). I occasionally use the same marinade (with extra onions) with chicken wings and potatoes in an oven proof casserole dish / glass container that can be baked for 30min till the top of the wings are browned, and the potatoes soft. 

INGREDIENTS

PREP

1) Dice, mince or blend onions, garlic and ginger. Most of you will use more garlic cloves. 
If using fresh chicken, lightly make perpendicular cuts on one side of the meat, and light vertical cuts on the other side.
Cuts should be less than half of the thickness of your meat.
This is to aid the onion enzymes and salt from the oyster sauce in penetrating the meat. 

2) Mix onions with oyster sauce.

3) Place in a container with chicken thighs / breast (or meat of your choice). 

Optionally use a ziplock bag, squeezing all the air out. 

4) Seal or cover your container, and place in the fridge overnight if using frozen meat, for at least 30min if using fresh meat. 

Raw chicken can be refrigerated for 2 days, pork, beef, lamb can go for at least 5 days. 

COOKING 1 (PAN FRY)

1) Pat dry the chicken, and place it on a hot pan with some neutral oil over a medium heat

2) Flip every two minutes, for around 10-15 minutes, depending on how thick your meat is, or until your meat has reached a safe internal temperature. 

Optionally, dust the chicken with some garlic powder (pepper, paprika, etc) mid way to give it a better crust. 

3) Rest the chicken for 5-10 minutes before eating. 

COOKING 2 (BAKED / SHEET PAN)

1) Pat dry the chicken, and place it on an oiled sheet pan. 

Optionally glaze it with butter, and sprinkle some garlic powder / pepper / paprika on it. 

2) Crank the oven to max (Mine goes up to 250C / 480F) for 10-15min, or until your meat reaches a safe internal temperature. 

3) Rest the chicken for 5-10 minutes before eating. 

COOKING 3 (BAKING CASSEROLE)

We prepare a bed of baked potatoes, then add the raw chicken thighs / breasts on top to finish. This is to prevent overcooking the chicken. 

Chicken wings are amazing when cooked this way, and can be cooked together with the potatoes at 180C / 350F, as they have more fat and connective tissue that melts into the potatoes. 

1) Preheat oven to 180C / 350F.

2) Prep a casserole dish by peeling and layering slices of potato on the bottom of a casserole dish / baking try, 

3) Empty out the marinade (or make a new sauce) into a sauce pan, adding some butter, cream, garlic and pepper, whisking until combined. (Return the chicken to the fridge while you do this). 

4) Pour your sauce onto the potatoes, topping up with more cream / stock / water if necessary. 

5) Place the dish in the middle of your oven. 

6) Bake at 180C /350F for 30min until the potatoes are tender. (This can be done way before hand, and the prepped casserole dish kept in the fridge for the final cook before serving)

7) Place the raw chicken onto the potatoes, and crank the oven to max (Mine goes up to 250C / 480F) for 10-15min, or until your meat reaches a safe internal temperature. 

8) Rest for 5-10 minutes before eating. 

Safe Internal Temperatures	°C				°F
Pork / Beef			71				160
Fish			63				145
Duck			60				140
Lamb			60				140
Chicken			73				163

Extra Reading

https://tipnut.com/tenderizers-work/

http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh/bitstream/handle/123456789/23489/Effect%20of%20Different%20Marinades%20on%20Quality%20Characteristics%20of%20Chevon%20Jerky.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskCulinary/comments/3pcf5b/onions_to_tenderize_meat_for_chaliapin_steak/

https://cookingwithdog.com/recipe/chaliapin-steak/

https://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/8010/why-do-you-marinade-steak-with-onions

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0308814605009325

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/food-science/tenderizing#:~:text=Enzyme%20tenderisation%20may%20be%20used,%2C%20and%20ficin%20(fig).

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/51776264_Meat_tenderization_by_proteolytic_enzymes_after_osmotic_dehydration

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285985838_Effect_of_marination_with_proteolytic_enzymes_on_quality_of_beef_muscle