Frozen chicken breasts take at least 50 percent longer to bake than thawed chicken breasts. For example, a thawed chicken breast takes around 30 minutes to bake, so a frozen one cooks in about 45 minutes.
For reasons of safety and taste, it is advisable to thaw chicken breasts before cooking. However, if cooks must use frozen chicken breasts, they must make sure to bake them at an adequate temperature — at least 350 degrees. Also, it is essential to use a meat thermometer. Chicken breasts are safe to eat when their internal temperature reaches 165 degrees; the baking process takes longer with frozen chicken. Bone-in chicken breasts usually take twice as long to cook as boneless chicken breasts, so people looking to save time should choose boneless.
It is never advisable to prepare frozen chicken breasts in a crock pot because the temperature will not be not high enough to neutralize salmonella and camphylobacter bacteria. Also, when baking frozen chicken, cooks need to make sure to use the breasts (or thighs) instead of the whole bird. Whole birds do not cook evenly when frozen; while the skin may look crisp, the interior might be ice-cold and raw. Finally, cooks will know that the frozen chicken breasts are ready when their juices run clear, not pink.
