I cover my BSCB with saran wrap and have at it with a rubber mallet. I find it needs a few good initial whacks to break it up. Its never 'perfect', maybe for that you would need to roll them with a pin (covered with plastic).

I love working with chicken breasts; tt always gives me pleasure to beat my meat.

gbsim:
I use my small cutting board ( the edge not flat ),
if you use it flat, the Board might split in half.

I do this and all pounding on my heavy wood Work Top, so it doesn't make too much noise.

When I had the heavy Meat Cleaver , I used that flat, for pounding.

Make believe the Chicken , is someone you hate, like me.
Maybe you'd better not do that,
you will have Chicken Burgers.

Try working from the center ,out. Or use a rolling pin to pound away.
Lou

I put them in a plastic bag (not closed), put it on a cutting board and smash them with my rolling pin. Works every time. The rolling pin is big enough to cover a lot of ground (or chicken) with each smash.

I used to steal the rubber mallet from DH's tool box, until he got tired of retrieving it from my cupboard and bought me my own - LOL It's the best method I've found. I place the breasts between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and bang away.

Jessy, my husband beats my meat for me....

We have a nice stainless meat pounder, and use it with waxed paper.

Here is a link that might be useful: meat pounder

Sushipup, Maybe you should beat your husbands meat for him!

Oh Lawd.... all of you, go to your rooms. No WAIT, don't go in there, no telling what you'll be doing.

I use a heavy metal mallet, flat side. Put the chicken in a ziplock bag, not zipped and give it a few good whacks.

You see, I don't beat it, I whack it.

I'm a "whacker" too. I have a 2' long redwood 2x2 left over from our deck overhead. The meat goes between sheets of plastic and I whack away at it. The length gives good leverage, so it only takes a few smacks. I like the idea of using a zip lock bag...the plastic is thicker and less likely to split.

-Babka

Several years ago, don't remember the source, I heard that BSCB should be sliced as in butterflied then pounded. I have been doing this with good results and less pounding.

LOL at the responses here!

Gbsim--Are you talking about the chicken drawing back up instead of staying flat? I've had the same problem with mine at times and something I just noticed this week could be the problem.

I bought 2 packs of boneless pork chops. I put one pack in the freezer and used the other pack that night. I pounded them out and they stayed that way. The recipe I used was so good that the following week, my family wanted me to fix it again so I thawed the 2nd pack of chops out and pounded them the same way I always do. While they were cooking, they drew back up to what they looked like before I pounded them, so I am now wandering if freezing has anything to do with it???

Grace:
Forget it. Here is the best way to flatten your Breasts.
Now why would you want to do that ?????

100 % Guaranteed method.
LOU

{{gwi:1506979}}

I butterfly the chicken breast pieces first.

With half a breast with its rounded (outter) side on the cutting board, I'll take a very sharp boning knife or small Chinese cleaver and cut from the flattest part of the breast (the almost-flaplike portion) into the bulbous part of the breast. I'll cut ALMOST all the way through but not quite, so that I can fold open the breast a la butterfly.

I'll place the cut breast piece(s) into a large (1-gallon) storage bag. Two small breast halves will fit in one; a large breast half will take one up all by itself.

I use a flattened meat pounder (as in the link). I don't like the old-time hammers and the newer ones with the handle that comes straight up from the disk. They have a tendency to angle off and chop grooves into the meat rather than flatten it; they tear the meat.

I don't pound hard but I pound with intent -- I essentially firmly "push" the meat into the directions to which I want it to flatten out. It takes but 4-6 hits.

I keep the breasts in their neat and clean storage bags until I'm ready to use them (within minutes of course). When I want to take them out, I cut or rip the bag on two sides. Perfect and neat.

Joe

Here is a link that might be useful: Meat pounder

I put them in a plastic freezer bag and squish them down on the counter with the palm of my hand. Sort of like doing CPR only skip the mouth to mouth part.

: )
lyra

I guess I could have titled this post: "Flatter Breasts" but didn't want to cause a ruckus!

I'm anxious to try pounding away tomorrow or Tuesday. I'll use my husbands rubber mallet.... in the past, I've tried the edge of a thick stoneware plate, a rolling pin, the side of the cutting board. I pound on a board, but I think that maybe I'm just not whacking hard enough because I'm worried about cracking a tile on my counter through the cutting board. I know that I could never do it with just my hand!

I do it between sheets of plastic, but regularly demolish the plastic and the breasts are still their original shape. I'll try the ziplock bag. It's as though the top layer of tissue on the side of the breast by the skin, just holds it all together.

Anxious to report back with success....

Grace

I take em down between two sheets of Saran with a mallet. Work from the center outward in concentric circles.

I usually butterfly the breasts too and if I need them even I pound them inside ziploc freezer bags.

I use my french tapered rolling pin and beat them at a angle so to speak....same kind of motion when peeling a carrot if that makes any sense...lol! I put them between wax paper or those flexible cutting mats.

Here is a link that might be useful: Just beat it...LOL!

Grace and msjay : You had a lot of good suggestions .

You have to start in the middle and work your way out,
if the meat is springing back after it is cooked.

Mustang's gave another good way, that I also do.
If you don't know how to Butterfly ,
just lay your Breast on a cutting board and slice thru it, about half way up but
just to the other side , not all the way thru.

Then just flip the top piece over so that it will be will
double in size.
Pound it a little, between plastic wrap or waxed paper.

I usually freeze them, so I use a Zip Lock Bag.
That's it I quit !
Lou

Joe , Sands , David, Sorry ! I should have hit Refresh.
Said the same thing .

Having trouble with the computer locking up, when
putting in the Message.
Had to Reboot 2 times.
Lou

"If you don't know how to Butterfly ,
just lay your Breast on a cutting board ..."\

Sounds like a mammogram....

HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!

I've had chicken breasts that just wouldn't flatten a couple of times. I find that when that happens, I "pound" them from the underside - the side that was against the bone before the bone was removed. I usually pound from the skin side because when I have the other side face up I find that they tend to "smoosh" and start to tear. I also find that on the thickest part of the breast, I'll hold my pounder so that the edge hits first and pound over the thickest area on edge a few times - it concentrates the force on a smaller area and breaks up the muscle strands a bit better, then I can go back to the flat and after a couple more hits that thickest part of the breast flattens out much easier.

I put mine in those cheap plastic freezer bags and then pound them btw.

Lisa

I usually just butterfly mine because every time I try to pound them with something, chicken juice goes flying everywhere. If I just butterfly them I find them flat enough to do what I want with them.

I also very often butterfly the breast, especially if they are thick.
But the clue to successful smashingw ith a whole breast is to put little slashes in the skin side of the breast. There is a membrane encasing the muscle which keeps the breast from flattening evenly. If you cut that membrane in little slashes, it will flatten more easily.
And I also have one of those chrome plated steel thingies called a "batte carne".
Linda C

Here is a link that might be useful: lexione di batte le carne

I made chicken picata the other day and I sliced instead of pounded and it was really good. I used meyer lemon. That may have been the key factor. I just don't like to pound it or even whack it. I don't know why but it seems to come out okay this way.

Butterflying is the ticket. Then I just use the mallet to even out the thickness. That way you are not beating the heck out of the poor thing. I also butterfly thick boneless pork chops (the ones from Costco). That way they cook a lot faster and the meal is ready in no time. (And you eat less.)