Baking is similar to roasting in that the chicken is cooked in a preheated oven. Roasting involves the cooking of a whole chicken where as baking generally involves the cooking of chicken pieces. The pieces can be skinless, skin-on, boneless or bone-in.
Generally baked chicken has a coating applied to it before baking. There are many different coatings used, such as a mixture of herbs, breadcrumbs and sauces. The chicken can also have other ingredients baked with it, such as potatoes and vegetables.
The chicken is baked in a shallow pan, which should be large enough so that the pieces do not touch, allowing the chicken to cook and brown evenly. It is common for the chicken to be turned once through the cooking time but this may depend on the recipe.
The chicken should be baked until the juices run clear when pierced. The amount of time the chicken needs to bake will depend on the amount of chicken and other ingredients being cooked at the time. If some pieces finish cooking before others, they can be removed from the oven and kept warm by placing aluminum foil loosely over them.
