165°F. No exceptions. No guesses. No “it looks done.” Buy a $10 thermometer. Calibrate it. Use it every single time. Your future self—sitting on a toilet at 3 a.m.—will thank you.
Now go forth and cook. And remember: chicken is the only protein that will literally make you sick if you undercook it by 5 degrees. Beef? You can eat it raw and call it tartare. Pork? Medium is fine. But chicken? It’s the strict teacher of the meat world. Pass its test, and you graduate to dinner. Fail, and you repeat the class in the bathroom.
Stay safe, stay juicy, and always bring a thermometer to the party.
