There are four ways to thaw chicken, listed below in order of preferred method, and time needed. You’ll know the chicken is thawed when it feels soft, moist and cold — not hard and stiff.

• Refrigerator: This is the best method, if you have time. Keep your chicken off the kitchen counter and in the fridge. It takes about 24 hours to thaw a 4-pound, whole chicken in the refrigerator; cut-up parts, 3 to 9 hours.
• Cold Water: Place chicken in its original wrap or watertight plastic bag in cold water; change water every 30 minutes. A 4-pound, whole chicken will take about 2 hours to thaw.
• Microwave: For quick-thawing of chicken (raw or cooked), use the microwave. Thawing time varies according to the form in which chicken is frozen (whole or parts, number of parts frozen together, etc.). Use Defrost or Medium-Low setting. Microwave 2 minutes; let stand 2 minutes. Repeat if needed. Turn chicken and separate parts as it thaws. Take care that chicken does not start to cook.
• Oven: Individually wrapped parts can be cooked right from the freezer, but you’ll need to add 50% more cooking time.