If you’re cooking on a budget or just like to cook for yourself, learning how to cut up a chicken is a great kitchen skill that can save you money in the long run.
When cutting up a chicken, use a sharp knife or pair of kitchen shears. Ideally, you’ll want a boning knife, but a standard chef’s knife works too!
Breast
When you’re cooking a chicken, knowing how to cut the different pieces can be incredibly helpful. It can help you make better decisions when meal planning, grocery shopping and budgeting.
Chicken breasts are a popular cut of meat for a number of reasons: they’re lean, high in protein and contain a range of vitamins and minerals that can contribute to a healthy diet. They’re also easy to cook and can be served in a variety of ways.
One way to slice a chicken breast is to cut against the grain, which means cutting across tiny white muscle fibers instead of parallel. This produces shorter strips of meat that are tenderer and juicier.
Thighs
If you’re used to cooking up a whole chicken, it can be a challenge to know where to start when disassembling a piece of meat. But it’s not impossible, and once you get the hang of it, cutting a chicken thigh is a lot easier.
First, lay the raw chicken on a cutting board, breast side up. Next, remove any giblets or other pieces inside the carcass.
Then, use a sharp knife to slice the breast almost in half. This will make it cook more evenly with the thighs and drumsticks.
Once the breast is cut, pull out a leg and wiggle it a bit to determine where the thigh attaches to the body. Repeat this with each leg to separate it.
Wings
If you’re cooking a chicken, chances are that you’ll want to cut it into pieces for your recipe. However, this can be intimidating if you don’t know how to do it properly.
When you learn how to cut a whole chicken, you’ll be able to make recipes like fried wings more easily. You’ll also have more control over the quality of your meat.
The first thing you’ll need is a sharp cleaver. This is a heavy, powerful knife that you can use to chop through the bone.
Once you have a cleaver, start chopping on the harder areas of the chicken such as the breast. You can even put the cleaver on the joint of a wing to separate it from the chicken and then use your hand to chop down the rest of the bone.
Back
Learning to cut up a whole chicken is on many a home cook’s bucket list. It’s a skill that can save you some serious cash in the long run, and you’ll definitely have to practice to get it right. The task can be a bit daunting, especially if you’re a novice butcher like me, so if you can scrounge up a few good tips and tricks then you’ll be able to put the meat in the oven with a smile on your face and a satisfied stomach to boot. Thankfully, the kitchen is not a fortress, so it’s easy to come by tips and tricks that will help you cut up a chicken without breaking the bank or getting in over your head. The best part?
Neck
When cutting a chicken into 12 pieces, be careful not to cut the cloaca, the flap on the tail end of the bird. This can cause feces to leak out of the chicken, which is unhygienic.
Since raw chicken can carry dangerous bacteria, it is best to avoid bringing it into the house. It is also advisable to wash and sanitize your knife and work surfaces frequently, especially after handling raw meat.
There are a few different ways to cut a chicken neck, each of which will yield a different number of pieces when finished. The main concern when cutting a chicken neck is making sure that the meat is positioned properly. If it is not, the pieces may get stuck in the pharynx or oesophagus.