How to: Deal with a chicken.

[Skandi]

Buying a pack of two chicken breasts will cost you the same as buying a whole chicken, so here is a thread for those of you who would be a little daunted if you were faced with a whole chicken.


Yow will need A large saucepan, this must be big enough to fit the bones and some water into. A sharp knife you only really need the one but a heavy cleaver will come in useful. An onion, carrot and some herbs, anything you have will be good but they are not totally necessary.
http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520287696_737147696_1628751_227007_n.jpg
Roughly cut up the vegetables, no need to peel them, put them into your pot, but leave out any herbs that you may be using.
http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520292696_737147696_1628752_4979031_n.jpg
with the chicken facing to wards you, pull the leg, down and away from the body, cut through the flap of skin.
http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520302696_737147696_1628753_5398631_n.jpg
hold the leg in one hand and the body in the other, if you bend the leg down far enough you will hear a pop, this is the joint coming loose,
http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520307696_737147696_1628754_7791070_n.jpg
After this pop you can cut between the bones and remove the leg, try to keep the knife as close to the body as possible. Repeat this on both sides.
http://photos-d.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520312696_737147696_1628755_2369919_n.jpgTu rn the chicken round, and feel along the middle of the breasts for the breastbone, slide your knife down next to this and keeping it as close to the bone as possible cut off the breasts.
http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520317696_737147696_1628756_3493097_n.jpg
Removing the wings is exactly the same procedure as the legs.
http://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520322696_737147696_1628757_3618206_n.jpgCu t the remaining bones in half, so they will fit in your pot, this is easies if you Bend the backbone until it breaks and then cut through there.
http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520327696_737147696_1628758_7370220_n.jpgYo u now have a cut up chicken. Depending on what you want to use your chicken for you have either finished or you can carry on, I normally carry on as the end products take up less room in the freezer.
http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520337696_737147696_1628759_6406043_n.jpg
To turn the legs into chicken cubes that you can use for curry or kebabs etc pull the skin off of the leg.
http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520342696_737147696_1628760_228843_n.jpg
Turn the leg over so that the side that you have cut away from the chicken is up. cut alongside the thigh bone and then slide the knife underneath to remove it repeat the same procedure for the drumstick and then dice up the meat from these.
[http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520347696_737147696_1628761_4700577_n.jpgNo w you have a fully destroyed chicken!
http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs010.snc1/2894_83520352696_737147696_1628762_6695664_n.jpg

As an idea what to do with these pieces;

The chicken in the pictures is large (2.3kg) so each breast will easily feed two I take the inner fillets out of the breasts and add these too the wings, this makes a portion of sticky wings/breast meat, or a stir fry etc. The diced legs get used for pie or curry and the breasts are often turned into stir fry.

There is of course one more thing to do.
The stock, put enough water into the pan to cover the bones, and bring this to the boil, as soon as it boils turn it down and skim off any scum that comes to the surface. After it has stopped producing scum, add any herbs that you like and cook for about 2 hours.
Let the stock cool, and take out the bones, take all the meat off of the bones and put to one side, on your first attempt there will be lots of meat left, but as you get better there will be less and less. Throw all the bones away. You now have an almost made chicken soup! add some cut up vegetables and the chicken pieces and there is another meal.

So in short one chicken costing £4.50 has just made 8 meals, obviously if you don't want that much chicken just buy a smaller one.

[Solwyn]

This is what I do. We buy bulk meat and spend Sundays chopping it all up:)

I also take the stock that is left over, let it reduce to half, and pour it off into ice cube trays and small containers. When I want to make broth for something, I defrost a piece of frozen broth in a measuring cup and add that same amount of water to it. The cost for making your own broth is negligible compared to paying out $1.50 or more for a can of it, and it tastes a hell of a lot better than that MSG-laden powdered crap.

[Sigurd]

Pfff...just take the whole chicken and deep-fry it. Does the service. By example of glorious Styria. :wink

http://www.hotel-liebminger.at/files/backhendl.jpg

(Couldn't find a picture of a whole, "undealt with" one, but they DO exist!)

[lei.talk]

...just take the whole chicken and deep-fry it.such an exercise
exceeds the skill-level
of most non-cooks that neglected certain courses (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Economics_(Junior_Cert))
in school. :swl

the first post in this thread
is extremely use-full
and far easier to apply than some readers might fear.

precious food-money is wasted
purchasing processed food from stores or "restaurants".

[Frigga]

Great post Thrym! I would add two suggestions. Add some vinegar to the pot, and let it sit for an hour to draw out extra minerals from the bones. I would then let it cook for longer then 2 hours. Maybe you could use a slow cooker, and let it simmer for 12 or more hours? When I make stock, it simmers on the stove for about 3 days! :eek: :D

[Skandi]

Great post Thrym! I would add two suggestions. Add some vinegar to the pot, and let it sit for an hour to draw out extra minerals from the bones. I would then let it cook for longer then 2 hours. Maybe you could use a slow cooker, and let it simmer for 12 or more hours? When I make stock, it simmers on the stove for about 3 days! :eek: :D

I suggest two hours because I want to eat the meat, and not have it dissolve :) when I actually make stock it sits on the cooker for several days and get's boiled every day, mainly because I am lazy and never get around to dealing with it! I don't like vinegar in things though, personally I find they end up tasting funny :(

[Frigga]

I'm sorry to hear that about the vinegar. I happen to enjoy the sour flavor myself, but to each their own. :) I only use about 1-2 tablespoons for the whole pot, which does not affect the flavor of the stock in my experience. And, I have pets that get the meat afterwards. And they're not too picky about the texture of the meat. So, I simmer it for such a long time to get as much nutrients out of the bones as possible.


Still, a great thread! :)

[Rainraven]

This seems a much better alternative to my flat's way of doing it. The only thing we know how to do with a whole chicken is roast it, and it will only last one night and lunches the next day. This is such a better use of a chicken! :D

[Lady L]

This seems a much better alternative to my flat's way of doing it. The only thing we know how to do with a whole chicken is roast it, and it will only last one night and lunches the next day. This is such a better use of a chicken! :D

Close to what I do. If I buy a whole chicken I put the whole chicken in a glass Pyrex dish and in the oven at about 375 for however long it says cook by the lb. I cover it with a can of chicken stock and add the spices I want. You can cover it with tin foil but you don't have to. I also let it cook about half way through and then add potatoes. :) And like you said Rain, its gone quick :D

[Vargtand]

I thought this thread was about dealing with cowards :S

hehe actually quite useful, thanks :)