|
| .. |
got
a food question? jump to the
boards
.
|
copyright ©1999-2006
DigsMagazine.com.
|
what
to do
with a
whole
chicken by Yee-Fan Sun | 1
2 3
continued from
page 2
.
| 3
Next up is separating the breast side of the body from the back.
You can use brute strength to pop the breast from the back with a
good pull, but I find it simpler to roll the body onto its side,
and use my trusty old scissors to cut through where the breast and
back meet. Work all the way around until the two sections come
apart. Set the back portion aside and attend to the breast. |
 |
| . |
|
| 4
If you're fine with leaving the bone in, just cut the breasts in
half lengthwise through the middle. (I find it slightly easier to
make this cut from the bone side, but some folks prefer to cut
from the meaty side.)
As boneless
skinless breast is very handy to have around, however, I often
continue to proceed as follows. Find a loose bit of skin and stick
your fingers between the skin and the breast meat to get a good
hold; peel off the skin, using the scissors to help as needed. Now
grab a thin-bladed knife -- a boning knife if you have one, or a
paring knife otherwise -- to cut the meat away from the bone. Keep
the blade parallel and as close to the bone as possible. Continue
cutting until the bone comes away from the meat. Congratulations
-- it's a boneless breast! If there are any tendony or bony bits
still attached to the breast, trim those away with scissors.
Debone the other breast using this same technique. |
 |
| . |
 5
You should now have two wings, two legs, two thighs, and two
breasts, plus a scrawny-looking back and some miscellaneous
trimmings. The back and trimmings won't look like they have much
to offer, but don't chuck them into the trash just yet. They're
perfect for stock (if you don't feel up to slaving over a pot of
stock just yet, bag up the trimmings and freeze until you're in
the mood). The bone-in parts are great for making stews; they can
also be grilled/broiled or used to make fried chicken (yum).
Boneless breast, on the other hand, is perfect for quick cooking
-- marinate and throw on a grill, dice it up and stir-fry, or toss
into a curry. That's a whole lot of chicken goodness for maybe ten
minutes of work tops, and at a price that's nice and easy on the
wallet. So no more lazing out: leave those over-priced pre-cut
parts be, and start buying the whole bird instead.
get the printer-friendly
directions
o |
check
out these related articles:
roast chicken? yes, please | stock
tricks
--------------------------->
lounge .
nourish .
host
. laze . home.
|
