I buy two chickens at a time because I have found that some cuts are small but if you combine those from two chickens you can make a 4oz serving from the collective parts. Also it does take a bit of time investment so if you do two at a time they will usually last two to three months before you have to do it again. Sometime I will find a family pack of thighs for cheap and extend my chicken stash.
Chicken is fairly cheap whole and once broken down the way I do it some parts can even be cooked from frozen to pan. Every cuisine uses chicken just change up the seasonings and cuts and viola you have fajitas, stir fry’s, ramen, southern, Italian, tacos or anywhere else in the world we want to go. All about the flavorings.
It’s best to buy chickens of about the same price and/or size. Since they are usually sold by the pound or 2 for $10 I pay attention to the weight and the overall price. As you can see in the yellow (sale) price they are only about 5 cents different. By starting with similar priced/sized chickens the parts will be about the same as well.
Handling whole chickens can be a bit tricky as they are slippery little suckers. The best way is to grip the legs above leg ends between your knuckles. I don’t recommend washing or rinsing whole chickens as that can splatter all over you kitchen and put more moisture into the meat. Remove any necks or hearts/liver/gizzards into a small container or bag and into the fridge for later. Some don’t come with these parts and some do. Mine did this time, so we will use them, of course. They don’t freeze well so these will be a prep meal. Usually when I’m prepping I make meals from the bits and bob’s left over, or make a meal from what I’m prepping. Unpackage the chickens, and lay them on a sheet tray to catch any juices. I have a large sauté pan ready as well for the fat and skin I render down for cooking fat, and crunchy chicken-rones. Chicharrones or fried pork skins but make with the chicken skins. There is usually some large bits of fat just inside the body cavity, pull those free and into the pan.
With the chicken breast side down, feel for the wing joint where it joins the body. Slit the skin to expose the joint then carefully separate the wing from the body at the “shoulder” joint. Repeat on second side.
Turn the chicken breast side up, and slit the skin over the thigh joint. Grasp the thighs in each hand and bent towards the back revealing the thigh joint. Turn the chicken back over looking for the “oyster” – it kinda looks like a tiny little buttocks. Two small lumps near the top of the thigh. These are often considered by chefs as a prime cut! When removing the thighs I try to avoid cutting those so they can be used for a prep meal. Two, from one chicken wouldn’t be much, but if you have four, from two chickens they usually come up to about 4 ounces. Perfect for a meal with the right accoutrements – a stir fry, or taco is usually what I do.
Remove the thighs at the joint, and pull free the back skin, placing it in the pan.
Then locate and harvest the “oysters”. They sit in a little cup of bone, so a boning knife and carefully work them free.
Remove the breast skin. Placing that into the pan.
Looking into the body cavity, you will see a flap of meat between the ribs and the back, again not enough for one meal from one chicken, but enough for on from two. Shears work best to free this flap of meat. Shears also work best for separating the back from the breast through the ribs.
And for cutting through the small bones at the front and back of the breasts.
Locate the breastbone and cut along one side and down along the ribs, staying as close to the bone as possible to harvest as much meat as possible. If you run into some missed small bones along the way simply snip them with shears.
Remove the second breast in the same manner.
Remove the bits under the wishbone, adding them to the flap meat.
Turning the breast over you will find the loin. The real “chicken strip”. The loin will practically come away with a slight tug, and perhaps a bit of a snip. Two of these will be about 4 ounces, so from the two chickens here are two more servings you never knew were there.
Next I weigh each breast side. These were about 10 ounces. I trimmed the point end to get them to 8 ounces each. 2 ounces from each point = 4 ounces or another serving. Now each breast side is 8 ounces or two 4 ounce servings. They are also quite thick and will dry out when they cook, and take a long time to cook through.
Slice the breast horizontally, creating two 4 ounce fillets. Thin, even, quick cooking.
Separate the drumsticks from the thighs. One thigh is a serving, and two drumsticks is one serving.
Separate the wing sections. Wings are all about flavors, dipping, and sauces, so I keep the point section with the wings. Two wings equal one serving. So one serving per chicken.
Remove the tendon from the loins. Locate the end of the tendon placing the tines of a fork on either side. Grasp the end of the tendon with a paper towel to get a good grip. Pull the tendon free – add the tendon to to bones to be cooked down with the stock.
Trim the skin and fat down into small pieces. Add enough water to cover the bottom of the pan and start rendering over low heat. As the fat renders, slowly increase the heat to medium low, then up to medium. Place the oysters and the flap meat into small containers and into the fridge for later.
Season the bone pieces with salt, pepper, celery salt, lemon pepper, paprika. Roast in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes.
While the bones are roasting and the fat rendering, individually wrap the chicken pieces into serving size packages. One each thigh, one each breast fillet, two each wings, two each loin, two each breast “points” depending on size. Use either snack size bags, or plastic wrap to keep pieces separated. Place the individual servings portions into gallon freezer bags. Date and into the freezer.
Once the fat is rendered and the “chicken-rones” are crunchy, remove them from the fat and salt them while still warm. Great for a snack, a salad crouton, a topping for stir fry’s. Strain the fat through a fine mesh metal strainer into a heat proof jar. Use for cooking over the next few days.
Once the chicken breast bones and back pieces are cooked through allow to cool enough to handle.
This will get a bit messy, but you really need to get in there. Running your thumb along the bones is a good technique. There are several large pockets along the spine. You will be surprised how much meat you will get. After a few times you will get familiar with where they all are.
Look at all that cooked chicken meat. The amount you get will vary depending on the size of the chickens and your butchery skills. Chop the meat fairly finely, and place the bones back onto the sheet pan – not done with them yet!
Get a couple stalks of celery, and some onion. Trim the ends from the celery, and the onion and reserve.
Chop the celery and onion finely.
And a small dill pickle. Add them all the the chopped chicken meat.
Grainy mustard and mayo. Then seasonings, celery salt, lemon pepper, dill, salt, pepper, paprika.
Mix well, taste for seasoning and adjust as desired. Place in a sealable container and into the fridge.
Add enough water to the pan to cover the bottom by about a 1/2 inch. Scrape all the good fond – the browned bits – from the bottom of the pan. Place the bones into a slow cooker and pour the liquid over.
Add celery trimmings, onion trimmings, and if you have carrot peels or trimmings, or herb stems toss them in as well. This will all be strained so feel free to add in any trimmings from celery, onion, carrot, herbs you have. These are the trimmings from the chicken salad. The onion skins will bring more color to the stock.
Add a good couple tablespoons of vinegar to the stock, you won’t taste it, but it will help leech the minerals from the bones, and break down the collagen.
Turmeric will add more color and health benefits.
10 hours on low.
Cool to handle.
Scoop out the large bits, into a colander over a large bowl.
Strain through a fine mesh strainer to remove any small bits.
Pour into quart freezer bags 2 cups measures.
Fill a covered ice tray. The cubes are great for pan sauces and other uses as you will see. Lay the bags flat on a sheet tray in the freezer until solid. They store well once frozen flat. Each will be the base for a soup that will make 4-5 servings once we add rice or noodles, and veggies, and chicken meat and who knows what all.
So from 2 whole chickens we got – 10 servings of breast meat, 2 servings of loin meat, 4 servings of thighs, 2 servings of drumsticks, 2 servings of wings, 1 serving of oysters, 1 serving of trim, 4 servings of chicken salad, 8 servings of stock plus the cubes for sauces, the fat for cooking and the little crunchies. All for under $10 – or 30 cents per serving. How ya liking me now?
I have always cooked, I was that person who could make a meal from an empty fridge. I have lived alone and with large and small families, I have cooked for camps on wood stoves, and in professional kitchens. I have lived and worked all over the west from Montana, to Seattle to Arizona to San Diego. I have traveled, maybe not 'all over the world', yet, and have collected tastes recipes and techniques everywhere, and every one I meet.
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