How to Butcher a Chicken

Hello hello hello!

This may seem like slightly out of my normal crafty comfort zone, but I have long been comfortable with butchering chickens. See me, aged 5… lazy Sundays, picking the chicken we were going to have for dinner, killing, plucking, and gutting it (all before lunch) then sitting down to go through the internal organs with my mum (early signs of my veterinary career to come, methinks!).

Keeping your own chickens is rewarding and far cheaper than buying them from the shops. However, you don’t have to keep your own to get chicken a little cheaper! Have you noticed how expensive chicken breasts are? This is because they’re in high demand! Boned thighs are just as useful for things like fajhitas, curries, and fried chicken, and they’ve long been far cheaper than breasts. However, now most people have cottoned on to this, boned thighs are also getting more expensive.

So here’s my plan: buy a whole large chicken for £4.75 from Aldi. If you were to buy the legs (thighs and drumsticks), wings, and breasts seperately it would add up to about £6.50. Not to mention that you wouldn’t get the amazing carcass to use for stock or, even better, soup! The breasts on these beasts are humongous, and I usually cut them in half, getting four breasts that are still bigger than the ones you get from the shop!

So here we are: A quick lesson in getting the most from your chicken! This guide is for righties (sorry lefties) but can probably be reversed for all you leftie odd-balls!

1. Buy yourself a whole chicken. I get a large free-range one from Aldi for £4.75. Let me know if you know of anywhere cheaper!
2. Take it out of its packaging and place it breast-side up on a chopping board, with the legs facing towards you. Ensure you have a sharp knife to hand- I usually sharpen mine especially.

For the legs:

1. Grab the leg nearest your left hand, and slice the skin on the upper surface with a knife or scissors.
2. Using the thumb of your left hand, feel for the hip joint. Here’s a diagram to show you how the hip joint works:
   With your four fingers on the bottom of the leg acting like a lever, and your thumb near the hip joint, pull the leg out away from the chicken and down towards the chopping board, using your left hand to stabilise the chicken. The right hand diagram above shows the ball-and-socket nature of this joint- you need to dislocate it. The hip joint will ‘clunk’ and the femoral head will appear on the upper surface of the leg (near my thumb in photo below).

   

3. Put the point of the knife into the joint, and apply pressure, slicing away any meat still attaching the leg as you go.
4. Now repeat with the other leg. Being a rightie I tend to turn the chicken around so that the leg is still on my left, but have a fiddle and see what you find easiest.
5. If you want to seperate the thighs and drumsticks, feel for the joint again. Slice away the meat over the joint, then put the point of your knife through the joint. If you are in the right place, it will go through easily.

For the wings:

1. You can’t pop the wing joint like you can with the hip, but otherwise the technique is similar. Grab the wing nearest your left hand and cut away the skin on the upper surface.
2. Feel for the joint with your thumb (this time it is further in/deeper). Instead of popping the joint outwards, place your knife into the joint and press down towards the chopping board. You may need to readjust it, but once you’re in the right place it should be easy to get through.
3. Cut away any flesh still holding the wing on.
4. Now repeat with the other wing. Again, I usually turn the bird around so that the wing is still on my left.

Now for the breasts:

1. Stretch the skin tightly over the breast, and feel for the breastbone. Holding the skin taut, slice carefully right over the breastbone- you should get through the skin and hit the bone.
2. Move your knife slightly to one side (I go for right) and slice down carefully. If you feel resistance, angle the knife outwards slightly. 
3. You are aiming to follow the curve of the breast bone whilst keeping as much meat on the breast as possible. Continue, cutting through any meat that still attaches the breast to the carcass.
4. Repeat for the other breast.
5. Neaten the breasts, trimming away any fat and other bits, if you wish.

Now place all the bits into little freezer bags and label them (its hard to tell them apart once they’re all frozen and wrapped up!). You can trim meat off the carcass if you wish, but I prefer to make a soup from it. For instructions, go to my chicken recipes section.