With summer here and a freezer full of meat chickens ready for summer dinners and barbecues, I thought it was the perfect time to share a few of our favorite tips and tricks for breaking down a whole chicken and how we get the most out of a whole chicken.

I think when it comes to a whole chicken, many of us never think to break it down into parts. We typically roast it in the oven or plop it in the slow cooker for a quick and effortless meal. While those methods are completely valid and delicious, after several years of raising, butchering, and cooking chickens, I realized that by breaking down a whole chicken, I can stretch the value of that chicken and am able to cook at least 3 different meals for our family with the parts. Lately, I have LOVED using the breasts in my favorite Asian Orange Chicken recipe, so I’ll use the breasts one night for that and then the next day I throw the legs, wings, and thighs on the grill for a quick and easy dinner. This time of year when we find ourselves incredibly busy, I tend to throw the chicken carcass in the freezer to make a homemade chicken stock/soup when things slow down a bit.

With that in mind, here are our TOP 3 tips for breaking down and getting the most out of your chicken!

1.     Defrost your chicken ahead of time so when you want to make your chicken dish, there is no rushing around trying to get the hunk of frozen meat thawed out. A little pre-planning makes it a lot easier and ensures you have meat ready when you need it. Plan on it taking about 24 hrs. to defrost completely in the fridge.

2.     Break your chicken down (see video below) and either cook all of the parts at once or leave the parts you don’t need for your meal in the fridge for a quick and easy meal the next day.

3.     Make sure to keep the chicken carcass for stock! You can opt to cook it immediately and throw it in a pot of water, salt, spices, and even add some veggie scraps if you want OR you can put it in a zip top bag in your freezer and make a large batch of chicken stock with multiple chicken carcasses later on. Homemade chicken soup has never been easier!

I hope these tips will help you take on that whole chicken! Whether you roast it, beer-can it on the grill, or take these tips and break it down yourself, chicken has never been so versatile and delicious.

Happy cooking!

Farmer Kinzie