How to: Cut up a Chicken
Whole chickens are good for roasting, but you can also cut them into pieces for braises and stews, and they
cost about a dollar less than pre-cut chickens.
You don't need special skills or a lot of muscle. Just practice a couple times and it'll soon become second nature.
Tip: Don't throw away the leftover back and neck: Store them in the freezer each time you cut up a chicken until
you have enough for stock. Simmer for an hour with water to cover and you'll have a base for a great soup.
Step 1 
With chicken breast side up, pull each leg away from body, then slice through skin between breast and drum-
stick.
Tip: A sharp chef's knife makes cutting easier, and a separate cutting board for meat helps avoid cross-contami-
nation. These steps also work for cooked chicken.
Step 2 
Turn chicken on its side. Bend each leg back until thighbone pops out of its socket. Cut through joint and skin
to detach leg completely.
Step 3 
With chicken on its side, pull each wing away from body. Cut through joint and remove wing.
Step 4 
Lift up chicken and cut downward through rib cage and then shoulder joints to separate breast from back (save
back for stock).
Step 5 
Place breast skin side down. Split center bone using a chopping motion, then slice through meat and skin to sep-
arate into 2 pieces.
Step 6 
To cut breast halves into quarters, turn each skin side up and cut in half diagonally through bone.
Step 7 
To divide the legs, turn each skin side down and cut through joints (along white fat line) to separate thigh from
drumstick.
Step 8 
You should end up with 6 to 10 parts, depending on whether you divided the breast halves and legs.