Learn how to cut a whole chicken into 8 or 10 pieces using your chef’s knife. I will show you where exactly to make the cuts, and how to get clean and even pieces every time.
Learning basic butchery skills are very useful to every home cook. In this step by step tutorial, I will show you to properly break down a chicken into individual pieces and why cutting it yourself is a win-win!
I know that breaking down a chicken might sound a little intimidating, but it’s actually an easy and straightforward job.
When you cut a chicken into 10 pieces, you will get: 2 drumsticks, 2 thighs, 4 pieces of chicken breast, and 2 wings. Plus the carcass for stock!
Why would you Cut Up a Whole Chicken by yourself?
- Save Money. Doing this by yourself will save you money as you’re no longer paying someone else to do the job!
- Even Cooking. When you cut up a whole chicken, you know that all of the pieces are coming from the same chicken which means that they’re more even in size and will cook in an even rate.
- Make Homemade Stock. You can save the backbone to make delicious chicken stock.
Tip!
I like to freeze the backbone/carcass, and when I have 3-4 of them in the freezer I throw them in a pot with aromatics and seasonings and make homemade chicken stock.
What You’ll Need:
- Whole Chicken.
- Chef’s Knife, make sure that it’s a super sharp knife to make the job easier. Using a dull knife is unsafe as it requires more pressure to cut and can slip with great force behind it. This is my favorite Chef’s knife, I also love this Santoku knife. A boning knife can also be useful, but not essential.
- Kitchen Shears. Another kitchen essential! You’ll be using the shears to remove the backbone, and trim off any excess skin or fat. I love these multipurpose kitchen shears from OXO, you can certainly get poultry shears but the multipurpose ones work just fine.
- Paper Towels and a Cutting Board.
How to Cut Up a Whole Chicken
- Prep. Place the chicken on a cutting board, pat dry with paper towels and place it breast side up.
- Remove the Legs. Start cutting where the leg attaches to the breast, then pull away the leg from the breast and cut through the skin. Now pull away the leg with a little more force until you pop the joint (hip bone) out of its socket then cut away at the joint. Repeat on the other side.
- Remove the Wings. Flip the chicken to one side, and locate the joint (not the bone) where the wing is attached to the carcass. Pull the wing away and cut through the joint to remove it. Repeat with the second wing. Remove the wing tips if you like (and save them for stock).
- Remove the Backbone. Flip the body over, then using kitchen shears cut through where the back and the breast meet, there’s a clear fat line (see last image in the collage above). Remove the backbone and save it for stock!
- Separate the Breast. Flip the breast skin side down, and find a white thin line in the center. That’s the cartiladge and exactly where you need to cut. Cutting through it will separate the breast.
- Cut the Breast. If you’d like to cut the breast into smaller pieces (this will help the breast cook evenly with the smaller pieces of chicken such as the thigh and drumstick). Flip the breast over, skin side up then take your chef’s knife and cut through the breast almost in half/off center to the thicker side so the thinner piece is bigger which will help the chicken cook more evenly.
- Separate the Leg. If your recipe calls for leg quarters, then skip this step. If you want to separate the leg, find the white fat line running between the drumstick and the leg and cut through it. Make sure that you’re cutting between the joint and not the bone.
And that’s it! You successfully butchered the chicken into even pieces.
Now that you know how to easily cut a chicken, learn how to brine a chicken, how to spatchcock (butterfly) a whole chicken, and how to carve a perfectly cooked whole chicken.
take it into practice!
I have recipes that require a whole chicken that you can break down before cooking. Try these:
- Mexican Chicken Marinade. The best chicken marinade ever! Use any chicken parts you like.
- Grilled BBQ Chicken. This recipe can use any chicken parts, but I broke down a whole chicken into 8 pieces and used it all.
- Fried Chicken. Uses a whole chicken that you need to break down into 10 pieces.
For more delicious recipes, find all of my chicken recipes here. And to learn more basic kitchen skills and techniques, check out my basics category.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
How to Cut Up a Whole Chicken
Equipment
- Chef’s Knife
- Kitchen shears
- cutting board
Ingredients
- Whole Chicken giblets removed
Instructions
- Place the chicken on a cutting board, pat dry with paper towels and place it breast side up.
- Start cutting where the leg attaches to the breast, then pull away the leg from the breast and cut through the skin. Now pull away the leg with a little more force until you pop the joint (hip bone) out of its socket then cut away at the joint. Repeat on the second leg.
- Flip the chicken to one side, and locate the joint (not the bone) where the wing is attached to the carcass. Pull the wing away and cut through the joint to remove it. Repeat with the second wing.
- Flip the body over, then using kitchen shears cut through where the back and the breast meet. Remove the backbone and save it for stock.
- Flip the breast over skin side down, and find a white thin line in the center. That’s the cartiladge and exactly where you need to cut. Cutting through it will separate the breast.
- If you’d like to cut the breast into smaller pieces (this will help the breast cook evenly with the smaller pieces of chicken such as the thigh and drumstick). Flip the breast over, skin side up then take your chef’s knife and cut through the breast almost in half (the thicker part must be a little smaller than the thinner side).
- If your recipe calls for leg quarters, then skip this step. If you want to separate the leg, find the white fat line running between the drumstick and the leg and cut through it. Make sure that you’re cutting between the joint and not the bone.
Notes:
- When you cut a chicken into 10 pieces, you will get: 2 drumsticks, 2 thighs, 4 pieces of chicken breast, and 2 wings. Plus the carcass for stock!
- I like to freeze the backbone/carcass, and when I have 3-4 of them in the freezer I throw them in a pot with aromatics and seasonings and make homemade chicken stock.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
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