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How to Quarter a Chicken

Do you know how to quarter a whole chicken? Buying a whole chicken is more economical than buying its parts. You can easily quarter it yourself at home and then roast the carcass and turn it into chicken soup and stock. Master these few steps to quarter your own chicken and you will stretch your dollars much further. You can cook these parts all at once, or you can wrap the meat properly and store it in the freezer for up to 9 months. 

How to Quarter a Chicken

How to Quarter a Chicken

Lay your chicken breast-side up on a cutting board, with the legs facing you.

Gently pull one leg away from the breast and, using a sharp knife, cut at the loose skin in swift, long motions to reveal the joint. Grab the leg with your hand and bend it back so that the joint pops and is revealed.

How to Quarter a Chicken

Use your knife to cut through the joint and skin along the back, and cut through as close to the spine as possible; ideally you will be cutting away the oyster, which is the round, tender bit of meat along the spine, along with the leg. Repeat this with the other leg.

How to Quarter a Chicken

Cut the breast by running your knife along the breastbone from the neck opening to the bottom opening. Work the tip of the knife in long, swift motions along the breastbone, slowing pulling back the meat with your other hand until it is only hanging on to the wing.

Using the heel of your knife, press down and cut through the joint of the wing and release the whole breast with the wing attached.

How to Quarter a Chicken

How to Quarter a Chicken

If you wish, you can then cut these quarters into eighths. For the breast, simply cut horizontally on a bias halfway between the wing and pointed end of the breast. For the leg, separate the drumstick from the thigh at the natural seam and bend of the leg.

And here is my video tutorial from my YouTube Series:

Do you ever do any of your own butchering? Share with me in the YouTube video comments or on Facebook and Instagram.

2 Comments

  • Yb
    Posted November 29, 2018 at 5:09 am

    Great pOst. I do a little differently – take the back out first, with scissors, for the stock bag i always have going in the freezer. Wing tips go there too. And any bits of organ that the processor left. I also like to take the wings off and save in the freezer til we have enough for wings for dinner. On the treat night when we brine and roast a whole bird, the 8ths is a great idea too. I do it after roasted, and it is funny how much longer it lasts when cut smaller. my husband would easily eat hAlf a chicken in 5 minutes but when that half is cut 4 ways it starts to look like you have had too many

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