Be Your Own Butcher
About a week ago I was at the market, puzzled over the chicken case. Before me were many options. Thighs, breasts, wings, drumsticks. Boneless-skinless, and parts still attached. There were split breasts and half birds, whole birds, and for those who want much less, tenders. Then I had to take those choices and multiply by three since for each cut there were versions Kosher, organic, and conventional. Who knew one simple bird could be made so complicated?
My plan was to make pesto rigatoni with chicken, a recipe for which just about any of the parts would do (with the exception of wings). But when I took a closer look at the price tags for each of these items, my decision got a lot easier.
As a matter of personal preference, I gravitate towards organic, free-range whenever possible (a matter of ethics and taste). At this particular store, the chicken breasts, skin and bone still on, would set me back significantly, about twice what two full chicken legs would have cost. But it wasn’t the legs that made the decision for me; it was the whole bird. Side by side with the breasts and thighs sat a whole, organic chicken at four dollars less than two breasts alone. I picked up a whole bird, two legs and two thighs in their original form, mentally sharpening my boning knife as I walked my purchase out the door.
I understand not everyone is up to handling raw chicken. But let’s be honest, it pays to do a little of the labor yourself. Whether times are tight or not, it seems a bit foolish to be paying so much for the privilege of having a butcher make a couple of swipes with a sharp knife. Two boneless skinless breasts might feed three or four depending on the size of the breasts and the recipe. A whole bird broken down, however, can stretch over multiple nights through many preparations, and those bones could even end up as stock if you are feeling particularly frugal.
Now if you’ve never broken down a whole chicken before, it’s not a walk in the park at first. It might take you a few tries to get right. The good news is, in this age of information, there are plenty of how-to videos to take you through the process. For those who are a bit old fashioned, Jacques Pepin’s Complete Techniques offers detailed step-by-step instructions on chicken butchering and many other useful kitchen skills. Arm yourself with a sharp knife and some patience, and the whole chicken will pay your effort back ten-fold.
What became of my once-whole chicken? That same night of the purchase, after some work with my knife, the breasts were seared and roasted, sliced, and tossed with pesto and pasta. One half of one breast that was leftover (after four servings of pasta) went on to top a spinach and apple salad for lunch one day that week. The legs were roasted as well on a later day. The meat was shredded and tossed into a soup with corn, charred poblano chili, and wild red rice. As for the bones, where do you think I got the broth for the soup? After several months of saving up similar full chicken carcasses in the freezer I finally had enough to make one enormous batch of stock.
For all the choices we face in the meat department the decision for me is pretty simple: the whole chicken is always the way to go. A small amount of time and a little skill with a knife are all I need for many nights worth of meals. It’s smart shopping, good cooking, and night after night of delicious eating.
Made with celery, garlic, poblano chili, vegetable oil, cumin seed, dried oregano, chicken broth, Roma tomatoes, canned tomatoes
Serves/Makes: 6
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 rib celery
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 poblano chili
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seed
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 2 Roma tomatoes, diced,
- OR
- 1 cup diced canned tomatoes
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/4 cup red, black, or other wild rice
- 2 cooked chicken legs
- 1 ear corn
- salt and black pepper
- cilantro (optional)
Heat olive oil in a large, heavy bottomed soup pot over medium heat. Dice onion. Peel carrot and dice small and dice celery small. Mince garlic. Add onions, carrot, and celery to the pot. Let vegetables sweat for 5 minutes. Add garlic and let sweat for another few minutes.
Meanwhile preheat a grill pan over medium high heat. Coat the poblano chili with the vegetable oil. Place on the grill pan and sear for a couple minutes per side until slightly charred. Let the chili cool slightly.
Remove stem, seeds, and ribs from the chili. Cut the remaining chili into a small dice. Add to the pot along with the cumin and oregano. Let the flavors marry for another two minutes until fragrant.
Add chicken broth, tomatoes, and bay leaf to the pot. Stir then put a lid on. Raise the heat to high. While the soup is coming to a boil, rinse rice until cold running water until water runs clear. When soup is at a boil, stir in rice and reduce heat to medium. Shred chicken and remove corn kernels from the ear.
Refer to the package on the rice. Whatever the cooking time is, about 15 minutes before the rice is supposed to be done add the shredded chicken and corn along with some salt and pepper. Put the lid back on and continue cooking until rice is tender. Taste, add more salt or pepper if necessary. Dish up soup into bowls and top with chopped cilantro.
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