How to Cut a Whole Chicken

All the pieces together on a wide plate to show the different parts of the chicken.

5 from 14 votes

Learn how to cut and break down a whole, raw chicken into 8 pieces. Cutting your own chicken at home saves you money and yields more meat.

Course Tutorial

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10

Total Time 10

Servings pieces

Calories 205kcal

Author Yumna Jawad

Equipment

Ingredients

1 Whole chicken

Instructions

Place the chicken breast side up with the feet of the chicken facing you on a cutting board. Run a sharp knife across the middle of the breasts, at the breast plate.
Remove the first two joint sections of the wing by cutting through the socket on each side of the chicken.
Run a knife along the skin between the legs and the breast meat to separate the two, pulling the legs back to see where you are cutting.
Separate the drumsticks from the thighs by cutting right between the joints.
Run the knife from the far end of the breast towards you and down, following the wishbone and the breastplate, to the wing bone, Make multiple passes with the knife to ensure you are staying close to the breast plate. Pull the breast back with every cut until you are only connected to the wing bone. Cut around the bone using a knife or kitchen shears for a boneless breast.
You should end up with 8 pieces: two breasts, two thighs, two drumsticks and two wings

Video

Notes

Tip: Sharpen your knife before cutting your chicken. This will help make sure you get smooth, even cuts and also help avoid any accidental slips of the knife.

Nutrition