How to Carve a Roasted Chicken

Step-by-Step Guide

1. 1

   Step 1: Place your roasted chicken on a carving board

   Cover it with foil to help it finish cooking.
   
   Unless your cutting board has grooves to catch juices, you’ll want to place it inside a cookie sheet with sides in order to catch the juices.
   
   You can also carve on a plate., Some chefs recommend up to 30 minutes.
   
   This keeps the bird moist by allowing the moisture pushed out during cooking to redistribute throughout the meat., You’ll need a well-sharpened boning knife, sturdy fork, and serving plates or a platter.
   
   Have paper towels or a rag handy to wipe your hands and clean up any mess you make as you go.A boning knife has a long, thin blade with a curved tip.
   
   The blade can be stiff or flexible.
   
   Flexible blades are preferred for poultry.If you don’t have a boning knife, any long thin knife will work.
   
   You can even use a chef’s knife if desperate, but expect things to get a little messy. , Pull a leg away from the chicken, rotating so that it pops out of joint, and cut through the connective tissue.
   
   Repeat with the other leg.If you cannot cut through, you may have hit bone.
   
   Move the knife closer to the joint and try again.If you are having trouble removing the leg, you may want to first try cutting around the top and bottom of the leg.Another method is to set the chicken breast-side down, make a cut to reveal the joint, and then rotate and bend the leg away from the body until it pops out of joint.
   
   Use the knife to cut through any remaining skin or cartilage.As you separate the leg, be sure to get the “oyster”, a delicious bit of meat towards the back of the chicken, just above the thigh.
   
   You can scrape it free with the tip of your knife., Place the leg skin side down on the cutting board.
   
   Locate the joint that connects the thigh to the drumstick and cut straight down as you pull apart.
   
   If you meet resistance, reposition the knife and try again.
   
   Repeat with the other drumstick., Magazines like to show the cook carving slices straight off the breast, but that technique requires a very sharp knife and lots of practice.
   
   It is easier to remove the entire breast before carving it. , Work the knife down and from the tail end to the wing end of the chicken.
   
   As you cut, work the meat away from the ribcage until the entire breast has been removed.
   
   Repeat with the other breast.If you are having difficulty removing the breast, try making a second cut along the bottom of the breast and perpendicular to the first (towards the chicken’s ribcage).You can serve the breasts whole, cut into large pieces, or sliced thinly, as you prefer. , Pull the wings away from the carcass and cut through the connective tissue at the second joint.
   
   They should come off with one swift cut., Don’t be afraid to get your fingers dirty! There are bits of chicken that you simply can’t get off with a knife.
   
   Feel free to pick them off and save them for soup or chicken salad.
   
   The carcass can be boiled to make chicken stock.
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   Step 2: breast side up.

3. 3

   Step 3: Wait at least ten minutes.

4. 4

   Step 4: Gather your carving tools.

5. 5

   Step 5: Start with the legs (thigh and drumstick).

6. 6

   Step 6: Remove the drumsticks from the thighs.

7. 7

   Step 7: Carve the breasts.

8. 8

   Step 8: Make a deep vertical cut along one side of the breastbone

9. 9

   Step 9: using the breastbone as a guide.

10. 10

    Step 10: Remove the wings.

11. 11

    Step 11: Pick the carcass clean.

Detailed Guide

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