The Art of Cooking Chicken: Tips and Techniques from a Seasoned Pro

When it comes to cooking chicken, many people may feel intimidated by the process. However, with the right techniques and tips, anyone can become a master chef. In this article, we will delve into the world of chicken cooking, covering everything from selecting the freshest ingredients to making delicious homemade stock.

Selecting Fresh Ingredients

The first step in cooking chicken is selecting fresh ingredients. A good chicken should have bright, shiny eyes and a pleasant aroma. When purchasing a whole chicken, look for one that has a nice balance of weight and size. The breast and thighs should be evenly proportioned, with no signs of bruising or discoloration.

Removing the Back and Breast

Before cooking, it's essential to remove the back and breast from the chicken. This may seem like a daunting task, but trust us, it's worth the effort. To begin, cut along both sides of the spine to release the back from the rest of the bird. Next, use your knife to carefully pry the breast away from the bone, taking care not to tear or puncture the meat.

Cutting Down the Middle

Once you have removed the back and breast, it's time to cut down the middle of the breast. Use your knife to follow the natural curve of the breastbone, cutting along the line that runs down the center. Be careful not to press too hard, as this can cause the meat to tear.

Separating the Leg and Thigh

After removing the back and breast, it's essential to separate the leg from the thigh. This may seem like a small task, but it's crucial for making delicious homemade stock. To do this, use your knife to carefully cut along the joint that separates the two bones.

Removing the Drumette

The drumette is a small bone that hangs out of the chicken's wing. It can be easily removed by cutting underneath it with your knife. This will help create a more even surface for cooking and make the chicken more tender.

Storing Chicken

When storing chicken, it's essential to do so in a way that prevents spoilage. Always store chicken at the bottom of the fridge, away from other foods. This will prevent juices from dripping onto other items and causing them to become spoiled.

Making Chicken Stock

Chicken stock is a fundamental component of many recipes, but it can be intimidating to make from scratch. However, with the right techniques and tips, anyone can create a delicious and healthy stock. To begin, combine chicken carcasses, water, and any desired spices or herbs in a large pot. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for an hour and a half.

Skimming Off Fat

As the stock simmers, fat will rise to the surface and need to be skimmed off. This is essential for creating a clear and flavorful stock. Use a spoon or skimmer to remove any fat that rises to the surface, then strain the liquid through a cheesecloth or fine-mesh sieve.

Roasting a Chicken

Roasting a chicken can seem intimidating, but with the right techniques and tips, anyone can achieve a perfectly cooked bird. To begin, preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, then season it liberally with salt and any desired spices or herbs. Place the chicken on a roasting rack, breast side up, and roast for 15 minutes.

Reducing the Temperature

After 15 minutes of roasting, reduce the temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Continue roasting until the thickest part of the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. This will ensure that the chicken is cooked evenly and remains juicy and tender.

The Secret to Crispy Skin

So, how do you achieve those perfectly crispy skin? The secret lies in the cooking process itself. By reducing the temperature after the initial roasting period, you create an environment that allows for even browning and crisping of the skin.

Tips and Tricks

In addition to these techniques, there are several other tips and tricks to keep in mind when cooking chicken. Always use a meat thermometer to ensure that the chicken is cooked to a safe internal temperature. Be gentle when handling raw chicken to prevent cross-contamination.

Roasting Rack: The Key to Even Cooking

A roasting rack is an essential tool for even cooking. By placing your bird on the rack, you allow hot air to circulate around the chicken, ensuring that it cooks evenly and remains juicy and tender.

Using a Spice Rub

For added flavor, sprinkle a spice rub over the chicken before roasting. This can include onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, thyme, and other herbs and spices of your choice.

By following these tips and techniques, you'll be well on your way to becoming a master chef when it comes to cooking chicken. Whether you're making homemade stock or roasting the perfect bird, with practice and patience, anyone can create delicious and healthy meals that will impress even the most discerning palates.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enwhen buying chicken at your grocery store or your local butcher shop there's so many choices skin on skin off bone-in whole bird none of this none of that what should you do don't worry i'm chef jj johnson and i'm gonna tell you all about chicken okay so i have tons of chicken in front of me i have a whole chicken i have some split chickens i have chicken wings i have some legs and thighs but that's not why i have all the chicken laid out for you it's all about the labeling so let's look at this label label here this one says vegetable diet 100 farmer-owned chicken which means that if something was wrong there was salmonella or something was wrong with this chicken they can trace this chicken back to who owned the bird which is really great this is a great label these are key things you want to look for when buying chicken all right so let's look at this chicken label it's certified organic which means it meets all the government standards in lands feed and healthcare it's free range which means they have some time outside no added water which is very interesting you'll see some chicken that get injected water into the meat so that it can weigh a little bit more and then as you cook it the water's coming out the greatest thing on this label is that it's been air chilled so normally on the processing plant chickens will get dunked into cold water right but instead this this brand of chicken they're air chilling the chicken which gives it a very crispy skin and nice density which helps with taste so this is gonna be a very delicious burn all right let's get to this next label i'm gonna get real fancy with you it says pasture raised heirloom chicken slow growth non-gmo air chilled so heirloom chickens just like the tomatoes you can trace the chicken's heritage slow growth they're just letting the chickens grow you know they're just at its pace you know you get to four pounds five pounds six pounds they're not injecting or force feeding the chicken to make sure it's getting on the market quick enough so it's happening real time this chicken here is good all right so this this chicken i'm going to break down eight parts in the chicken wings breasts right leg thigh okay so when i break down a chicken i do the wings first and i'm trying to find that area with the cartilage because it makes it really easy to break so those are my wings after that i come right in here for the legs and the thighs i pop it back here's little like pop noise and this is the most important part when you're breaking this down is this oyster right here you see this oyster is like a little small round shape so you come down the back part and you want to get that oyster so bring your knife all the way around all the way around on this back side and when i'm breaking down chicken i'm always scraping my knife on the bone to make sure i'm getting all the meat look at that look at that peel back okay then i come down here and then i come all the way down and look i got my oyster in there and then we'll do the same thing on the other side and look at that i got the oyster again beautiful now before i get to the breast i kind of like to take out the back of the of the chicken there's this little fat piece right here with the breast i follow my knife right down there right into there and then i just pull the back there you go now let's get to the breath so the breast has this line that runs down the middle right on the bone here in this area and this is the area you're going to use your knife right down the middle and what happens is when you come down the middle it will push you to a side and again you don't want to leave any meat behind all right so this is where it gets tricky you're like oh my god i can't get this off yes you can you find the crease in there right in there right on the cartilage all right so now we got our breasts with the wing at look at that okay so we got our breasts now you're like oh my god what do i do with this this is for chicken stock chicken broth do not throw this away i like to separate the leg and the thigh so a key component is here is like you want to look at your leg and your thigh to see where it separates you see this little vessel here you're going to come down and look at that clean pop you're gonna come right over that vessel and clean pop so now you have your legs you have your thighs so now when you look at your brush you're like uh what's this little bone hanging out it's called the drumette and you're gonna just come underneath the bone to detach that and throw that with your wing with your wing crew over there because you'll cook those together housekeeping here for storing chicken make sure you put it underneath something that can catch the drip and then also it should be at the bottom of your fridge never store chicken at the top of your fridge because some of that chicken juice can drip down on other things and nothing good will happen so i have my chicken carcasses here let me show you how to make the perfect chicken stock and i have my perfect base for my stock and then i'm just going to fill it up with some water so it's filled up with water i'm going to take it over to the stove and you'll cook this for an hour and a half skim off anything that floats to the top strain it cool it and you have the most delicious chicken stock right so the last thing i'm going to show you is how to roast a chicken it's the most intimidating thing to do how do you get it golden brown will it be delicious will everything cook evenly yes yes yes and yes i'm gonna show you so come underneath the skin poke a hole and put the leg through it and then i like to do it on the other side this is gonna help keep the bird all the juices inside so you don't have to worry about tying your bird look at that look how beautiful that is i have my sheet tray with a roasting rack the roasting rack is the key to all of this because all the air all the heat is going around the chicken evenly so place your bird just like this you don't need to add any fat no butter underneath the skin no oil on top chicken has so much fat in the skin if you roast it at the right temperature it'd be good first step is just add salt so just salt the bird really nice get a nice coat everywhere okay and you need to pick up the bird on his back side salt it bring your hand up a little high too a little salt technique so that helps you get it everywhere okay i got salt everywhere hold on i missed the spot i missed the spot right here okay now you don't have to do anything else if you don't want to you put it right in the oven just like this you don't do anything else but i like to add a little bit of spice rub onion powder garlic powder smoked paprika thyme i'm just going to sprinkle this all over the bird right i want some of that flavor we're going to put in the oven so a technique that i like to use in my oven because at home i don't have a convection oven i like to start my chicken off at 400 degrees for the first 15 minutes and then after 15 minutes i like to drop it down to 350 degrees until the thickest part of the chicken is at 165 degrees internally that's a tongue twister right so start off at 400 degrees for 15 minutes drop the temperature down to 350 degrees until your chicken the thickest part of your chicken is to 165 degrees and your skin will be crispy golden delicious i just gave you all the tips about chicken how to store it how to cook it but most of all how to make it delicious and come on look at that skin youwhen buying chicken at your grocery store or your local butcher shop there's so many choices skin on skin off bone-in whole bird none of this none of that what should you do don't worry i'm chef jj johnson and i'm gonna tell you all about chicken okay so i have tons of chicken in front of me i have a whole chicken i have some split chickens i have chicken wings i have some legs and thighs but that's not why i have all the chicken laid out for you it's all about the labeling so let's look at this label label here this one says vegetable diet 100 farmer-owned chicken which means that if something was wrong there was salmonella or something was wrong with this chicken they can trace this chicken back to who owned the bird which is really great this is a great label these are key things you want to look for when buying chicken all right so let's look at this chicken label it's certified organic which means it meets all the government standards in lands feed and healthcare it's free range which means they have some time outside no added water which is very interesting you'll see some chicken that get injected water into the meat so that it can weigh a little bit more and then as you cook it the water's coming out the greatest thing on this label is that it's been air chilled so normally on the processing plant chickens will get dunked into cold water right but instead this this brand of chicken they're air chilling the chicken which gives it a very crispy skin and nice density which helps with taste so this is gonna be a very delicious burn all right let's get to this next label i'm gonna get real fancy with you it says pasture raised heirloom chicken slow growth non-gmo air chilled so heirloom chickens just like the tomatoes you can trace the chicken's heritage slow growth they're just letting the chickens grow you know they're just at its pace you know you get to four pounds five pounds six pounds they're not injecting or force feeding the chicken to make sure it's getting on the market quick enough so it's happening real time this chicken here is good all right so this this chicken i'm going to break down eight parts in the chicken wings breasts right leg thigh okay so when i break down a chicken i do the wings first and i'm trying to find that area with the cartilage because it makes it really easy to break so those are my wings after that i come right in here for the legs and the thighs i pop it back here's little like pop noise and this is the most important part when you're breaking this down is this oyster right here you see this oyster is like a little small round shape so you come down the back part and you want to get that oyster so bring your knife all the way around all the way around on this back side and when i'm breaking down chicken i'm always scraping my knife on the bone to make sure i'm getting all the meat look at that look at that peel back okay then i come down here and then i come all the way down and look i got my oyster in there and then we'll do the same thing on the other side and look at that i got the oyster again beautiful now before i get to the breast i kind of like to take out the back of the of the chicken there's this little fat piece right here with the breast i follow my knife right down there right into there and then i just pull the back there you go now let's get to the breath so the breast has this line that runs down the middle right on the bone here in this area and this is the area you're going to use your knife right down the middle and what happens is when you come down the middle it will push you to a side and again you don't want to leave any meat behind all right so this is where it gets tricky you're like oh my god i can't get this off yes you can you find the crease in there right in there right on the cartilage all right so now we got our breasts with the wing at look at that okay so we got our breasts now you're like oh my god what do i do with this this is for chicken stock chicken broth do not throw this away i like to separate the leg and the thigh so a key component is here is like you want to look at your leg and your thigh to see where it separates you see this little vessel here you're going to come down and look at that clean pop you're gonna come right over that vessel and clean pop so now you have your legs you have your thighs so now when you look at your brush you're like uh what's this little bone hanging out it's called the drumette and you're gonna just come underneath the bone to detach that and throw that with your wing with your wing crew over there because you'll cook those together housekeeping here for storing chicken make sure you put it underneath something that can catch the drip and then also it should be at the bottom of your fridge never store chicken at the top of your fridge because some of that chicken juice can drip down on other things and nothing good will happen so i have my chicken carcasses here let me show you how to make the perfect chicken stock and i have my perfect base for my stock and then i'm just going to fill it up with some water so it's filled up with water i'm going to take it over to the stove and you'll cook this for an hour and a half skim off anything that floats to the top strain it cool it and you have the most delicious chicken stock right so the last thing i'm going to show you is how to roast a chicken it's the most intimidating thing to do how do you get it golden brown will it be delicious will everything cook evenly yes yes yes and yes i'm gonna show you so come underneath the skin poke a hole and put the leg through it and then i like to do it on the other side this is gonna help keep the bird all the juices inside so you don't have to worry about tying your bird look at that look how beautiful that is i have my sheet tray with a roasting rack the roasting rack is the key to all of this because all the air all the heat is going around the chicken evenly so place your bird just like this you don't need to add any fat no butter underneath the skin no oil on top chicken has so much fat in the skin if you roast it at the right temperature it'd be good first step is just add salt so just salt the bird really nice get a nice coat everywhere okay and you need to pick up the bird on his back side salt it bring your hand up a little high too a little salt technique so that helps you get it everywhere okay i got salt everywhere hold on i missed the spot i missed the spot right here okay now you don't have to do anything else if you don't want to you put it right in the oven just like this you don't do anything else but i like to add a little bit of spice rub onion powder garlic powder smoked paprika thyme i'm just going to sprinkle this all over the bird right i want some of that flavor we're going to put in the oven so a technique that i like to use in my oven because at home i don't have a convection oven i like to start my chicken off at 400 degrees for the first 15 minutes and then after 15 minutes i like to drop it down to 350 degrees until the thickest part of the chicken is at 165 degrees internally that's a tongue twister right so start off at 400 degrees for 15 minutes drop the temperature down to 350 degrees until your chicken the thickest part of your chicken is to 165 degrees and your skin will be crispy golden delicious i just gave you all the tips about chicken how to store it how to cook it but most of all how to make it delicious and come on look at that skin you\n"