There are lots of things to do with a 4 lb. chicken. But yesterday, I discovered a way to honor the chicken and, being mostly vegetarian in habit, to make vegetable-centric use of this beautiful, pasture raised, roasted chicken. We bought the chicken from a butcher, actually two butchers (husband and wife), already roasted. https://www.suttermeats.com The quality of the chicken and the butcher’s attention to detail during cooking means a bronze skin and succulent meat, white and dark. I brought it home on Thursday. it went right into the refrigerator overnight, bypassing the immediate joy of ripping into the chicken, then and there.
Friday morning, I am ready and the first move is to completely dismantle the bird. Having sat in the cold for nearly 24 hours makes the process much easier than it had been when I tried this procedure when the bird was just warm.
Cut off the legs and wings. Separate the breasts from the back. Then comes the fun part, getting intimate the bird’s anatomy. I cut down either side of the breastbone and remove the two halves of the breast. The breastbone, rib cage and skin along with the back of the chicken begin the stock pile. As I remove the leg and thigh meat, I keep adding the bones and skin to the pile. The leg and thigh meat go in a separate pile from the breast meat. I take the last joints off the wings and put those in the stock pile. I remove the meat from the first two segments of the wings (they go into the growing pile of dark meat and add the wing bones and skin to the growing stock pile….wait for it, this pile is a key to the story. Before I do anything else, I put the two breast halves in one container, the dark meat in another and put them in the freezer (This wasn’t actually necessary if I had wanted to do all the cooking on that day or the next, but I was going to let inspiration move me when it would, meaning later. I needed time.
This chicken didn’t come with head, neck or feet. Funny how chickens lack those essential body parts yet manage to grow and thrive. In any case, I need some time to think about what to do next. But, it is certain that I will make a stock from that pile of skin and bones. In goes onion, garlic, carrot, celery, odd bits of fennel stalks, 6-8 peppercorns, a medium sized bay leaf, a small bunch of thyme, and a small bunch of oregano. I add water to cover, put it on the stove, bring to a boil, lower the heat so it is still bubbling and let it go for 40 minutes to an hour, drawing the nutrients and flavors from the skin, bone, and vegetables. When all is done, I put a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl, pour the stock through…the strainer hopefully catches most if not all of the solids. I pour the stock back into the pot, cover it, and put it in the frig.
The next morning, I take took the pot to the counter, lifted the lid and couldn’t have been more pleased. The little pit of fat was sitting on top of a jiggly mass of chicken jelly. Yes, there is a certain satisfaction when you see the jiggly cold broth, all of that collagen and those nutrients ready to play their essential role in, well in this case, a soup. I first put the jelly in a clean pot and started it heating. I wanted to check the flavor and the intensity of those flavors. I might want to add a little salt or other flavoring agents. Since it is going into a pot with vegetables, herbs and the reserved (defrosting dark meat) I want to know how it will contribute to the final soup.
Now, I have thought about this disassembled, glorious chicken. It has provided me with 4 ½ cups of broth, two large half breasts, and about 2 ½ cups of dark meat. The plan, make a big pot of soup/stew with the broth and dark meat, adding loads of vegetables to the broth (stew for six). Make chicken pot pie with the white meat again adding loads of vegetables with chunks of white chicken and a mustardy bechamel.
Each of those recipes, will eventually be on the site. Let me say that two people will have with the addition of lots of vegetables, up to 6 or 7 separate meals. Hell uv a lot better than 20 chicken sandwiches.