Chicken

[Java]

So I'm making curry, which sound so exotic, but I'm making Japanese curry, which really is just simmering meat and veggies and adding a solid roux. But hey, it's delicious so what the hell.

 

And I'm bored, so I figure, hell, why don't I go get a whole chicken and chop it up. Never done it before, and it's all getting cut into itty bitty chunks so if I mess up this time it's practice if I ever need nice-looking quartered chicken.

 

So I get home, get out a cutting board, chef's knife and small knife, and have at it.

 

Hardest part's cutting through the ribs but really not that bad. In fact, whole thing's done in ~5 minutes, including rereading and trying to figure out knife placement.

 

So I end up with two breasts, looking like I could have bought them alone, and thighs and drumsticks. Yum.

 

Then I realize, as I'm picking up the breasts, that if I'd just bought chicken breasts it would have been MORE than what I got the whole fucking chicken for. And for what, two minutes of extra work?

 

Right now, the chances of me EVER buying chicken breasts alone unless they're a fucking ridiculous low price just went to nil.

 

Time to go make curry and listen to Christmas music. Maybe have some light eggnog.

[Fweethawt]

Not only that, but the next time you're at the store,

compare prices between regular and skinless.

 

Yeah, you're paying for someone to pull skin off

of your chicken.

[BigToe]

i dont care, i think touching chicken is gross so i will pay more for the skinless chicken breast ever time. heck, i'll fork it over for the already cut up skinless boob!

[nightflight]

Wouldn't you rather have a pizza?

[BigToe]

No, I am unamerican and don't like pizza.

[Amethyst]

I like chicken but don't make it for myself unless it's the frozen breaded kind. I will make hamburgers. My favorite meat is seafood, particularly shrimp and smoked salmon. Not much to do there. I just buy the precooked bags of frozen shrimp at the grocery store and add them to salad or pasta or something. And smoked salmon is great with crackers.

[Samurai Tailor]

No, I am unamerican and don't like pizza.

Every time you don't eat pizza the terrorists win.

[nightflight]

I've marinated chicken with Italian dressing. Its really good, but wear a face-shield; it splatters like a mo-fo.

[Dark Helmet]

I tried some pan-fried chicken with cajun, on a salad with italian dressing and sour cream. It's delicious!

[Megistias]

 

Right now, the chances of me EVER buying chicken breasts alone unless they're a fucking ridiculous low price just went to nil.

 

 

That's how I do it too. Unless specific cuts are on sale, I buy the whole bird and put in 5 minutes of work on it.

 

There is an exception to this frugality, though.

 

I make Peking Duck for my wife once or twice a year. Last time we went in to our local Asian market and purchased a good-sized, fresh duck. When we got it home and unrapped it, we realized it still had its head and feet on - and to my humor and horror, it wasn't even cleaned yet. My brave Biologist wife suddenly recalled an urgent shopping need and took off for an hour leaving me to prepare the duck. A good cleaver will make fast work of head and feet, but it's surgery and a lesson in comparative anatomy to clean the thing. Yuck.

 

\if ever faced with this again, I will just take the duck outside, cut a slit in the abdomen, sever the ends of the GI tract and just swing the bird over head around and around until all the entrails fly out (note: don't do this if you live in an apartment complex ... or if you don't like cats and crows gathering on your property).