How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece
November 21st, 2015 in Tips, Advices & How-to by Julia Volhina
I was working on a recipe stuffed chicken skin (it will be coming up in next post) and, after seeing how much time and effort it took me to remove the skin from a raw chicken in one piece without damaging it on the way, I decided to create a post with step-by-step instructions and pictures for others to use.
Pictures have come up not that appetizing (and for that I apologize), but at least they illustrate the process in details and are easier to follow than plain word description.
Most of the work you will be doing with a knife placed in between skin and meat slightly angled towards the meat. Work with short precise cut motions to make sure skin remains undamaged through the process. So, to get a whole raw chicken skin to use for a recipe you will need a raw chicken, sharp long knife and a tablespoon.
Ingredients and Tools:
- Whole chicken
- Sharp long knife
- Tablespoon
Step-by-step Instructions:
-
Prepare ingredients:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 1 -
Align chicken on a cutting board breast side down, and using a sharp knife start separating chicken skin from the other tissue around chicken neck:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 2 -
Work your way to one of chicken wings inside the chicken:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 3 -
Continue working towards the wing, carefully slice the wing at first joint, remove the freed up portion of the bone with the meat and continue with the rest of the wing carefully turning it inside out:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 4 -
Depending on the recipe you plan to use the skin for further, you can stop at either joint of the wing (and keep the rest intact for the presentation), repeat the same procedure for the other wing:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 5 -
Once you are done with wings, take a tablespoon and run its handle between loose parts of chicken skin and the meat around breast area, thigh area and on the back. You don’t want to tear skin up, just separate it from the meat where it is easily separable:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 6 -
Now, there portion in the middle of the chicken back isn’t easily separable with the spoon, and you will need to carefully cut it off the the knife. Go as high up as it allows you:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 7 -
Cut the skin around the bottom of each chicken thigh:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 8 -
Next, separate skin from the meat around thigh area and free both thighs up:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 9 -
Slice chicken thigh at the hip join:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 10 -
Snap it:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 11 -
And pull the thigh out, and repeat the same procedure for second thigh:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 12 -
Then start removing the skin by pulling it up like a sock, help yourself with a knife if some skin areas are still attached to the chicken:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 13 -
Continue all the way up:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 14 -
Now you have a whole chicken skin, skinless thighs, wings and the rest of the chicken to continue with the recipe you needed them for:
How to Skin Raw Chicken in One Piece: Step 15
