Tales of Spatchcocking

[gulfporter]

38 minutes ago, Nancy in Pátzcuaro said:

I'm going to have to look for one of these shears. Every year at Thanksgiving my husband and I struggle to cut apart 2 big turkeys (they cook perfectly that way--leg/thigh/wings first and breasts last). Those poultry shears look ideal. Any idea where to find them? Amazon, I suppose.

 

Nancy in Pátzcuaro

Amazon Mexico link to what looks like a similar pair.  You can get them tomorrow!  Others available, too.  search: Tijeras para aves or Tijeras para cocina. You can also search in English but I get more results (and often better prices) for items listed in Spanish). 

https://www.amazon.com.mx/Metaltex-251801-Tijeras-para-aves/dp/B019DW7K2Q/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&qid=1520177079&sr=8-18&keywords=tijeras+cocina

 

[rotuts]

this looks a bit more like the one I have :

 

https://www.amazon.com.mx/Metaltex-251805-Tijeras-para-Cocina/dp/B002VDSKKQ/ref=pd_sbs_79_1/138-9357291-1943106?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=4CN9AXNA4A2SJDGJBSFA

 

the red one might be fine. Indeed its heavier than the black one that looks like an IKEA clone

 

indeed the handle looks a bit safer to use. maybe slip resistant ?

 

Turkeys and Chickens are pretty slippery in my experience

 

the IKEA feels heavy in the hand , a good thing

 

it weights 251 gms

 

the blade is 3 1/2 inches tip to wide open ' fulcrum '

Edited March 4, 2018 by rotuts (log)

[Kim Shook]

I saw the oddest (to me) thing last night on a British TV show called The Big Family Cooking Showdown.  Someone was spatchcocking a chicken and did it on the breast side, cutting out the breast bone and leaving in the backbone.  Does this make sense to anyone else?  Because it doesn't to me.  I think you would lose a lot more meat that way and I'd think the skin would pull back during cooking and expose the vulnerable breast meat.  No one on the show mentioned it or seemed to notice the difference at all.  What say you?

 

[TdeV]

@Kim Shook, I was reminded of reading egullet where @ChefCrash discusses spatchcocking and frogging here

[Kim Shook]

54 minutes ago, TdeV said:

@Kim Shook, I was reminded of reading egullet where @ChefCrash discusses spatchcocking and frogging here

Interesting.  I've never seen it done that way before.  You must have to have a lot of practice to get it right doing it through the breast.  I know that were I to try it, I would ruin the bird, though.  I'll stick with removing the backbone.  

[TdeV]

14 minutes ago, Kim Shook said:

Interesting.  I've never seen it done that way before.  You must have to have a lot of practice to get it right doing it through the breast.  I know that were I to try it, I would ruin the bird, though.  I'll stick with removing the backbone.  

 

I think I've only tried spatchcocking twice, one of which was through the breast bone. But we don't care much for breast meat in my family, so preserving the backbone is of greater interest.

[boudin noir]

I have found that the easiest way to spatchcock chickens and especially ducks is with garden hand pruners. They cut through the bones effortlessly .

[rotuts]

@boudin noir 

 

I believe you .  I have some very nice garden hand pruners 

 

then there is this :

 

https://www.seriouseats.com/the-best-poultry-shears-kitchen-equipment-review

 

I have some IKEA cheers they no longer sell

 

come apart , easy to clean  

 

but w garden shears ?  different level of satisfaction.

[boudin noir]

I have half a dozen poultry shears that i have tried. None come close to the garden pruners.  I have a dedicated set.

 

[weinoo]

I have the Oxo poultry shears; they work just fine.  Then again, I don't have a garden, so I can't test them on the roses.

[liuzhou]

It's rare for me to spatchcock chickens although I've dispatched a few. When I am called upon to do either, I use this.

 

 

Edited July 9, 2023 by liuzhou (log)

[rotuts]

@boudin noir 

 

I completely agree with you .

 

I have a 2 different pairs of Felco's .

 

you can disassemble the whole thing , take off the cutting edge 

 

and sharpen it on a wet stove.      it wo0uld sing right through a carcas.

 

for sure .    then Id have to clean it 

 

one can get quite close w a high end design 

 

meant for the kitchen , if you can keep that blade just sas sharp as the Felco's

 

to each their own

 

( Im trying my Felco , as soon as I get a carcass , then that will be that.)