Realized I was using the wrong knife for breaking down chickens for 5 years

I went to a workshop last fall at a shop in Portland and the instructor watched me work for about 2 minutes. He pointed out that my wrist was bent funny because my boning knife was too stiff and long for poultry. Has anyone else switched to a more flexible blade and noticed a big difference in how clean your cuts come out?

3 comments

3 Comments

allen.charlie15d ago

Tbh I was using a cleaver for breaking down chickens for way too long, felt like I was trying to perform surgery with a hatchet. Switched to a flexible boning knife last month and suddenly my cuts actually follow the joints instead of just smashing through them. Honestly the difference is night and day, my chickens finally look like they weren't attacked by a toddler with a butter knife.

wright.lisa15d ago

Nah I'm gonna push back a little here. A cleaver is totally fine for breaking down chickens if you know what you're doing, you just gotta use the spine of the blade to pop the joints instead of trying to chop through them like a lumberjack. I've been using a cleaver for years and my birds come out fine. Sounds more like a technique issue than a tool issue to me, like you were just swinging too hard.

ray3639d agoMost Upvoted

Oh man, I gotta disagree with you there. A good cleaver is way more precise than people give it credit for if you've got the right technique, it's not just for hacking through bones. I think the real issue is folks trying to use it like a heavy duty knife instead of learning how to work with the blade's own weight and balance.