Chicken Shopping Guide

Description of Parts | Read the Label | Look and Feel | Quantity to Buy

When shopping for chicken there are several details that you should pay close attention to so you are assured of purchasing fresh chicken in the correct quantity, quality and type to satisfy your needs. It is important to be familiar with the terms used to describe the chicken, how much to buy, know what to look for on the labels, and know what to look for when visually checking the meat. The following information will help you make a purchase suited to your needs.

Description of Parts

	Whole Chicken: The chicken with all parts intact, generally including the giblets stuffed in the cavity. Consists of white and dark meat.
Poultry Half: The chicken is split in half lengthwise through the breast and back, leaving fairly equal halves consisting of the same parts. Both halves consist of white and dark meat.
	Breast: The entire breast portion of the chicken. It is available bone-in, boneless, skin-on and skinless. Consists of white meat only.
Breast Quarter: Generally includes a little more than one quarter of the meat on the chicken. The cut includes half a breast, a wing, and part of the back.
	Breast Halves: Also referred to as split breast. The breast portion of the chicken that has been split lengthwise, producing two halves. They are available bone-in, boneless, skin-on and skinless. Larger breast halves are sometimes cut in half to provide smaller portion sizes. Consists of white meat only.
	Tenderloin: The muscle of the breast, which runs along both sides of the breastbone, located on the upper portion of the breast. Consists of white meat only.
	Wing: The wing of the chicken consists of three sections, the wing tip, the wingette (or flat wing tip), and the drummettes.
	Drummette: The section of the wing that is connected to the body of the bird and contains most of the wings meat. It resembles a very small drumstick.
	Wingette: Also referred to as the flat wing tip. The middle section of the wing, which does not contain much meat, but is generally moister than the drummette.
	Wing Tip: The third and outer most section of the wing. Does not contain much meat and is many times discarded. It can be used when making stock to help add flavor to the broth.
	Leg Quarters: Generally includes a little less than a quarter of the meat on the chicken. The cut includes a thigh, drumstick, and a part of the back.
	Leg: The leg of the chicken consists of two parts, which are the thigh and the drumstick. Consist of dark meat only.
	Thigh: The top portion of the leg above the knee joint that is connected to the body of the chicken. Consists of all dark meat.
	Drumstick: The bottom portion of the leg below the knee joint. Consists of all dark meat.
	Giblets: Consists of the neck, liver, heart, and gizzard.

Read the Label

Reading the label will inform you as to the type of chicken, the parts contained in the package, the total weight, a description, how fresh it is, and nutritional information. The type of chicken indicates whether it is a young or old chicken, which signifies its tenderness and suggests what cooking methods are most suitable. Boiler/fryers, roasters, capons, and Cornish hens are considered young birds, indicating that they are more tender and suitable for most any cooking method. They are a good choice for grilling, broiling, frying, and roasting. The more mature chickens, such as stewing chickens and hens, have meat that is tougher, which benefits from a moist-heat cooking method, such as stewing, braising, poaching, and steaming. Many times the meat from more mature chickens is used for soups, salads, sandwiches, or is added as an ingredient in other dishes.

		The label will show the cut of chicken contained in the package and the total weight. From this information you can determine whether it contains white meat, dark meat or both. It will allow you to determine what quantity you will need to buy according to the weight contained in the packages. The label should indicate if the chicken is boneless or skinless. The label on fresh chicken will have a "sell-by date" printed on it, which is the date seven to ten days after it was slaughtered. It represents the last day recommended for selling the product. Generally the store will pull any products left on the shelf the day of the "sell-by date". If the chicken is properly refrigerated, it will remain fresh up to three days after the "sell-by date", but if it is not to be used within that time, it should be frozen.
Some labels may have a "use-by date" rather than a "sell-by date", which means fresh chicken should be cooked or frozen by that date. If the chicken is precooked, it should be eaten by the "use-by date." The nutritional value of the chicken will also be shown on the label. The label will show calories, fat and cholesterol content, and it will list the nutrients contained. The label may also contain information such as cooking instructions, food safety, and handling instructions.

Look and Feel

Looking at and feeling the chicken can give you information that the label will not provide. When shopping for a whole fresh chicken that you are planning on roasting whole, select one that has a rounded, plump breast, because it would contain more breast meat, which provides a nicely shaped bird when roasted. When selecting chicken parts, choose those that are plump and moist. Compare the proportion of meat to bone. If lacking in meat, you are paying for more bone than meat. When feeling the breastbone, it should easily yield to your touch, indicating that it is a young bird that will provide tender meat. The color of the skin does not have any bearing on the tenderness or taste of the chicken. Breed and what the chickens eat affect the color of the skin. Producers will raise white or yellow skinned chickens according to preferences in different regions. It is important to look at the skin, avoiding chicken with skin that it is patchy colored or skin that has a transparent look to it.

Another sign of freshness is the color of the bones. Look at the ends of the bone and if they are turning gray, the chicken is getting old. If they are a pinkish color, they are still fairly fresh and the pinker the color the fresher the chicken. Look at the chicken to be sure it has been cleaned thoroughly, checking for signs of hair or feathers that were not completely removed. Fresh chicken, whether whole or pieces, should have a fresh smell. Check the package to see that it is sealed tight and does not have any tears.

Look for signs that indicate the chicken has been stored at improper temperatures. Check fresh chicken by squeezing or apply pressure to the package to feel for signs of freezing or look for ice crystals forming on the tray or along the wings or edges. These are signs indicating that the chicken has been store in too cold of temperatures, causing partial freezing. Partial freezing is not harmful, but the quality of the chicken will decrease due to the loss of natural juices and a decrease in tenderness. Also, be aware that packages stacked too high in the cooler may result in the top packages not being stored in cool enough temperatures, which would result in a decreased shelf life.

A similar problem occurs with frozen chicken that is stacked too high in the freezer. The chickens on top sit above the freezer line, which results in them not being stored properly to maintain an adequate freezing temperature. A frozen chicken should be rock hard and show no sign of freezer damage. There should be no crystals forming or frozen liquid inside the package, which would indicate partial thawing at some point. As with partial freezing of fresh chicken, partial thawing of frozen chicken is not harmful, but it may decrease the quality of the chicken when cooked.

Quantity to Buy

It is sometimes difficult to know just how much chicken to buy to have the proper amount for a particular recipe or to serve to a specific number of people. Some of the information that will determine the quantity needed are the number of people being served, whether or not it will be served in controlled portions, or if the meat will be served on a "help yourself" basis. The following information may be helpful in determining your needs.