Cleaver Question

[pacanis]

I see some folks mention using a cleaver for breaking down poultry. How? Are you actually taking whacks at the bird? Are you aiming for joints (and hitting them)? Don't pieces go flying?
I'm not looking to try this out myself, I can't stand handling poultry to begin with and when I buy a whole chicken, that's how it gets cooked, but I'm curious why a cleaver is used (or better) instead of a sharp knife.

[sattie]

Yep, whack the bird near joint points and also very good for splitting the back/breast. I don't use it as much now that I got a decent boning knife, but a cleaver does have it's advantages!

I have not had to many pieces go flying....

[pacanis]

You really use it like.... well, like a cleaver? I have no problem hitting a nail with a hammer, but I can just see bone fragments go flying if I tried to use a cleaver like I had a hunch they were used. Interesting.

[GB]

If it is sharp then things generally do not go flying. You get a nice clean cut. You also do not need to swing like you are going for a home run. It does not take a ton of force to get through chicken bones.

[pacanis]

Do you do everything you need to do with the cleaver, or do you have another knife on hand as well? For the more intricate work?

[GB]

You can do everything with the cleaver.

[pacanis]

Thanks.
I suppose a trip to youtube is in order ;^)

[buzzard767]

Originally Posted by pacanis

Thanks.
I suppose a trip to youtube is in order ;^)

Check out

Chef Curtis Chung

(C_Dawg) on youtube. He's the best I've seen with a vegetable cleaver - Chuckabocho

[pacanis]

Yeah, that's all cool, Buzz, but I want to see someone spinning the cleaver around over their head like Bobby Chouinard used to twirl his drumsticks, then coming down in lightspeed and whacking a chicken wing from the carcass.



Thanks for the vid, really, but I would like to see someone using a cleaver on a bird. It just seems to me a sharp knife could work just as easily, unless you expect to cut through bones and not the joints.

So how is using a cleaver different from a using Chinese knife? They are certainly pretty similar (to me).

[LadyCook61]

my favorite is Martin Yan

YouTube - Martin Yan carves chicken in 18 secs.

[pacanis]

Yeah, there ya go. Thanks for the vid, LC.
So what I saw was someone basically using it like a knife. Maybe the extra weight made slicing through the joints easier, but he wasn't really chopping/whacking with it.
Not like what you see in the movies, which seems more for dramatic effect.

[Andy M.]

The Martin Yan video is cool. His knife skills are great.

He is using a Chinese cleaver style knife as a knife. You could accomplish the same thing with a chef's knife. Using a meat cleaver as a chopping tool is different. A meat cleaver is a much heavier tool. Its weight contributes to its use.

I have used a cleaver to cut up a chicken but prefer a boning knife. Chicken is so easy a cleaver isn't necessary.

[GB]

I use my cleaver to break the bones open when making chicken stock. I am more comfortable with a chef knife though so for just breaking down a chicken without cutting through bones I use my chefs knife.

[pacanis]

I appreciate the replies.

I just broke out my Chinese knife. (Boy that thing needs sharpened.) Anyway, I prepped some carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic and cut a chuck roast into three pieces. Even though it was a little on the dull side I found myself not "worrying" as much about my left hand (I'm right handed). You simply have more bulk to work with and a much larger surface for your fingers to guide. The edge in a lot of instances is further away from your guide hand, at least it appears that way. I can see preferring one over another when using it as a knife and not with a "cleaver action".
I think I'm paying a lot more attention to knives and what they can do than I used to.....

[CookNow]

I actually shave with my cleaver. Saves money on razor blades, but I am still trying to finess my technique.

Headless Dan

[justplainbill]

Are poultry shears passe?

[pacanis]

Originally Posted by justplainbill

Are poultry shears passe?

I seem to remember Ask a Butcher using kitchen shears when separating a chicken. He might have also used them when spatchcocking a turkey.... I think. Maybe he used a cleaver. He didn't show that part in his vid, but it wasn't too long ago if you search for his past posts.

[jpaulg]

For poultry you don't need a cleaver, just the heel of a chef's knife will do the job. Although I do get a certain enjoyment from pulling out "Monsieur Grand Boucher" out of the knife case and applying 2 pounds of steel against poor defenseless duck bones.

*PS I call my cleaver "Monsieur Grand Boucher" because it's the same type as the one featured in this clip:

YouTube - Delicatessen intro

[DrThunder88]

Sorry for the delayed response.

While I've not yet had to cut through any bones with my little cleaver, it does power readily through frozen chicken breasts.