# What part of the chicken do you prefer? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 12, 2015, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851 "2015-05-12T13:24:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2015, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851/61 "2015-05-13T22:03:04Z")
> [@dracoi](#): > > You mention using a supermarket and it’s my experience that they do cut the thighs down to exclude the oyster. You might have better luck if you buy “leg quarters” there. Yeah, that’s exactly my experience. I’ll sometimes see them on leg quarters (maybe more often than not, but I don’t buy quarters anywhere near as often as thigh.) I’ll sometimes see a little bit of one on a thigh, but generally my supermarket seems to cut the thighs fairly close to the bone on that side. So if I want 'em, I usually have to go whole bird. You kind of have to pay attention if you want to butcher them to include the oyster, and my supermarket’s butchers seem to just roughly hack away at the thighs. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851/62 "2015-05-14T00:26:34Z")
Thighs, yes, I buy and trim and trim all the fat and tendon, and then they are fit to cook. Wings - only if they are deep fried and crunchy, I hate the flabby expensive wings they send with the pizza that seem to be steamed and dunked in hot sauce. :rolleyes: Breast meat is OK for chicken salad or to bulk out rice or soup, I have never been able to cook an edible chicken breast all on its own…Rotisserie chicken is my go-to, I’m sure it’s full of salt and preservatives, but dang, it is tasty. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851/63 "2015-05-14T01:04:38Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > Wings - only if they are deep fried and crunchy, I hate the flabby expensive wings they send with the pizza that seem to be steamed and dunked in hot sauce. :rolleyes: To be fair, the lifecycle of a wing is about 10 minutes max, so if you’re talking delivery, that’s just the sad reality. If you’re talking about eating in an establishment then, yes, that’s one of the things that completely turns me off to a place about their wings. There’s no reason for a wing place to serve soggy wings to their dine-in customers (BW3, I’m looking at you! I’ve given you five chances in three different locations and, every single time, wings have been either obviously sitting around for awhile or you just don’t know how to cook a wing.) ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2015, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851/64 "2015-05-14T12:56:51Z")
Assuming that the parts are cooked in ways I like, then it’s wings all the way. Perfect ratio of meat to skin. Th recipe for perfect fried wings barely qualifies as a recipe, it’s so easy, but the wings you get will blow you away: [ul] [li]Brine the wings in a simple salt brine (minimum of 3 hours, I generally go 24) [/li][li]Dry them off.[/li][li]Thoroughly cover with flour, but then brush off all excess so it is a_very_ light dusting [/li][li]Fry in lard. (or evil vegetable oil if you insist on eating that vile stuff, your funeral)[/li][/ul] Fucking amazing. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851/65 "2015-05-15T04:50:49Z")
> [@Critical1](#): > > Breasts are dry as hell 99% of the time. That’s almost always because they’re overcooked. When cooking a whole chicken, there are a number of ways to control this. One is to cover the breast with foil. I hated white meat because my mother would always overcook a whole chicken. When I was on my own and started preparing breast filets, I learned I could do it differently. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851/66 "2015-05-15T06:39:22Z")
double post ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851/67 "2015-05-15T06:40:38Z")
Thigh Leg Tenderloin (for things that need chicken) Drummette (called in Peru _patita de ala_ “wing’s little leg”) Flat Breast ---
**Author:** ![Jake\_Jones](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Jake\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake_Jones)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2015, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851/68 "2015-05-15T07:15:08Z")
My general preference is dark meat. If I’m firing up the charcoal kettle or smoker, leg quarters all the way. But for quick and easy chicken on the gas grill? Skinless, boneless breasts are tough to beat, except that it’s very easy to dry them out. I’ve found that a quick brine soak makes an enormous difference. This time of year (grilling season) I keep a 2 quart Rubbermaid jug filled with a very simple brine (1 cup kosher salt or 1/2 cup table salt and 1/2 cup turbinado sugar or 1/4 cup refined sugar) in the fridge at all times. 30-45 minutes in brine is all you need for boneless breasts. You’ll be amazed at the difference it makes. Same thing with boneless pork chops, 45-60 minutes. If I want to marinade, I do it quickly afterwards (10 minutes) in a Food Saver vacuum sealed marinade tub, but an hour or so works if you don’t have a vacuum sealer. Dry spice mixes are even easier and marinade isn’t necessary after brining. I used to think brining required many hours or days and if your brining a whole turkey, it does. But for chicken breasts especially, 30 minutes is so worth it that it’s not even debatable. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-part-of-the-chicken-do-you-prefer/719851.md?page=3)