Buying a whole chicken and cutting it into pieces is more economical than purchasing chicken parts, and you can utilize the backbone, which adds depth of flavor to the finished dish. Although this piece does not contain much meat, it is rich with collagen, the flavorful protein that serves as connective tissue.

It's easy to cut up a chicken using poultry shears, as described below.

• 1. Place the chicken, breast side down and wings toward you, on a cutting board. Using poultry shears, cut along both sides of the backbone, then open the bird out like a book.
• 2. Cut down the center of the breast, remove the cartilage, and cut between the two breast halves to split them in half.
• 3. Pull one of the thighs away from the body to locate the hip joint, just under the breast. Cut down through the hip joint to separate the thigh from the body.