To blanch.—When cut in pieces as directed, throw it in boiling water to which a little salt has been added; boil two minutes and drain.
To cut.—To make a chicken sauté or in fricassee, it is generally cut into eight pieces; the two legs, the wings, one piece of the breast-bone, and three pieces of the back-bone. The ends of the wings, the lower part of the legs after being skinned by warming them, the neck, gizzard, heart, kidneys, and head, are put in the soup-kettle. Generally the bones of the legs above the second joint are removed by breaking them with the back of a knife just above the second joint. The ends of the small bones of the three pieces of the back-bone are trimmed off also.
To dish and serve.—Dish the pieces in the following order: the neck, gizzard, the fore part of the back and the low part of the legs in the middle; then one leg on each side of the dish, with one wing beside each, then the breast and hind part of the back, and lastly the ends of the wings at the top. If cut in eight pieces only, place the breast-bone on the middle of the dish, the hind part of the back-bone at one end of it and the two others at the other end; the legs and wings on each side.
Boiled.—A chicken is boiled only when it is an old one, whose tenderness is doubtful, and which is not needed to make broth or consommé.
Clean, prepare, and truss it as directed for poultry. Brown the bird in a saucepan with about one ounce of butter, then half cover it with cold water; season with a few slices of onion, same of carrot, two cloves, two stalks of parsley, salt and pepper. Boil gently about one hour and a half, and when done, dish the bird, strain the sauce over it, and serve warm.
If the sauce boils away, add a little cold water; and if there is any fat on it, skim it off.
An old chicken may be cooked especially to make a salad.
Boned.—Pick, bone, fill, cook, and serve a boned chicken exactly like a boned turkey; the only difference is, that it requires less filling, being smaller.
For an extra, legs of large chickens may be boned and filled like the chicken, the rest being used for a fricassee.