rapidly circulate cold air around them And most air-chilled chickens also come from reputable producers with humane standards If you value crisp skin and good browning on your chicken (and why shouldn’t you?), you’ll probably find the extra cost of an air-chilled bird to be a reasonable exchange Turkeys are rarely air-chilled, so you’ll have to take the extra time to dry them before roasting (see below) Q: My supermarket carries only water-chilled chickens and turkeys Is there anything I can do to get them to cook better? Certainly The key is to remove as much excess moisture as possible before cooking them As soon as you take the bird out of the package, rinse it and blot dry with paper towels inside and out, then place on a rack (set on a platter or baking sheet) in the fridge for several hours, or even overnight The dry air of the fridge and the air circulation caused by its fan will help your chicken or turkey shed excess moisture—though don’t expect it to ever get as crisp as a truly air-chilled bird Q: Once I get my bird home, is there any need to wash it or rinse it? If it’s a nice air-chilled bird packaged on a tray or bought from the butcher and wrapped in paper, there’s no need to wash it—in fact, all you’re doing by washing it is soaking the skin, making it harder to cook and reducing its ability to crisp properly Birds that come Cryovacked in tight plastic bags, on the other hand, are soaking in their own dripping juices With these birds, I like to open the package in the sink (it’ll save you a world of mess) and give the bird a quick once-over under cold running water to rinse away any of pinkish-red juices Then it gets a thorough wipe down with paper towels, and into the fridge it goes (uncovered) Chicken that has been wrapped sometimes develops a very slight off odor even when it’s perfectly safe to eat In these cases, I also rinse it off before carefully drying and cooking it CHICKEN PARTS Q: Now that I’ve skipped ahead and read through the handy illustrated guide (here), I’m confident that I can break down my own chicken if I have to But what if I still want to buy chicken parts? What should I look for? Chicken parts can be a convenient way to get dinner on the table faster and more neatly, albeit a bit less frugally But remember this: chicken producers love boneless, skinless breasts, and as a general rule, what’s good for the producer is bad for the consumer By selling boneless, skinless breasts, not only they get to charge you a gigantic premium for what’s essentially two minutes or less of work (pulling off the skin, cutting the breasts off the bone), but they can also transform those free rib cages into pricey packaged chicken stock Even if you’re of the rare breed that doesn’t like chicken skin, you should buy and cook chicken with the skin on Why? It’s a matter of moisture loss Aside from cutlets and stuffed breasts, and, of course, chopped or ground meat for ... With these birds, I like to open the package in the sink (it’ll save you a world of mess) and give the bird a quick once-over under cold running water to rinse away any of pinkish-red juices Then... for the consumer By selling boneless, skinless breasts, not only they get to charge you a gigantic premium for what’s essentially two minutes or less of work (pulling off the skin, cutting the. .. cases, I also rinse it off before carefully drying and cooking it CHICKEN PARTS Q: Now that I’ve skipped ahead and read through the handy illustrated guide (here), I’m confident that I can break down my own chicken if I have to