How to Cut Boneless Chicken Breast Like a Pro

Chicken breast is a kitchen staple for good reason. It’s affordable, lean, easy to cook, and endlessly versatile. But before you can cook chicken breast, you first need to know how to cut it properly.

Cutting chicken breast the right way ensures even cooking, enhances the texture, and allows you to get multiple portions from one breast. With just a sharp knife and a few simple techniques, you’ll be prepping chicken for any recipe like a pro.

Why Learn Proper Cutting Techniques?

Knowing how to cut boneless, skinless chicken breasts makes cooking them much easier. Here are some of the benefits:

• Saves prep time. Once you know the basic methods, you can quickly cut chicken into strips, cubes, or cutlets for any recipe.

• Ensures even cooking. Uniform pieces cook more evenly than whole breasts or uneven cuts.

• Allows better portion control. Get exactly the right amount of chicken you need for a meal by dividing it into portions.

• Maximizes value. One breast can be turned into multiple cutlets, strips, or other pieces.

• Improves texture. Cutting against the grain makes chicken more tender.

So whether you’re making chicken salad, skewers, sautés, or other dishes, proper cutting techniques are essential for getting the most from this versatile ingredient

What You Need to Get Started

Cutting chicken breast is simple with just a few essential tools:

• Sharp chef’s knife. A quality knife makes cutting easier and safer.

• Cutting board Choose a large board that won’t slide around

• Plastic wrap or bags. Useful for pounding cutlets and storing prep.

• Meat mallet or skillet (optional) For pounding chicken to an even thickness

• Kitchen shears (optional). Helpful for cutting through bones.

Always sanitize cutting boards, knives, and other tools before and after handling raw chicken to prevent cross-contamination.

How to Cut a Whole Chicken Breast into Cutlets

Cutlets are thin, evenly sized slices perfect for dishes like chicken Parmesan or schnitzel. Here’s how to slice a whole breast into two or more cutlets:

1. Place chicken breast smooth-side down on a cutting board. Hold it steady with your non-dominant hand.

2. Position your chef’s knife horizontally about 1/3 of the way up from the bottom. Make sure the knife is sharp.

3. In one smooth motion, slice horizontally through the breast to divide it into two even cutlets.

4. If the cutlets are thick or uneven, make additional horizontal cuts to get the desired thickness. Two or three cutlets per breast is ideal.

5. Lay cutlets flat and cover with plastic wrap. Gently pound with a meat mallet or skillet to a 1/4-inch thickness.

With this simple process, you can turn one chicken breast into several professional-looking cutlets for schnitzel, piccata, marsala, and more.

Slicing Chicken Breast into Strips

Also called tenders or fingers, strips are great for fajitas, skewers, stir fries, and other dishes. Here’s how to slice a breast into long, thin strips:

1. Place chicken breast smooth-side down on a cutting board. Anchor it firmly with your hand.

2. Hold your knife perpendicular to the breast, starting about 1/2 inch from the tapered end.

3. Make vertical cuts down through the breast, slicing with the grain to get long strips.

4. Cut strips to the desired thickness, usually 1/2 to 1 inch wide.

5. Trim off any uneven end pieces and scrape strips into a bowl. They’re ready for marinating and cooking.

The length of the strips will depend on the size of the breast. Leaving them longer results in more tender meat when cooked.

Dicing Chicken Breast into Cubes

Cubed chicken is perfect for salads, kabobs, stir fries, and more. Follow these steps for uniform diced pieces:

1. Slice the chicken breast horizontally into thin cutlets.

2. Stack the cutlets and make vertical cuts 1/2 to 3/4 inches apart to form thin strips.

3. Line up the strips and make horizontal cuts 1/2 to 3/4 inches apart to dice into cubes.

4. For larger cubes, cut breast into thick strips first, then cube. For smaller cubes, cut thinner strips before dicing.

5. Transfer diced chicken to a bowl and season or marinate as desired.

Cutting the breast into even cutlets first helps produce uniform cubes or dices for balanced cooking.

Chopping Chicken Breast into Pieces

For chicken salad, soups, casseroles, and other recipes, coarsely chopping the meat saves time. Here’s how:

1. Dice the chicken breast into approximately 1-inch cubes first. This gives you some uniformity of size.

2. Gather the cubes together on the cutting board in a mound.

3. Hold your chef’s knife perpendicular to the board and coarsely chop the chicken using a rocking motion. Don’t overchop.

4. The pieces should be roughly 1/2 to 1 inch in size. Avoid large chunks or fine dices.

Chopped chicken gives you tender bits of meat and saves you from having to dice everything precisely. It’s great for weeknight meals.

Butterflying a Chicken Breast

Butterflying cuts the breast almost in half horizontally without separating it, allowing it to lie flat. It’s perfect for stuffing or pounding for schnitzel.

1. Place chicken breast smooth-side down. Make a horizontal cut into the thickest side, stopping before the knife cuts all the way through.

2. Open the breast up like a book to butterfly it.

3. Optionally, cover with plastic and gently pound to a uniform thickness.

You can then stuff, roll, bread, sauté, or grill the butterflied breast. It cooks quickly and evenly due to its thin profile.

Key Tips for Cutting Chicken Breast

Follow these tips for clean, efficient cuts:

• Always use a sharp knife. This requires less effort and prevents ragged cuts.

• Cut against the grain for more tender results. Identify the grain first.

• Work with partially frozen chicken for easier slicing, especially for thin cuts.

• Cut away from yourself and curl fingers under to avoid nicks.

• Rinse chicken before cutting to remove excess water for better friction.

• Pat chicken dry so it doesn’t slide around. Anchoring it down is key.

• Change cutting boards and knives between uncooked and cooked poultry to avoid cross-contamination.

With the right tools and these simple techniques, you’ll be prepping chicken breast like a professional cook for recipes that are sure to impress!