The Juiciest Cut of Chicken You Aren't Buying but Should Be, According to Chefs

 

For weeknight dinners, we generally rely on chicken breasts, chicken thighs, or a rotisserie bird. (Our fellow Costco fans understand!) But honestly, we're getting a little tired of those three staples, and as grocery prices rise across the board, we wouldn't mind spending a little less in the meat department.

We expressed these sentiments to a handful of culinary pros from across the country, and they had the perfect solution. Turns out, it's time to give a look at a different cut.

Read on to learn more about their top poultry pick that delivers in terms of flavor, juiciness, ease of cooking, and affordability. Then stick around for tips about how to prepare this underrated piece so it tastes like a million bucks.

Our Panel of Chicken-Savvy Chefs

• George Duran, a New York City-based celebrity chef and the author of "Take This Dish and Twist It"
• Luis Fayad, executive chef of jm Curley and Bogie’s Place in Boston, Massachusetts
• Dominic Iannarelli, chef-owner of Prime & Providence in West Des Moines, Iowa
• Aaron Sortman, head butcher at Red Hog Restaurant and Butcher Shop in Louisville, Kentucky

The Juiciest Cut of Chicken to Buy

Often overlooked in lieu of the aforementioned weeknight staples or game-day-favorite wings, all four chefs agree that the best cut of chicken to consider adding to your menu right now is boneless skinless chicken drumsticks.

"These are one of those cuts that people walk by because it looks a bit like the chicken forgot to put its pants on," jokes celebrity chef and cookbook author George Duran. "Sure, they're a bit uneven and lumpy-looking compared to other cuts, but that's part of the charm! They're highly underrated."

The benefits of boneless skinless chicken drumsticks include:

• They're budget-friendly. "I find this cut to be budget-friendly compared to chicken breast, yielding about the same amount of meat while being much more versatile," says Prime & Providence chef-owner Dominic Iannarelli. Due to the massive popularity of chicken breasts, until the last decade or two, chicken thighs were the budget buy, explains jm Curley and Bogie’s Place executive chef Luis Fayad. But "as flavor-conscious consumers realized the few calories they spared themselves were not worth the trade-off for the bland dryness of the breast, thighs have had a resurgence, and have exploded in price as a result. The skinless, boneless drumstick has come to save the day to help stretch your food budget." Unlike chicken thighs or breasts, which are going for about $4 to $6 per pound, Fayad estimates, these drumsticks can still be found for less than $3 a pound at some retailers. Admittedly, this cut will be more expensive than its bone-in version, since labor is required to debone. But they're still relatively "budget-friendly, tasty, and quietly sitting in the poultry aisle being delicious," Duran chimes in.
• You don't have to fuss with a bone. Bone-in cuts are often very moist and flavorful. So why aren't we recommending that here? In an attempt to avoid undercooked poultry (a very legit concern), many home cooks have a tendency to overcook bone-in chicken parts, Fayad concedes. Because they're easier and often less intimidating to cook to a safe temperature, "going boneless might be a way to get more folks to like them drumsticks," says Aaron Sortman, owner of Red Hog Restaurant and Butcher Shop.
• They're as juicy as boneless chicken thighs. Most poultry will be juicy as long as it's not overcooked, Iannarelli tells Allrecipes. Still, white meat can err on the drier side since it's lower in fat. So as a general rule, dark meat cuts are going to be juicier than white meat ones, the pros verify. "Boneless skinless drumsticks rank near the very top for juiciness, alongside chicken thighs," Duran says.
• They're more flavorful than boneless chicken breasts. Affordability and juiciness matter, sure. But what we're really after is flavor. "Boneless skinless drumsticks are cheap, but that doesn't mean they aren't packed with flavor," Fayad says. Drumsticks pack rich dark-meat flavor that lands as meatier and more robust than chicken breasts, Duran tells us.

After all these raves, we had to ask the chefs if they could think of any potential "cons" to consider before buying a pack of boneless, skinless chicken drumsticks.

"The only drawback I can think of is that by sharing this information, the drumstick will go the way of the short rib and be the next cut to go up in price as soon as everyone else realizes how good it really is and the demand for it explodes," Fayad says, urging us to hop aboard the fan club before this cut gets cool.

How To Prepare This Underrated Cut of Chicken Like a Pro

Due to their size, flavor, and fat composition (which is key to promoting moist results), boneless skinless chicken drumsticks are incredibly adaptable to the recipes you like.

Try using boneless skinless drumsticks in any of your favorite boneless chicken breast or thigh recipes, or in a chicken drumstick recipe that's designed for bone-in pieces. Simply lightly pound the pieces so they're uniform in thickness, Iannarelli recommends, then adjust the cooking time accordingly so the thickest part of the meat reaches 165 degrees F (74 degrees C) before you pull it from the heat.

If you'd like to go off-script with your drumstick prep, the chefs suggest grilling over high heat, "which produces craggy crispy edges that translate to an almost-fried-chicken texture," Duran says. This is especially true if you doctor up the exterior with a spice rub first. If you have a couple extra hours to spare before it's time to cook, try marinating the pieces in something like Italian dressing or this savory-smoky blend, the chefs suggest.