How To Use Chicken Backs – Easy Way To Reduce Food Waste
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Utilizing every part of the chicken is a great way to save money and not let any part go to waste! In this post, you will learn our favorite ways to use chicken backs and how to make a delicious meal out of them!

One of the ways we like to cut back on waste and save money eating healthy food is to utilize every part of the chicken. Using chicken backs is a great way to get an easy meal on the table while saving money. Using what you have available is a way of cooking that we use in our meals regularly. It’s a homestead style of cooking that helps ensure we can prepare a home-cooked meal with ease each day.
Although chicken backs are not easily found at the grocery store, they are a great cut of chicken to use! Below, you will find how we utilize this part of the chicken and some of our favorite recipes to use it.

What is a chicken back?
Chicken backs are the spine section of the chicken after a whole bird is cut. If you buy a whole chicken and cut it yourself to portion out the chicken pieces into breasts, thighs, legs, and wings, you will be left with the chicken backbones. And while this may seem like this portion of the chicken should just be tossed, it is actually full of delicious meat that can be used to make easy chicken dinners. You can also find chicken backs sold by farmers who have had their birds butchered into individual pieces to sell. Our farm sells chicken backs in packages of 8 backs, each cut in half for easy use. This part of the chicken is usually a very budget-friendly cut because many see it as a waste product.

If you are local to Iowa you can purchase chicken backs from birds that have been pasture-raised with the link below! You can buy directly from our farm, or find us at farmers markets or local co-ops.
What type of meat is on the chicken back?
Chicken backs are actually another type of white meat, making it a much more affordable option than chicken breasts. You can use the meat you find in the chicken backs just like you would from the breast. You can shred it and add it to salads, soups, sandwiches, or however else you would normally use chicken breast meat. In a pack of 8 chicken backs, there’s about 2 quarts of meat.

Utilizing all parts of the chicken
We love using all parts of the chicken to not only save money but to get all of the nutritional goodness out of the whole bird! Chicken backs are great because they have a good amount of meat on them to be able to eat. But they aren’t the only part that can be utilized! Chicken feet are another great example. They are full of collagen and other essential vitamins that add so many nutrients to your food. Our favorite way to use chicken feet is in Chicken Feet Bone Broth. Or, you can also use the carcass or chicken bones to make Homemade Bone Broth. Backs, feet, and leftover bones are all an affordable part of the chicken, and they are loaded with connective tissue, so they are nutrient-dense for broth-making. Homemade broth is full of nutrients and always tastes way better than anything that you can buy at the grocery store.

Recipe ideas with chicken backs
Sheet pan dinner
You can use chicken backs just like you would any other part of the chicken with the bone in (such as thighs) and cook them on a sheet pan with vegetables for an easy meal. Sheet pan recipes are a great way to get a healthy meal on the dinner table that is full of protein and vegetables. You will know when the chicken is ready when the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. The best way to check this is with a meat thermometer. You can find the one we recommend here!

Ingredients:
- Chicken backs- We use 8 chicken backs, but you can use less if that is all you have on hand.
- Vegetables- We like to use root vegetables such as potatoes or carrots, onions, garlic or whatever else we have on hand
- Cooking oil – Toss everything with cooking oil. We love to use lard, butter or olive oil.
- Seasoning- Then season! Use kosher salt and black pepper, fresh herbs, or any other seasoning blend you like. If you do not have fresh onions and garlic on hand you can use onion powder and garlic powder to season as well.

Shredded chicken
Chicken backs are a great way to make shredded chicken! All you need are some chicken backs and enough water to cover the chicken backs completely. You can use your slow cooker, instant pot, or even just cook in a large pot on the stove. Once the meat is cooked through, remove the meat and then the leftover liquid is now a super easy chicken broth that you can use in chicken soup or use to cook your rice, beans, or any other way you use chicken broth in your kitchen.

What to use shredded meat in
After you shred the meat, you can use it in any dish that you would normally use shredded chicken. Use it in soups, casseroles, tacos, salads, or anything else! We have an outline of 10 quick meals to make with chicken on our blog. This post talks about using canned chicken, but you can use cooked chicken in the same way! Get all the ideas with the link below.

Simple roasted chicken backs
Simple roasted chicken backs can be treated just as you would doing a simple roasted chicken breast or thigh. This is a great way to cook chicken backs because it is really versatile and can paired with all of your favorite side dishes. To make simple roasted chicken backs, add your chicken backs to a sheet pan, toss with your cooking oil of choice, and season with salt and pepper or any other seasonings you would like. Then, roast the chicken backs until they have reached 165 degrees F. Then, serve with another simple side to have an easy and healthy dinner. Here are some of our favorite vegetable side dishes to pair with this meal:
- Instant Pot Beets: Cooking beets in a pressure cooker is so easy to do plus it is a great meal prep hack! This blog post will have instructions to cook the beets plus different ways to eat them that are easy and so delicious!
- Oven Baked Cabbage Steaks: Thick cabbage slices are roasted to perfection with simple seasoning. Roasting the cabbage brings out the sweetness that is so delicious.
- Sautéed Carrots: This carrot recipe is so easy to make on the stovetop and is covered in a simple honey butter glaze.
- Sautéed Kohlrabi: Kohlrabi is a great low-carb alternative to potatoes. This recipe is super easy to make in a skillet. Kohlrabi is sautéed with onions, garlic, and your cooking oil of choice.
- Refrigerator Cucumber Salad: Nothing makes dinnertime easier than having a healthy side dish already made up! This cucumber salad will keep in glass jars in the fridge for months! We love to make a big batch of this so we can have an easy side that does not require any cooking.

More chicken recipes on Pleasant Grove Homestead Blog
Honey Butter Chicken Wings– This recipe is roasted in the oven and then it is covered in a honey butter sauce that gives the wings so much flavor! It is great for the main course, or it also makes an easy appetizer to serve.
Simple Roasted Whole Chicken– This is a method we often use to cook up an easy meal to feed the family, or it is a great way to meal prep for the week! All you need is a whole chicken and simple seasoning, and then it is slow roasted for a super juicy and delicious chicken.
Asian Sugar Snap Peas with Chicken– This is a one-pot meal that is perfect for a busy weeknight! It is made with sugar snap peas, and chicken and then coated in a sauce made with garlic, coconut aminos, and ginger.
How to meal prep chicken– Get our easy method to meal prep chicken and get easy meals on the table all week long! This post outlines three meal prep hacks that are tried and true in our house.
