Life Hack: How To Grind Your Own Chicken with Recipes

Have you ever ground your own chicken? I just started doing it a few weeks ago, and I have already noticed a significant savings on my grocery bill!  It’s really easy to do, and you don’t need all sorts of fancy equipment either.  What I really like about grinding my own chicken is that I can control the amount I make, and the freshness.  I use this easy food processor method, and have made everything from asian chicken lettuce wraps to meatballs and meatloaf.   

What You Need To Make Grind Your Own Chicken

Equipment:

– sharp knife
– baking sheet lined with parchment
– food processor

Ingredients:

– boneless, skinless chicken – You can use whatever you have on hand.  Chicken breast, of course will be a lot leaner than using chicken thighs.  I was able to make 20 meatballs with only one chicken breast.  I like to use a combination of chicken breast and chicken thighs when making my own ground chicken – but you really can use whatever you have on hand or what is on sale.  

How To Grind Your Own Chicken

Cut chicken into 1/2″ pieces.  By cutting the chicken into small even sized pieces allows for easier, quicker more even grinding.

Partially freeze the chicken cubes.  Place chicken cubes on your prepared baking sheet, and freeze in a single layer for 15-20 minutes depending on how much chicken you have.  The chicken should be firm around the edges, and still a little soft in the middle.  Using partially frozen chicken will help the food processor cut and “grind” the chicken instead of mashing and smashing it into a paste.  

Working in batches, grind the chicken.  Fill food processor about 1/3 of the way with partially frozen, chicken and pulse for about 10 seconds or until the chicken looks coarsely ground.  Transfer to a bowl, and continue with remaining chicken.  

Check meat and use immediately, or freeze for later use.  Check through ground chicken for larger chunks.  If there are any chunks, transfer them back to the food processor and process until ground.  I usually just make whatever I am using for a single recipe, but if you find a good bargain on chicken, make and freeze your own ground chicken for later use.  

Recipes

You can substitute ground chicken for any recipe that calls for ground beef, or ground turkey.  Here are a few easy kid-friendly recipes that use ground chicken.