Chicken – Pre-pounding chicken

The most reliable technique I found was the following:

• Hold the cleaver in your left hand (assuming you are right-handed);

• Press the cleaver from the top with your right hand to make a slight indentation into the bone, in order to maintain a stable hold for the next step;

• Use a wooden mallet to pound the flat (top) end of the cleaver, again with your right hand.

This is completely safe and doesn't require precise aim. Usually even the thickest bones can be cleaved through completely with 2 or 3 hard whacks from the mallet.

Save in a bag in your freezer along with all chicken bones you come across. Cleave through the bones to expose some collagen before freezing (consider roasting all ingredients before hand). Add whatever vegetable bits you don't use in your cooking - including things you wouldn't eat (but nothing poisonous) to your bag, especially onions (including skin and root), celery, and carrots.

When you have a good amount, put in a pot and just cover with cold water. A bit of vinegar helps promote a nice gelling of your broth. Tomato paste, peppercorns, and a bay leaf will add to the flavor. Simmer gently for around five hours. Remove. If you had fat still on your meat you may want to chill until the fat rises to the surface to remove the fat.

Your broth will keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge or it can be frozen until you have a recipe which calls for chicken stock or broth. Your homemade broth will be an excellent addition to sauces, a great base for soups, or an excellent liquid for cooking rice, couscous, or quinoa.