Kroger had their whole chickens 87 cents a pound a few weeks ago, so I decided to conduct an experiment. How much meat do we actually get from a whole chicken? What is the actual cost for the meat because we don’t eat the skin and bones that makes up for some of the weight.
First let’s look at the chicken prices. These are prices that I pay for chicken in the Memphis, TN area, your meat prices could be different.
*this week Schnucks whole chicken 69 cents a pound, 5.5 lb Chicken= $3.80*
I cooked the 5.5 lb. whole chicken most of the day, then separated all the skin and bones from the meat being very careful to get each and every piece of meat on the chicken. Next, I weighed the meat and found that, from my 5.5 lb. whole chicken, I ended up with 1 lb. 12 oz. of dark and white chicken meat, the rest was skin and bones. Shocked? I certainly was, I figured I’d get about half the weight I paid for but I was wrong.
*Update: Thanks to the reader who suggested comparing cooked to cooked chicken-it didn’t even cross my mind. I did some research and the general rule is for every 4 oz. raw fish/poultry you will get 3 oz. cooked. I reconfigured the numbers below based upon this rule.
*Schnucks price this week 69 cents per pound for 5.5 lb. whole chicken = $2.17 a pound*
If I were to purchase a whole chicken at Schnucks for 69 cents a pound this week I would save $6.60 (or 67 cents a pound) than if I bought the same amount at Costco. I purchased my whole chicken at 87 cents a pound which is a 12 cents a pound savings compared to chicken breasts from Costco.
That being said, it is well worth my money and time to purchase breasts over a whole chicken. Now I can buy my favorite Chicken Breasts without feeling like I’m splurging.
What about you? How do you buy your chicken?
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{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
You can't compare cooked chicken weight to raw chicken weight..You would then have to cook the chicken breasts as well since they would also shrink after cooking..then you would get a little more accurate comparison.
I still buy whole chickens now and again, but mainly because I then use the bones and skin to make a chicken stock. That adds to the value of the chicken big time. Stock is EXPENSIVE!
I've often wondered about this b/c it seemed cheaper to buy a whole chicken. But, it also takes a LOT of extra time cooking a whole chicken versus just the breast. And, there are always pieces of perfectly good meat on the whole chicken that my husband refuses to eat…
Thanks for the comparison – I'm definitely a chicken breast fan over the whole chicken because of the amount of work involved, and now I can feel better because I know I'm getting a good deal too!!
I've been buying the whole chickens — eating baked chicken one day, a casserole the next and then what to do with that bit of leftover. I know I can make stock and soup — but that's been getting old. I think I may start purchasing bone in breasts to roast instead.
PLEASE tell where u have found breasts at 1.77. Lately doing the math Kroger n Aldi's have been the best I can find at 1.97. I have been adding in the price raises lately w/ my deals so now just even thighs I will buy at 87 cents a lb instead of 74 cents
sway976 at msn.com
The $1.77 price is not an ongoing deal rather sales every once in a while at Kroger and Schnucks. I'll be sure and post this price in the weekly deals when it comes around again.
Kroger has the Chicken Breasts $1.97 a pound through Tuesday.
I buy chicken breasts (with skin and bones) at Kroger when they go on sale for $.99/lb. I just bought about 20 lbs. of them this month.
I love this experiment. I teach full time and blog part time, so during the school year, I am a boneless, skinless girl. But during the summer, I branch out a little more!
Newest follower from Frugal linky. I tend to "splurge" a little and mostly buy chicken breasts however I usually buy larger quantities when on sale BOGO packages or sometimes frozen. The only time I buy whole chicken is if going to make soup or something and can use the carcass. Thanks for sharing your experiment. You can find me over at http://www.imnotsuperwoman.com
Don't forget about the chicken stock you can get from cooking your whole chicken. I get around 7 cup to put in my freezer (or use in the next few days.) I have not priced stock lately, but that should add a couple of more dollars to your savings…
Wow! A whole chicken where I live in Australia is $2.27 a pound (did a quick conversion from kilograms). I nearly cried when I saw .89c!!
I want to do the same thing to compare boneless chicken pricing with the chicken breast (with bone and skin). I don't buy the whole chicken very much because I don't use the chicken stock or any of the other benefits that you get from it and I don't like dark meat. I usually wait and get boneless chicken at $1.99 per pound and $0.99 for chicken breasts. I am not sure which one works out to cheaper but I will certainly buy whichever one works out better but I guess I will have to follow your testing methods
Thanks for the post.