Tori no Hire (Japanese Poultry Wing Breakdown)

The full chicken wing (teba, 手羽) consists of three bony sections: the humerus (drumette), the radius-ulna pair (flat/nakabone), and the carpals-phalanges (tip). The two cut points are the glenohumeral joint (shoulder) and the humeroulnar joint (elbow). The tip section contains little usable meat and is most often reserved for stock or deep-fried whole.

1. 1For yakitori drumettes: skewer lengthwise through the meat parallel to the bone; grill over binchotan at medium-high heat, turning every 90 seconds; glaze with tare in the final 2 minutes.
2. 2For yakitori flats (nakabone manipulation): grip the cut end of the flat; using a knife tip, scrape both bones free from the meat from the cut end toward the tip, leaving bones protruding; fold the meat back over itself and skewer through the meaty flap to create a compact 'fan' shape.
3. 3For Nagoya tebasaki: pat the flat and drumette completely dry; fry at 170°C for 8 minutes until deep golden, then raise to 190°C for 2 minutes for crisping; toss immediately in a sweet-spicy soy-mirin-garlic glaze.
4. 4For stock: split wing tips with a cleaver to expose marrow; roast at 220°C until deeply caramelized; add to stockpot with water, kombu, and ginger.
5. 5For braising: sear all sections skin-side down until golden; braise in a 1:1:1 ratio of soy sauce, mirin, and sake for 20–25 minutes until lacquered.

• Chill wings to 2–4°C for cleanest joint cuts — cold cartilage cuts more precisely.
• For the shoulder cut (removing drumette from whole wing): bend the wing backward to expose the glenohumeral joint; insert a sharp knife tip directly into the joint cartilage and cut through — no sawing through bone needed if the joint is found precisely.
• For the elbow cut (separating flat from tip): similarly bend backward to expose the humeroulnar joint and cut cleanly through the cartilage.
• Pat all sections completely dry before grilling or frying — surface moisture is the primary enemy of skin crispness.
• For the lollipop/nakabone manipulation, a thin flexible boning knife or a stiff paring knife works best to separate the radius and ulna from the meat without tearing.

• Whole chicken wing (unsectioned)

  Can be cooked whole but results in uneven cooking — drumette overcooks before the flat is done

• Duck wing sections

  Richer fat content; require longer cooking times; excellent in braised applications

• Turkey wing drumette

  Much larger; use for braising rather than yakitori skewering

• Chicken Drumette

  The first wing section — the humerus segment with its single bone

• Chicken Flat (Wing Mid-Section)

  The radius-ulna segment; the nakabone of yakitori

• Wing Tip

  The distal cartilage-rich tip section; used for stock or deep-fried whole

• Japanese Honetsuki-Boning (Poultry)

  Companion technique for leg boning using the honetsuki knife

1. 1.Yakitori: The Japanese Art of Grilled Chicken — Harris Salat
2. 2.The Food Lab — J. Kenji López-Alt
3. 3.Japanese Farm Food — Nancy Singleton Hachisu
4. 4.On Food and Cooking — Harold McGee

Confidence: high