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How to Carve Turkey Breast Download Article 27 Recipe Ratings Reviewed by Chef Jeff Woodward
Last Updated: March 10, 2025
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Cutting Apart a Whole Turkey
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Carving a Turkey Breast Off the Bone
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This article was reviewed by Chef Jeff Woodward. Jeff Woodward is a Private Chef and the Owner of The Rogue Chef based in Branson, Missouri. With over 20 years of experience in the restaurant industry, he has cooked for esteemed clients including The Harlem Globetrotters, Peyton Manning, Mark Wahlberg, and Justin Timberlake. Chef Jeff won the Branson Tri-Lakes News Reader's Choice Award 2023 for Best Catering. He has been the Featured Chef Demonstrator for 2 years in a row for The Women's Show in Springfield, MO. The Rogue Chef has been the Hollister Chamber of Commerce Spotlight Chef, an award published in Tri-Lakes News. Chef Jeff's food has been featured on KY3 Television. He publishes a recipe weekly in the Branson Globe newspaper and monthly in Lost on the Lake Magazine. He published a feature article for Chef Talks in Discover Home and Style Magazine. He has an associate’s degree from Southwestern Illinois College and a Culinary Arts degree with a Certification in Baking from Ozark Technical College. This article has been viewed 49,429 times.
In order to get the most meat off of a turkey breast, you need to use the proper carving technique to cleanly cut the breast meat off the bone. The right knife is as important as making the right cuts. Make sure to separate the breast from the rest of the turkey before carving if you have a whole roast turkey. Soon enough, you’ll have perfect slices of delicious white turkey meat!
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Part 1 Part 1 of 2:
Cutting Apart a Whole Turkey
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1 Place the whole turkey on a cutting board, breast-up, with the cavity facing you. Set your turkey in front of you on a large cutting board so the legs and thighs are closest to you. Cut through any strings holding the legs together with the tip of a sharp knife.[1]XResearch source
A sharp chef’s knife will be most useful for separating the turkey breast from everything else smoothly and easily.
If you cooked only a turkey breast instead of a whole turkey, then skip down to the next method!
2 Remove the legs and thighs with a sharp knife. Cut through the skin between the thighs and the breast. Push down on the legs and thighs to bend them away from the breast and expose the joints. Slice through the joints with a sharp knife and set the legs and thighs aside.[2]XResearch source
You can separate the thigh from the drumstick at this point by cutting through the joint that connects them if you want to carve up the thigh later as well.
The knife should be big enough to slice all the way through in 1 slice.
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3 Pull out the wishbone with your fingers. Flip the breast around so the front is facing you (and still still breast-up). Reach into the neck cavity with your fingers, feel for the wishbone, and try to pull it out. Use the tip of your knife to help cut it free from the meat if you can’t pull it out right away.[3]XResearch source
The wishbone is the “Y” shaped collar bone at the front of the breast. Removing the wishbone will make the turkey breast much easier to carve.
4 Cut the wings off the breast. Bend a wing to the side to expose the joint that connects it to the breast, then cut through it with one clean slice. Repeat this for the other wing to finish preparing the turkey breast for carving.[4]XResearch source
You can leave the wings intact to be eaten whole. They are the crispiest and least meaty part of a whole turkey.
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Carving a Turkey Breast Off the Bone
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1 Select a sharp chef’s knife or serrated knife. Both a chef’s knife and serrated knife are viable options for carving a turkey breast. The only difference is the way that you cut with them. Choose a serrated knife if you prefer to saw the meat, and choose a chef’s knife if you want to slice it.[5]XResearch source
If you choose a chef’s knife, then make sure it is very sharp before you begin to carve the breast. If not, it will be very difficult to make clean cuts. The knife should be about 8 in (20 cm) long.
This method will work if you separated a breast from a whole turkey, or if you cooked a bone-in breast on its own.
2 Place the body of the turkey on a serving plate or cutting board. Put the whole turkey breast, breast-up, on a flat serving platter or a cutting board that is big enough to carve it on. Face the neck cavity away from you.[6]XResearch source
It is useful if the serving platter has a rim or the cutting board has a trench to catch the turkey juices as you are carving.
3 Slice along one side of the breast bone and all the way down. Pick a side and start at the top of the breast right where it meets the top of the breast bone. Slice downward and as close to the breast bone as possible to separate the meat from the bone until you can no longer cut through the meat.[7]XResearch source
If you are using a chef’s knife, use long, even slicing strokes. If you are using a serrated knife, then use an even sawing motion to carve the breast.
4 Move your knife to the front of the ribs, near the neck, and cut along them. Slice along the ribs, as close to them as possible, and down around the bottom of the breast. Keep slicing until you connect with your first cut and have freed a large chunk of the breast from the bones.[8]XResearch source
You should feel the breast come loose when both of your cuts meet. It might even fall off! If it is still connected, use your knife to cut through any last bits that are holding it in place.
5 Pull the breast meat off the bone and carve it into slices. Pull the chunk of breast meat away from the carcass and set it on the cutting board or platter. Slice it against the grain into pieces of the size you want for serving.[9]XResearch source
You can use tongs to steady the breast while you carve it into slices. Then, you'll have the tongs handy for serving as well.
Against the grain is more or less straight down or at a slight angle away from you.
If you aren't sure how thick to slice the turkey, then cut it into 0.5 in (1.3 cm) slices.
6 Repeat the process for the other side of the breast. Flip the breast around in front of you so you can easily carve the other side. Start the process over from the beginning to carve the other turkey breast.[10]XResearch source
For example, if you carved the right side of the breast first, then flip the breast around so that you can carve the left side off the bone now. The neck cavity will now be facing you instead of away from you.
If you did it correctly, the majority of the meat should be off the bone now. You can use your fingers to clean the carcass later, and use the bones and scraps to make turkey stock or soup.
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Reviewed by: Chef Jeff Woodward Private Chef This article was reviewed by Chef Jeff Woodward. Jeff Woodward is a Private Chef and the Owner of The Rogue Chef based in Branson, Missouri. With over 20 years of experience in the restaurant industry, he has cooked for esteemed clients including The Harlem Globetrotters, Peyton Manning, Mark Wahlberg, and Justin Timberlake. Chef Jeff won the Branson Tri-Lakes News Reader's Choice Award 2023 for Best Catering. He has been the Featured Chef Demonstrator for 2 years in a row for The Women's Show in Springfield, MO. The Rogue Chef has been the Hollister Chamber of Commerce Spotlight Chef, an award published in Tri-Lakes News. Chef Jeff's food has been featured on KY3 Television. He publishes a recipe weekly in the Branson Globe newspaper and monthly in Lost on the Lake Magazine. He published a feature article for Chef Talks in Discover Home and Style Magazine. He has an associate’s degree from Southwestern Illinois College and a Culinary Arts degree with a Certification in Baking from Ozark Technical College. This article has been viewed 49,429 times. 27 votes - 83% Co-authors: 5Updated: March 10, 2025 Views: 49,429 Categories: Turkey DishesArticle SummaryX
Carving a turkey breast correctly will help you get as much meat off the bone as possible. You’ll need to start by removing the legs, wings, and breastbone to give you easier access to the breast meat. Once that’s done, set the turkey breast-up on a plate or cutting board. Slice down along one side of the breastbone and ribs with a sharp kitchen knife. Pull the separated half of the breast off of the bone, then cut it into slices widthwise, or across the grain of the meat. Finish by repeating the same process on the other side. For advice on how to choose the best knife for carving a turkey breast, scroll down!Did this summary help you?YesNo
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Yes No Advertisement Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Reviewed by: Chef Jeff Woodward Private Chef Co-authors: 5Updated: March 10, 2025 Views: 49,42983% of voters found this recipe helpful. 27 votes - 83% Click a star to add your vote
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Download Article 27 Recipe Ratings Reviewed by Chef Jeff Woodward 
How toCut Roast Beef 
How to Trim, Slice, & Cut the Perfect Brisket 
How toCut Chicken Wings 
How toCut Prime Rib 
How toCut a Chicken Fillet 
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Reviewed by: Chef Jeff Woodward Private Chef This article was reviewed by Chef Jeff Woodward. Jeff Woodward is a Private Chef and the Owner of The Rogue Chef based in Branson, Missouri. With over 20 years of experience in the restaurant industry, he has cooked for esteemed clients including The Harlem Globetrotters, Peyton Manning, Mark Wahlberg, and Justin Timberlake. Chef Jeff won the Branson Tri-Lakes News Reader's Choice Award 2023 for Best Catering. He has been the Featured Chef Demonstrator for 2 years in a row for The Women's Show in Springfield, MO. The Rogue Chef has been the Hollister Chamber of Commerce Spotlight Chef, an award published in Tri-Lakes News. Chef Jeff's food has been featured on KY3 Television. He publishes a recipe weekly in the Branson Globe newspaper and monthly in Lost on the Lake Magazine. He published a feature article for Chef Talks in Discover Home and Style Magazine. He has an associate’s degree from Southwestern Illinois College and a Culinary Arts degree with a Certification in Baking from Ozark Technical College. This article has been viewed 49,429 times. 27 votes - 83% Co-authors: 5 Updated: March 10, 2025 Views: 49,429 Categories: Turkey Dishes Article SummaryX
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1 Place the whole turkey on a cutting board, breast-up, with the cavity facing you. Set your turkey in front of you on a large cutting board so the legs and thighs are closest to you. Cut through any strings holding the legs together with the tip of a sharp knife.[1] 
2 Remove the legs and thighs with a sharp knife. Cut through the skin between the thighs and the breast. Push down on the legs and thighs to bend them away from the breast and expose the joints. Slice through the joints with a sharp knife and set the legs and thighs aside.[2] 
1 Select a sharp chef’s knife or serrated knife. Both a chef’s knife and serrated knife are viable options for carving a turkey breast. The only difference is the way that you cut with them. Choose a serrated knife if you prefer to saw the meat, and choose a chef’s knife if you want to slice it.[5] 
2 Place the body of the turkey on a serving plate or cutting board. Put the whole turkey breast, breast-up, on a flat serving platter or a cutting board that is big enough to carve it on. Face the neck cavity away from you.[6]