Author Topic: Hey Chickenpeople! (Read 15194 times)

JP · « **on:** January 22, 2009, 08:42:42 pm »

Them free range chickens without the hormones and all, do they taste different than the polluted variety?

And, its been quite a while since I plucked chicken feathers, do ya'll have a trick for gettin' the feathers off, like dippin' 'em in hot water, anything like that?

Was just doing some chicken thinking the other day and had these questions.

Thanks for any feedback, chickenpeople.

...JP

Jerrymac · « **Reply #1 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:53:35 pm »

Get a big deep pail/pot. Fill to about half full. Heat to a boil on a grill. Holding the bird by the feet and using a stick as needed, push the chicken into the pot of hot water covering all the feathers. Give it only two or three seconds. Pull it out and let it steam a bit until cool enough to handle. The feathers should just peel off. You don't really pull them a handful at a time. You sort of push them off. Like you are petting the chicken with pressure and against the growth.

You first can do the legs as you are holding it by the legs. Then pull out the big feathers from the tail and the wings. Next do the wings. Then the rest of the body starting at the butt working towards the neck. If they are really hard to pull out then dip it again.

JP · « **Reply #2 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:56:44 pm »

Jerry you have become quite the chickenperson. How about the free range taste vs hormones?

...JP

Jerrymac · « **Reply #3 on:** January 22, 2009, 09:08:14 pm »

Here's the thing. My taster ain't all that great since the motorcycle accident when the back of my head met the asphalt. And I am not much of a chicken eater. My wife really likes the bird but I like the cow :-D

poka-bee · « **Reply #4 on:** January 22, 2009, 10:16:37 pm »

JP, it's the same difference as your honey & Wallmart honey.... : AND no doubt you are getting way more nutrition per bite than commercial chicken cause they aren't on an exclusive diet of soilent green~! J

JP · « **Reply #5 on:** January 22, 2009, 10:20:37 pm »

Quote from: poka-bee on January 22, 2009, 10:16:37 pm

JP, it's the same difference as your honey & Wallmart honey.... : AND no doubt you are getting way more nutrition per bite than commercial chicken cause they aren't on an exclusive diet of soilent green~! J

Jody, the taste is different? How so? Iwas just thinking it would be cool to raise chickens one day and perhaps guineas and rabbits for food. And plant vegetables.

...JP

poka-bee · « **Reply #6 on:** January 22, 2009, 10:42:32 pm »

Watch out JP..soon you will be like Cindi, Brian & the rest of us!! The taste is much richer, somehow it doesn't dry out as much during cooking. The texture is different too, I can't explain how exactly but it is. Right now I buy it from other people. I don't like the processing part but my neighbor doesn't mind & they like dark meat, we don't so I am thinking of raising em, having them do the dirty work & giving them the dark meat for doing it. It feels good to know that no matter what happens you will have good, safe food to eat. J

Shawn · « **Reply #7 on:** January 23, 2009, 02:10:04 pm »

Can someone explain "free-range." I know they would be out on their own but what about the food you feed them? Most of the foods these days are tainted somehow. Even grinding your own feed the source would say what is in the feed. I am about to buy some chicks to start raising for eggs and want to keep everything as natural as I can but dont want to make the chickens suffer by them not getting the right mixtures of vitamins.

poka-bee · « **Reply #8 on:** January 23, 2009, 06:10:16 pm »

Shawn, free range means they get to wander about outside doing what chix do, eating a variety of bugs, plants & whatever. Ideally you wouldn't use pesticides or non-organic fertilizers. You can buy organic chix food, layer, grower & starter it is VERY expensive..hence the reason for letting them free range! You can also chuck out all your food scraps, they will eat almost everything. Kids don't like broccoli or crusts on bread? NP, eventually they will eat it recycled as eggs! :evil: J

Frantz · « **Reply #9 on:** January 23, 2009, 06:37:10 pm »

JP, like Jodie said becareful. Before you know it you are in trouble. I started thinking the way that you are a little bit ago. I now have a ton of birds and 100 eggs in the bator!!! You will not be sorry. I promise! Anyway, all my birds are free range, and I feed them scraps, layer pellets, and flax seed. I don't feed any of the "organic" feeds, too expensive. You can also talk to the local grocery about getting their produce that they toss every day/night. Well worth getting. With a bag of layer pellets costing $15 per 50lb bag. It helps for sure. We have healthy eggs, healthy birds and a great hobby for the kids.
F

Cindi · « **Reply #10 on:** January 24, 2009, 01:07:49 pm »

Quote from: Frantz on January 23, 2009, 06:37:10 pm

With a bag of layer pellets costing $15 per 50lb bag. It helps for sure. We have healthy eggs, healthy birds and a great hobby for the kids.
F

Holy smoking smoke!!! Frantz I cannot believe how expensive layer pellets are for you. Eeeks!!! That freaked me right out.

Here we pay $10.20 for a 50 pound bag, $15.00 would be a really bad thing. I wonder why such the difference in price. Even when the Canadian dollar was at par with the American last year, the price was still the same as it is today. Weird.

It is important that chickens get the proper amount of nutrients, they must have good nutrients or you don't have very healthy chickens. Period. Unhealthy chickens do not give great egg production. They require that they do not have chicken lice either, or internal parasites. Those deplete the souls of the bird too, and reduce egg production.

The layer pellets that I feed my chickens are non-medicated, but have a great array of vitamins and minerals that are important for the health of the bird, I believe in that. AND...all the kitchen scraps that I muster up, it is theirs to dine on too.

Giving the birds that flaxseed is excellent, as that is transmitted to the humans in consumption of the eggs. Which, by the way, consumption of eggs (especially with the omega three oils) (flaxseed is one great source for it) have been found to be far more beneficial for people than the thing about high cholesterol and eggs. Just some trivia.

Free range. Birds that can access green growing food for their dining pleasure, bugs, insects, stuff that they can eat, rocks to help to digest their food. That is what a free range bird is.

And yes, the taste between a commercial bird that is stuff to the gills to have it gain weight fast, without the good ol' grassy, greeny, browny stuff that the free range birds eat, well, you just cannot compare, period. And free range birds are very low in fat content because they have great exercise, which we all know helps to keep fat low, smiling. Have a wonderful and awesome day, great life, attract great health. Cindi

JP · « **Reply #11 on:** January 24, 2009, 02:13:37 pm »

So Cindi, what's the dark meat like, is it still juicy?

...JP

Cindi · « **Reply #12 on:** January 25, 2009, 12:08:15 pm »

Quote from: JP on January 24, 2009, 02:13:37 pm

So Cindi, what's the dark meat like, is it still juicy?
...JP

Not sure where that comment came from, but I can elaborate as much as I can.

The Muscovy ducks are dark meat. The bird is low in fat, very low, nothing like the other species of ducks that one can get pounds (smiling) of fat from when they cook them. My average weight of one of my Muscovy drakes, at 4 months old (that is the age of slaughter, older then you get more feathers to deal with, younger, you don't get as big a bird, a given, by the way) is about 6.5 pounds. That is alot of meat off one duck, the females weigh in about 4.5 pounds, a lot of weight again for a duck. (Oh my mouth is drooling.....sorry....am I off topic, ramblin', sorry....). When I cook a Muscovy, there is about 1/2 cup of fat, and lots of drippings that are juice only. Yes, the dark meat is EXTREMELY juicy, the beauty of the Muscovy duck breed, huge birds.

The heritage turkeys that I grow too, yes, dark meat mostly (that be the heritage bird), VERY, very juicy. And holy smoking carumbas!!! THey have the longest legs you can imagine. Probably about twice the length of the "typical" turkey. That makes it hard to get them ready for the freezer, I have to tie their legs together and make the freezer brown paper big to fit these legs. Oh, but man, you cannnot compare the taste and moistness to any "regular" turkey, as bought in the stores. I am ramblin'. I am sorry, truly. Now what was the question? Right juicy, dark meat. Yes, yes, and yes. Have a wonderful and awesome day, attract wonderful health. Cindi

I have three toms that are coming up to 6 months old on Feburary 4, they are slaughtered at 28 weeks or so, so they are heading off to Langley the beginning of March. I can't wait, another month to go, and then turkey, they are huge, they are as big as Richard now, and he is a big turkey bird!!!

JP · « **Reply #13 on:** January 25, 2009, 12:36:45 pm »

Earth to Cindi, how is the dark meat on free range, hormone free CHICKEN?

...JP :yippiechick: :yippiechick: :yippiechick: :yippiechick: :yippiechick: :yippiechick:

Cindi · « **Reply #14 on:** January 25, 2009, 12:47:09 pm »

JP, oh yo' makka me laugh!!! I thought you were talking about other birds, smiling. This is not the first time that someone has said to me "earth to Cindi", smiling.

The dark meat on the free range, no hormone chickens is really good. So is the white. The birds are very fat free, lean, and juicy, yes, yes. Even without that extra grease with them, they are still juicey and yummy. I think that they are a little bit tough though. That is because mine are not "meat" birds, but a egg layerXmeat bird and are slaughtered a little older because they grow slower. I need to find out how to tenderize them, that is the only issue I can see with these chickens that we are raising. When we move, I will be raising some actual "meat" birds, ones that grow quickly and are slaughtered younger, to see if they are more tender. But, they are very juicey, in my opinion. Have a great day, health, attract that good stuff. Cindi

JP · « **Reply #15 on:** January 25, 2009, 12:59:09 pm »

To me the dark meat is best but I do wonder what it would be like on a lean chicken, so I guess I can assume its the same deal as wild turkey vs domestic turkey?

So, if you're raising chickens for meat do you limit the amount of exercise they get or is it the species that you choose that makes for a juicy dark meat chicken?

...JP

Cindi · « **Reply #16 on:** January 25, 2009, 08:01:23 pm »

JP, I let my chickens run around like chickens with their heads cut off, hee, hee. I do not restrict their meanderings, they can run, chase, go for as long as their little hearts desire. The more bugs they eat, the better the meat, smiling. I am sure that if you restrict the movement of the birds to a certain degree, that you will get a much more tender bird. I cannot speak to this, because I don't care. I want them to be happy, and that means running through the tall grasses, climbing up on the chickenhill, ducking into all the bush that gives them protection from the things above in the sky. My chickens are probably tough as the dickens due to these very reasons!!! and are tough as the dickens, smiling. Beauty, have a great, most wonderful day, love this life, attract great health. Cindi

Irwin · « **Reply #17 on:** January 26, 2009, 09:26:41 am »

Cindi try canning the chicken makes a great sandwitch spread. And it makes a great chicken noddle soup. I did it all the time when I had chickens. It's makes the old bird real tender :-D

JP · « **Reply #18 on:** January 26, 2009, 09:56:49 am »

Anymore chicken people want to chime in? So, if you're raising chickens for meat do you limit the amount of exercise they get or is it the species that you choose that makes for a juicy dark meat chicken?

...JP

reinbeau · « **Reply #19 on:** January 26, 2009, 11:52:15 am »

Not chicken, but I have to say, my mother bought an expensive, organically raised freerange turkey for Thanksgiving and I wasn't happy with it at all. This guy must have been an athlete! The connective tissues, muscle sheaths, etc. were all tough throughout all of the dark meat, and even in the white. Tasty but tough!