Just processed our first roosters!

[wyoDreamer]

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If you are not planning on roasting whole, cutting them up would be the way I would go. It will save room in the freezer and you can sort pieces if you want. We use all white meat for most things baked or fried and only use the dark meat for stews and soups.

AND, of course, you can't beer can a cut-up chicken.

 

[Tracydr]

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I think brining is really helpful if the cooking method will be dry. Probably won't help as much for slow cooking/stewing.

 

[scooter147]

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I've had many a pots of chicken-n-dumplings or soup because a rooster didn't believe me the first time I told him
"one more time and"...

 

[kuntrygirl]

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I've had many a pots of chicken-n-dumplings or soup because a rooster didn't believe me the first time I told him
"one more time and"...

 

[RoeDylanda]

I don't think brining made much difference. She was still kind of stringy, even after 24 hours in salt water and hours in the crock pot. Delicious though!

Scooter, that's what happened with ours! "THAT'S IT. YOU'RE SUPPER."

 

[HHandbasket]

I noticed when I was cutting it up that the Rhode Island red was a little bit stringy, especially the legs/thighs.

We will be having the first of them for our New Year's Day supper. Still debating which dish to make, have it narrowed down to 3.

 

[punk-a-doodle]

One of the things we noticed is that these guys are all meat, almost no fat. Since being sequested in Freezer Camp (special pen we built for the roos we planned to process), we have been feeding them a pig food that was recommended to us by a fella at a local feed store who raises dual-purpose chickens for meat and swears the pig food is way better because it's like 24% protein & he gets meatier, less fatty birds from it. They were getting that with lots of scratch grains and the other treats everybody gets (table scraps, apple peels, spinach, greens, pumpkin, scrambled eggs, cooked rice/oatmeal/flaxseed in the mornings, and of course, mealworms).

That's really interesting. Thanks for sharing!​

 

[HHandbasket]

As I type this, the Rhode Island red we processed on Christmas day is in a pot on the stove, hanging out with some bay leaf, a little thyme, some salt and pepper, some onion, celery, and carrot... in a little while, I'm gonna shred the meat from the bones, and put him back in there and let him hang out another little while with some chick peas, rice, and red beans for another hour or so.

It smells WAY good up in here.

 

[kuntrygirl]

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Can he come hang out with me next?

 

[scooter147]

Growing up our neighbors mother lived with them a immigrant directly from Germany. Funny, funny lady, anyway. She was the keeper of the poultry. She use to process her older hens, turkeys and ducks in the dead of winter when she knew the temps wouldn't get above freezing for a couple of days. She would process them then hang them from the CLOTHESLINE for a couple days. Strangest sight to see poultry carcuss swaying in the wind on the clothesline. When asked why she said it tenderized them. ??????