Are Delewares good meat birds?

[rancher hicks]

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I have read that Whitmore farms or others are trying to get to size at 12 wks but I don't think this was typical of the original Delawares. So while birds that mature that fast may be good for specific breeders I don't think they should be called "original Heritage" Delawares. While they may have black on the hackles my Ideal hens do not have "barred" feathers.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

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I raise buckeyes, we've only processed two of them so far and at 16 weeks they weighed in around 5-6 lbs dressed which was pretty impressive. I like the heritage as they are nice if your not really on a timeframe for meat. They just do their thing, and I watch them grow...

But yes, even though they are not cornish x's still feed them a 20-22% broiler feed. Some go to the extreme and feed 28-30% but in my experience with any chicken there is a line where too much protein doesn't do them any good. They only use so much and I have found that 22% is about the top for any chicken, after that I think your wasting your money. I would separate them as soon as you can tell the sex apart. I would start everyone on a 22% feed until about 6 weeks, back the hens off to a 16 % grower and leave the males on the 22% starter.

The females really benefit if they are grown slowly, lets everything mature when they start laying. My Buckeye pullets started laying around 22 weeks in December but I didn't really want them to lay yet as they were not fully mature. I didn't light them and waited until spring, which I'm glad I waited as they are laying 90% right now which is impressive for a heritage breed. They are around 30-40 weeks right now.

I think your right on with the 20-21 weeks, they will fill out quite a bit by then.

Good luck with them...

 

[popcornpuppy]

I have processed Delawares in the last few months. I guess the age when you cull depends on what you want for dinner and how you plan to cook it. We processed ours around 20 weeks (they were heritage Dels, by the way).
They averaged 4lbs each, dressed. I slow roasted them on low heat and they were very tender. Older age will give you more meat, but a less tender bird that will need special cooking considerations. I would say the time to process depends on how you want to cook it.

 

[poultryhaven]

So if I wanted to grill some of them, what age should I butcher them at?

 

[popcornpuppy]

how are you going to grill it, with a marinade? If you marinade for at least a few hours, it will tenderise the meat. So if you wanted to process an older bird for more meat, say around 25 weeks, you should get a nice size bird with pleanty of meat and the marinade will help break down the protiens in the meat to keep it tender.
(I've never grilled my own chickens, but I do study cooking, so this answer is just my opinion, not my experience)

 

[poultryhaven]

I will probably marinate it with a Lemon marinade. Probably overnight and during the day. Would that be okay?

 

[popcornpuppy]

the longer you marinate, the better. It makes the meat more tender, whether it's beef, pork or chicken. The acid in the marinade is the most important part of the recipe. It can be lemon, citrus or some kind of vinegar. It depends on the recipe and what flavors you like! The longer you let it soak up the marinade, the more it will break down the tough tissues and make it tender.

 

[poultryhaven]

That makes sense. Anyone have a good marinade that they have personally tried?

 

[TimG]

I recently butchered an 18 week old Delaware cockerel that dressed out at 4 lbs 2 oz.

I aged it for 2 days in the fridge and then took some meat off the bones, breaded, and fried. It was not tough at all.

I'd estimate that there was more dark meat than white, but not by a whole lot.

 

[popcornpuppy]

this may sound lazy, and crazy-simple, but I use that Good Seasons home made salad dressing to marinade. I use rice vinegar when I make it because the rice vinegar does not have a strong flavor. That way I can taste the other seasonings and not the tartness of the vinegar.