bad taste?

[klf73]

I don't usually come to this part of the forum because I never intended to cull any of my birds. I have blue andalusianxaustralorp roos, 2 of them that are 14 weeks old. Well they are getting "not nice" and we thought about them getting processed. I remember reading a thread when I first joined that everyone was saying how their chicken just didn't taste good. IF I do make it to the processor what do I have to do, if anything, to prepare them for the freezer. I don't want to turn my family off to fresh chicken. Any info appreciated.
Thanks
Krista

 

[wyliefarms]

The roos that aren't cornish crossses go into the pressure cooker and cook twice as long as the directions say, then I make soup out of it.

 

[miss_thenorth]

Usually if you are butchering an older roo, you just really need to cook it longer, as the meat will tend to be a bit toughr.

You can boil in a pot of water with veggies and salt, and make soup out of the birds, or you can cook them in a slow cooker.

If you cooked them like regular store bought chicken, you will be disapointed in the meat, as they are older birds-not real old, but still older.

 

[Poler]

14-16 weeks is an ideal time to slaughter roosters. My advice as a butcher after the deed is done let the product sit in a refridgerator for 8 hours, and then place into the deep freeze. Not sure on cooking, my wife always takes care of that part.

 

[dacjohns]

I think 14 weeks is OK. You probably won't want to fry them as the meat will have more texture and be a bit chewier. It will also have more flavor.

Some people say stew, others say crock pot. Some say keep in the fridge for a few days, some say brine the meat, some say throw it in the freezer and when it thaws it will be more tender.

Right now for myself I'm leaning towards a day or two in the fridge, then some sort of marinade overnight and cook in a slow cooker until the meat falls off the bones.

There are as many opinions as there are posters.

 

[Poler]

Agreed. I wonder what would happen if you let it sit in a marinade for two days... That would be some good tasting meats.

 

[Rainman]

You can do what I do when I shoot an older cock pheasant. Make jerky.

No matter how tough an old bird is, smoked jerky is good.

 

[illinichick]

I just cooked two roosters in two days in my crock pot. I put them in at night before bed , with water, celery, salt and pepper and cooked them until the next evening. The meat literally fell off the bones. When I used a slotted spoon to lift it out of the broth, all I got was bones. I cooled the carcas, picked of the meat, returned the meat to the broth and froze it all in freezer bags to make chicken and noodles. These were 5 month old roosters. I tried to fry one last week and it was so tough that I just threw it to the dogs.