Chewy skin?

[Floof]

I butcher my extra boys at about 6 months a couple times a year and I've noticed that they all have very rubbery/chewy skin when I cook them. Is that normal for boys of that age? Is there any way to get it crispy?

 

[MysteryChicken]

I've never experienced that, but had skin that was so tough it dulled knives, when cutting birds up for canning.

 

[Geena]

I butcher my extra boys at about 6 months a couple times a year and I've noticed that they all have very rubbery/chewy skin when I cook them. Is that normal for boys of that age? Is there any way to get it crispy?

The easiest way to avoid that is to butcher them earlier, at 4 to 5 months. As cockerels mature their skin gets thicker and tougher.

 

[Floof]

The easiest way to avoid that is to butcher them earlier, at 4 to 5 months. As cockerels mature their skin gets thicker and tougher.

At 4 months they're pretty much only skin. I guess ill just accept it and maybe not bother going through the trouble of hand plucking them.

 

[Poultrybonkers]

That's definitely possible as I normally eyeball things. What temp should it be?

Water should be 150 but anything lower feathers dont come out

 

[Poultrybonkers]

If skin is rubbery sounds like the water temp was to high for plucking

 

[Floof]

What breeds?

I eat the males from my sex link hatches: barred rock and ameraucana

 

[Floof]

Maybe experiment alittle, & see if you can get meatier offspring from different combinations.

Best combos I've made were EE X Brahma, & Buff Orpington X Barred Rock.

I'm not really interested in adding more breeds. I have bbs ameraucana, welbars, and some birds getting up in years that I will probably phase out in the next year that I got for sex linked breeding (California grey, Delaware, barred rock, and legbar). I eat the males because what else is there to do with them, not because I need the meat necessarily. I have noticed my males from my welbar and my ee roosters are much bigger this year but I can't use them for making sex links and that's what my area wants, sexable chicks. I don't sell the pure welbar males. I like that I'm the only one in my area selling that breed and I want to keep it that way.

 

[MysteryChicken]

At 4 months they're pretty much only skin. I guess ill just accept it and maybe not bother going through the trouble of hand plucking them.

What breeds?

 

[Floof]

If skin is rubbery sounds like the water temp was to high for plucking

That's definitely possible as I normally eyeball things. What temp should it be?