@aart what’s your favorite DP bird?
Not impressed with Lav Orp.
Not sure as it's not part of my goals, but had always planned on eating extra cockerels from my replacement layers/crosses hatching.
'Dual Purpose' is misleading, IMO, they do neither really well.
Larger birds like Marans or Brahma might be best, both are not great layers and meatier.
But any layer bird is not going to be very meaty....it's an acquired taste and usage.
I slaughter cockerels at 13-16 weeks, before they start causing chaos and while still tender enough to grill for that crispy skinned deliciousness. Not much meat but the grilled bones make for some excellent stock. Anything older than that I pressure cook until meat is done and is saved aside then a couple more hours to get that bone broth.
Resting the cleaned carcass in fridge for 48-72 hours for rigor to pass is
essential for chewable meat from any bird(except maybe CX?), the older the bird the longer I rest them. Tho no homegrown bird I've eaten, layer or meat breed, is as soft as a grocery bird, they are more 'toothsome'.
