Help! Tough, rubbery Chicken!

[Lazy Farmer]

i butchered 2 roosters about 12 weeks old a month ago put them in the oven 3 hours after getting done, toughest bird I've ever eaten. Had me scared to death about the 50 red broilers were doing this weekend, but did the last rooster last tuesday and forced myself to let it rest in the fridge for about 38 hours. Absolutely delicious.....
I really didn't think the whole resting thing could actually make that big of a difference but I will never not rest fresh butchered birds ever again.

I've also heard if you rest after thawing it will be better. I'd wait two days after thawing and give it a shot if that doesn't work then onto low and slow.
Good luck!

We vacuum seal our non selling roos. Before sucking out the air and sealing the bag. Try adding a brine or broth in the sack. Rosemary twigs, sage leaves and or any of your favorite herbs. Slowly thaw in your refrigerator a day or two before your bbq... Not in the sink. The herbs slowly intoxicate the flesh during the gradually thawing process. Then rub olive oil for a crispy epidermis. Beer can chickens can also continuously hydrate the meat to help avoid rubber dryness. Doesn't have to be beer in the can.. Drink the beer and fill the can with h2o/herbs and spices. Garlic and onions rock!

 

[BlueShadow]

You can let the chicken rest in your refrigerator for 24-48 hours after it is thawed to let the rigor mortis relax. It is perfectly fine to do this after the chicken is frozen, the reason it is not recommended is because its easy to forget that it needs to rest after thawing!

Soaking in brine also will help, you have been given several good ideas on that. I use the recipe 7 oz salt (by weight, so use a scale) per gallon of water. It soaks in the brine while it is resting. (this brine is a bit salty, you may or may not want to go past 24 hours in the brine, depending on how you like your meat.)

If you do the grill again and find its still too tough, that may be just a little too hot & fast cooking method for 12 week old birds. Try a slower cooking method like frying or roasting and see if that turns out more to your taste.

 

[clkirk]

We have had the same issue with tough meat and I also need advice on this topic.

We raised meat chicken for the first time in the spring of last year. Although we love the taste the dark meat is tough and chewy. The birds were ten weeks at the time of processing and weigh 3.5-5.5 pounds each. They were processed and into the freezer within about 10 hours.

We have 55 birds heading to a different processor in a couple of weeks. This processor has the finished birds back to us in 1-2 hours and they will be unpackaged and on ice. My understanding from the tips in the post, is that I should refrigerate them for 48 hours before packaging and freezing them. I have brined turkeys before and wondered if instead of refrigerating them if I should put them in a brine solution for the 24-48 hours before I freeze them. What is the ideal approach to get nice juicy, tender chicken?

 

[rjohns39]

I'm still waiting to hear how resting in the fridge after thaw works... But the key is to let them rest at least 24-48 hours before freezing. For those that were frozen too soon separate the legs and thighs, make a stock out of the neck and back. Then use the stock to braise the leg quarters and then roast the breast in either an old graniteware roasting pan or an aluminum foil tent, with maybe a cup of stock until 155 degrees internal temp. Brineing can help--but is more for flavor than tenderness. When I brine I use equal parts salt and honey, celery, onions, carrots, lemons, limes, oranges, thyme, sage, oregano, and Rosemary. And of course whole pepper corns.

 

[Nekatlla]

We have had the same issue with tough meat and I also need advice on this topic.

We raised meat chicken for the first time in the spring of last year. Although we love the taste the dark meat is tough and chewy. The birds were ten weeks at the time of processing and weigh 3.5-5.5 pounds each. They were processed and into the freezer within about 10 hours.

We have 55 birds heading to a different processor in a couple of weeks. This processor has the finished birds back to us in 1-2 hours and they will be unpackaged and on ice. My understanding from the tips in the post, is that I should refrigerate them for 48 hours before packaging and freezing them. I have brined turkeys before and wondered if instead of refrigerating them if I should put them in a brine solution for the 24-48 hours before I freeze them. What is the ideal approach to get nice juicy, tender chicken?

We just finished the 50 red broilers and packaged them then rested them for 48 hours before freezing. Worked great, already have people asking for more! Started 50 CX's two weeks ago on Monday!