jersey giants

[IowaHeritage]

Jersey Giants were intended to be MEAT birds, the good news is they lay a Huge brown egg and lay it often and are cold tolerant.

The sole reason for their existance was to be the " poor mans turkey ", and the original SLOW- FOOD.

Nature, never ever intended a chick to be on someones plate @ 5 -6 weeks of age, cant reproduce, dies of a heart attack or other physical ailments if not butchered in time, and pretty much a genetic mess; thus the new awakening.

True, they take long-er to mature, but for meat birds they are harvested @ 6-9 mos and 8-10 lbs, trust me, there is plenty of meat there.

Also, the commercial hatcheries have gone for numbers and are not representative of the breed, as in most breeds, so search for an independent breeder.

They are best roasted.


Good Luck !

 

[lovemyzoo]

I am looking mainly dual purpose so I can replenish my flock as needed. I was thinking Jerseys, Delaware or Offerphingtons. My sussex seems very small but she did fill out faster then my jersey did. I haven't had any Araucanas yet.

 

[omegorchards]

Remember that rapid growth often means poor/lackluster flavor and inferior meat texture. So rapid growth is not always a desirable trait for people growing their own meat birds. The commercial poultry industry needs rapid growth to "turn around" their houses faster and therefore lower overhead costs by raising more birds in less time. The backyard flockmaster does not normally operate under these conditions. In fact flavor and quality of the meat are often more important than rapid maturity or even a broad breasted carcass. Another thing to consider is the feed/weight gain ratio of a breed. If left on free range with no supplemental feed Cornish-X would starve to death while Java's could do just fine. In my experience there is quite a difference in how thrifty dual purpose breeds are in conversion of feed to gain. in other words free range birds that develop more slowly may in fact have a much more efficient feed/gain ratio because they are better at hustling up their own feed on the range. I've seen some heritage breeds that develop very fast but they do so by just hanging out by the feeders and constantly eating. I don't have enough experience with Jersey Giants to tell you where they lie on this scale. Remember that the feed source is a contributor to meat flavor and quality. In my view the more feed a breed hustles up on their own the better the meat flavor and quality (tasty and firm = good quality in my kitchen). Anyway these are just some things to think about when considering breeds.

 

[smcmanus]

OK, my post disappeared so lets try again.

At 8 months dress they out over 10 pounds. Yummy, including roosters. Big enough to scare off predators and dogs. Out of 20 chicks, 18 survived to maturity.

Highly recommend.

 

[beaglady]

Strictly for meat and super fast growing there's several rising hybrids like Label Rouge, that other one I heard of something Kings? Looks like heritage Rocks crossed with something else. . .

Kosher Kings. IIRC, they *are* a barred rock cross, maybe even crossed with some type of cornish. They're from Clearview Hatchery in PA. I'ev raised them, and they do grow slower than the traditional cornish crosses, 10-12 weeks to a bird that dresses out around 6#. They forage pretty well, and aren't as obnoxious as some other meat bird crosses. The carcass is a bit less elongated than regular dual purpose birds I've had (orps, brahmas, Jersey giants, marans) but not as rounded as the commercial cornish crosses. They do have flavorful meat.

Diane W

 

[midwestchickenwrangler]

I have been looking for a good DP breed myself for quite some time. I have settled on Light Sussex. They look like very full bodies birds and hopefully will be as dresses birds also. I only have 2 chicks (4 wks old) right now after having a few mishaps with them. Mine didn't come from Greenfire lineage, as far as I know. They ay have some Greenfire in them somewhere though. At 4 weeks old one weighs about 1.25# which I am impressed with. I don't have any other LF breeder quality birds to compare this info with as I have hatchery egg layers and Silkies. I plan on getting a roo from somewhere this spring to begin hatching chicks to eat. Overall, I am happy with my Light Sussex so far.

 

[tabbitha1000]

At what age do you process your Jersey Roosters? Mine are nearing 10 months, is the meat too 'old'? (I read that the meat gets stringy and gamey with age, but nothing specifically for slow growers.)

 

[IowaHeritage]

Your 10 mo olds should be near perfect any time now.

Here is a JERSY GIANT Specific recipe from Goodshshepherdpoultry ranch, Frank Reese :

Ultimate Chicken Bake
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]Pre heat Oven to 325F.
[FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1 (3lb) Good Shepherd Heritage Ranch Chicken

Jersey Giant prefered
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]8 oz cream Cheese softened
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]2 cups shredded cheese (like Colby/Jack blend (divided)
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]½ cup blue cheese salad dressing [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1/4th [/FONT][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]cup favorite hot sauce [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1 (14oz) chicken broth [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]3/4cup boiling water [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1 ½ cups raw uncooked brown rice [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]½ cup diced celery [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]½ cup diced red bell pepper [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1 cup Panko bread crumbs [/FONT] [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]Grease a 13x9-inch baking dish. Cut chicken into serving pieces; remove and discard skin if desired. [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]In medium bowl combine cream cheese with 1 cup shredded cheese, blue cheese dressing and hot sauce; whisk until smooth. Pour chicken broth and hot water into baking dish; sprinkle with rice, celery and red pepper. Lay chicken pieces on top of rice mixture; spoon cream cheese mixture over chicken. Cover with foil and bake for 2 hours. Adding additional water if needed. Meanwhile in medium bowl combine remaining 1 cup of shredded cheese and Panko bread crumbs. Remove foil and sprinkle chicken with crumb mixture. Return to oven and bake uncovered for additional 15 min or until chicken is done and topping is browned. Let stand 10 minutes [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

 

[Egghead_Jr]

1/4 cup of hot sauce? That's 4 tablespoons, might be excessive.

Your 10 mo olds should be near perfect any time now.

Here is a JERSY GIANT Specific recipe from Goodshshepherdpoultry ranch, Frank Reese :

Ultimate Chicken Bake
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]Pre heat Oven to 325F.
[FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1 (3lb) Good Shepherd Heritage Ranch Chicken

Jersey Giant prefered
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]8 oz cream Cheese softened
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]2 cups shredded cheese (like Colby/Jack blend (divided)
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]½ cup blue cheese salad dressing [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1/4th [/FONT][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]cup favorite hot sauce [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1 (14oz) chicken broth [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]3/4cup boiling water [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1 ½ cups raw uncooked brown rice [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]½ cup diced celery [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]½ cup diced red bell pepper [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]1 cup Panko bread crumbs [/FONT] [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]Grease a 13x9-inch baking dish. Cut chicken into serving pieces; remove and discard skin if desired. [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Calibri,Calibri][FONT=Times New Roman, Times, serif]In medium bowl combine cream cheese with 1 cup shredded cheese, blue cheese dressing and hot sauce; whisk until smooth. Pour chicken broth and hot water into baking dish; sprinkle with rice, celery and red pepper. Lay chicken pieces on top of rice mixture; spoon cream cheese mixture over chicken. Cover with foil and bake for 2 hours. Adding additional water if needed. Meanwhile in medium bowl combine remaining 1 cup of shredded cheese and Panko bread crumbs. Remove foil and sprinkle chicken with crumb mixture. Return to oven and bake uncovered for additional 15 min or until chicken is done and topping is browned. Let stand 10 minutes [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

 

[smcmanus]

The roosters are not gamey and not much fat on these guys. 10 months is good for eating. When I roast mine whole & stuffed, I wrap the drumsticks with bacon. After an hour or so I wrap the legs with foil and lay some foil on the breast as well. This keeps the legs and breast from drying out while the rest of the bird finished cooking. 1 bird is 3 meals at my house. Number 3 being soup.

Jersey giants? Big and yummy.

Have a nice day
Steve