Older cockerels/heritage breeds for ground chicken

[AinaWGSD]

Has anyone processed their heritage cockerels as ground chicken? I know texture is one of the biggest differences between heritage birds and commercial broilers, would that still be an issue in ground meat?

 

[cavemanrich]

I don't process or eat my chickens, but that does not mean I don't have knowledge/opinion.
Commercial chickens are tender, because they are young. 8 weeks and ready to eat.
Dual purpose chickens are eaten when about 2 to 3 years after premium egg laying passes.
They are not as tender.
Older chickens are IDEAL as soup birds. If you like chicken soup, and cooked chicken meat,, this is your choice.
Of course if you have a larger quantity of OLDER chickens/roosters, and want to utilize the meat other ways,,, grinding meat will make it tender to eat/bite, same a ground beef in hamburgers.
Make chicken patties, and fry up same way you would hamburgers. You may have to add an egg to keep meat together, and not falling apart. Also some Panko bread crumbs. Same meat mix would make chicken meatballs.
Cooking possibilities are endless. I make my own version of chili using chicken and turkey meat. (instead of ground beef)

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[Ridgerunner]

One of my goals for my dual purpose chickens is to raise then for meat so I do eat them. But I do not grind them, I cook them other ways. I've read several posts on here where people do grind them and are happy with the results. One of my typical suggestions for stuff like this is to try it for yourself and see how you like it. We all have different tastes and preferences, what works for me might not work for you. Our preferences for what we like to eat can be very personal.

Out of curiosity, what age were you planning on butchering your cockerels? Different cockerels of the same breed from the same flock can mature at different rates. A lot of that depends on when they enter puberty. The hormones of puberty accelerate both texture and flavor changes. I typically butcher the cockerels between 16 and 23 weeks. Some are still fairly tender, some are not. Some of us really like that changed flavor but some do not. I think trial and error and testing these things against your personal preferences is a good way to go.

Good luck!

 

[AinaWGSD]

We're probably looking at about 16 weeks, but it will depend on what hatches for us this spring. We did the before, but it's been years and my memory is terrible. From what I do remember, with older(older than 16 weeks) birds I didn't mind the texture but everyone else in the family seemed less convinced. I do know we'll get more use out of parting them out than whole, we don't use whole birds nearly as much.

 

[Penpal]

It probably depends, in part, how old you are. I was born in 1954 and we ate smaller, less meaty chickens. They were active enough and old enough to have brown meat in their legs. I prefer chickens old enough and active enough to have dark meat, but I can only have them if I raise them myself.

 

[Klutch]

With all that good chicken meat, I would can some of them. The options are unlimited.