Polish roo was tonight's dinner - but what a "chewy" bird!

[ChixFlix]

We processed our 18-week old Polish roo on Saturday - and after plucking, cleaning, etc. we kept the meat in brine for about 35 hours.

Tonight, I split the carcass, put it in a roasing plan laid out flat on top of some potatoes, onions and celery, and baked for about 1 hour.

Here's the problem: the meat was very chewy (done, not undercooked) and pretty much inedible.

I'm now trying to make soup out of the meat/bones/etc. but it still seems the meat is very tough.

He had no fat on him at all, and was active.

Any suggestions? Can this meat be "saved"?

What should I know for next time?

Thanks for your replies.

 

[perfectly_polish]

Well polish aren't meat birds, and just won't make good meat birds. They have barley any fat or meat on them at all. We have a polish roo that has gotten in the habit of attacking people, we are considering culling him, but won't eat him, because it's not worth it. If you want birds to eat, get some cornish crosses, or even RIR's.

 

[Wolf-Kim]

I think you may be able to make stock out of him. I could be wrong. Someone else with more experience will be along shortly.

-Kim

 

[Davaroo]

What can you do? Learn to deal with it, mostly.

The real problem is with your methods. Males are full of testosterone, which causes fibroid muscule tissue to develop. Then you let them run around the yard and ramble at will, mating and pretty much living the dirt life.
They're gonna be tough. It's the other side of the "natural life" few talk about. Well they won't be like some pampered meat slug from the store, anyway.

Some things you can do are:
- You can separate the males you are going to eat and not let them run amok.
- You can confine them and feed a fattening diet a week or so before slaughter.
- You can slaughter them early - 18-20 weeks.
- You can caponise them.
- You can grow purpose built meat birds.

If all that is too much trouble, let me share my moms secret.

She loved the yard bird for food and really didn't trust store birds. She got chickens from her latino friends to eat, often.
Her Secret? A pressure cooker. $5 at the thrift store.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Quote:
I wonder how much/little the activity a roo has had will affect the toughness/tenderness of his meat? I keep my meat birds confined to the tractor until they reach their full size, about 20 weeks. I'd give them recliner chairs to lounge in if only they wouldn't poop on them, in order to keep them more sedentary & tender.

I recently butchered a couple of birds that were about 1/4 Polish, they were skinny guys but their meat wasn't chewy. I let my birds rest in the refrigerator for 2-3 days, then slowly simmer them in water/broth for 2 hours or so, until their meat just melts off their bones. Then I pick the meat from the bones, separate the white from the dark, and eat or freeze it. The white goes for soups & salads, the dark for chilis & pasta dishes.

If this roo's meat is still chewy even simmered in soup, I wouldn't waste more time & ingredients on him, just bless the dog with it.

 

[Leslie In North Pole]

Two words: Crock Pot

On the lowest setting, all day long (at least 10 hours). It works with all of my birds...

First time we butcher out a bunch of our extra roos a few years ago, we didn't know they should rest, so we froze them right away. Later, I pulled them and made fried chicken. It tasted great but was almost impossible to bite into. We found that if you used a microwave to reheat it, the meat went tender. I still am not sure how that worked but I find that recooking in the microwave can really tenderize cooked meats, as long as you don't let them dry out.

 

[ChixFlix]

Thanks so much for all the insights!

After I posted, while the meat was still in the soup pot, I tasted again and it finally got "unchewy".

I have no more roos at this time, and I'll know better next time, thanks to all of you!

Crock pot? Check!
Pressure cooker? Check!
Soup pot? Check!

I'm ready!