Resting after processing

[Agapehomestead]

So I have read that many people let the chicken rest for 2 days in the refrigerator after processing. What does this look like with 25-30 birds. We have the freezer space ready, but not the fridge space.

 

[Ridgerunner]

It often means ice chests and ice.

 

[Geena]

That's what we use, I got a big marine cooler just for resting chicken. It works great, the ice lasts a lot longer than with a regular cooler. I throw some salt in there too with the ice.

 

[HenriettaPizzaNolan]

I was wondering the same thing.

Additional questions for those of you with the experience to answer: Do you bag the chickens before they rest or put them directly on ice? Also, what about air drying them - how does one do that without a lot of fridge space and how long does it take?

 

[Molpet]

You can rest after thawing , just takes more planning .
I have rested in a cooler with ice water not in a bag. A little salt in the water and the blood gets pulled out. The fat sticks to the cooler and is a pain to clean.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Do you bag the chickens before they rest or put them directly on ice?

Your option. You can bag them before resting or bag them after. Instead of directly on ice some people use ice water, with or without salt. There is no one way to do this. Many of us have personal preferences but there are different ways that work.

Also, what about air drying them - how does one do that without a lot of fridge space

I don't do that so I don't know.

how long does it take?

Different times. The purpose of letting it rest is so rigor mortis can pass, otherwise the meat can be close to inedible. Rigor should set in within a few hours. When you can wiggle aa joint and it is really loose or the meat jiggles if you move it (all stiffness is gone) you are ready.

 

[K0k0shka]

I did an experiment with young cockerels (4 months old) a couple of years ago. Same breed, same age, butchered the same day. One of them I cooked right away (soup), the other I rested for 2 days in the refrigerator, then cooked him the same way. There was absolutely no difference in the meat. Maybe there's more benefit if you're dealing with older birds, who knows... but with the young ones, resting makes no difference. I hadn't even heard of resting chicken until I came on this forum, and I grew up with homegrown chicken. I am about to get my hands on a couple of older hens (2 years old) for butchering, and I'm going to do the experiment again. Very curious to see how it turns out!