Resting period

[TacticalRedneck]

so I will be processing a few roosters this weekend and have been reading a lot on here. One question I can’t seem to answer is when you put the processed chicken in the fridge to rest prior to freezing. Do you have it vacuum packed already? Thanks

 

[RUNuts]

you can. It is the same as hanging a deer. Allow the rigor mortis to pass while keeping the meat cool. Goal is cool meat for 24-48 hours. Before or after freezing and thawing.

If you keep checking the meat (folding the legs), you can tell when it gets rigid, then again when it is easy to move.

Enjoy the roosters!

 

[TacticalRedneck]

you can. It is the same as hanging a deer. Allow the rigor mortis to pass while keeping the meat cool. Goal is cool meat for 24-48 hours. Before or after freezing and thawing.

If you keep checking the meat (folding the legs), you can tell when it gets rigid, then again when it is easy to move.

Enjoy the roosters!

Thanks. I appreciate it. It would seem to me if you just put the chicken in without being sealed in a bag it would dry out.

 

[RUNuts]

A little yes. I've put mine in a large bowl and covered with a plate - planned on cooking that weekend. Or in zip lock bags. It is all good.

Grandma usually ate them the same day. Just got to pluck fast and into the pot!

 

[Ridgerunner]

If you age it before you seal it keep it submerged. Most people use a salt brine for that. That will keep it from drying out.

Mom did the same thing. She'd tell me she wanted a chicken so I'd give her a plucked and gutted one. She would immediately cut it into serving pieces and put it on to cook. No aging at all.

 

[lazy gardener]

If you age it before you seal it keep it submerged. Most people use a salt brine for that. That will keep it from drying out.

Mom did the same thing. She'd tell me she wanted a chicken so I'd give her a plucked and gutted one. She would immediately cut it into serving pieces and put it on to cook. No aging at all.

Would it work to freeze the chicken in the brine? Do you have a special recipe for your brine? I've never brined meat before. I once tried freezing the birds, with the intent of ageing them when I thawed them. NOPE. WRONG ANSWER!!! Gotta age them before you freeze them. If you don't vac seal before the ageing process you can check to see if the rigor has passed by wiggling the thigh joint. If it is still stiff, it needs more time. I typically age mine for 3 days. I need to start processing cockerels at a much earlier age. Life gets in the way of processing. I'd rather be out playing on the lake than slapping yellow jackets and messing with chicken guts.

In the case of cooking a freshly killed chicken, I think the secret there is that the rigor has not had a chance to set in yet.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Would it work to freeze the chicken in the brine? Do you have a special recipe for your brine? I've never brined meat before. I once tried freezing the birds, with the intent of ageing them when I thawed them. NOPE. WRONG ANSWER!!! Gotta age them before you freeze them. If you don't vac seal before the ageing process you can check to see if the rigor has passed by wiggling the thigh joint. If it is still stiff, it needs more time. I typically age mine for 3 days. I need to start processing cockerels at a much earlier age. Life gets in the way of processing. I'd rather be out playing on the lake than slapping yellow jackets and messing with chicken guts.

In the case of cooking a freshly killed chicken, I think the secret there is that the rigor has not had a chance to set in yet.

Life gets in the way of processing Ain't that the truth.

I don't brine mine. I freeze them the same day I butcher. But I thaw them in the fridge before I cook them, they age some then. I normally butcher cockerels around 20 to 23 weeks and pullets 7 to 8 months, after I've seen them lay. I cook them at 250 F for 3 to 4 hours in a sealed baking pot. I don't have any problems with toughness. Occasionally and old hen or rooster will be a bit tough when cooked this way, not often but occasionally. They could have used some aging.

There are a lot of people on here that swear by brining. I'm not sure if that salt acts like a marinade and breaks down the tissue or if it is just there for the flavor. But keeping it in water, whether salt or not, will keep it form drying out and discoloring.

 

[lazy gardener]

TY.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I'm not sure if that salt acts like a marinade and breaks down the tissue or if it is just there for the flavor

Salt is supposed to make like an osmosis process take place. Where it first draws out moisture from the carcass but then replaces it with a moisture that will somehow stay in during cooking, there by providing a moist and not dried out over cooked bird like so many TG turkeys.

My sons' gf brine's our TG turkey but also adds in herbs and orange slices (she uses a recipe). It makes for an excellent bird! Most brine I have seen also have some sugar in it. This is on par with marinading I think, but adds moisture and not just flavor. The first and only year my mother in love brined a turkey was the best I had to that point. Now son's gf is on turkey duty instead of us avoiding it every year.

We haven't started pluck and just skin our chicken so far. We put it in the fridge several ways at first. Yes if open it get's dry spots. We just use a ziplock bag. Believe it or not... we have aged them 2 weeks in the fridge with no issues, not even a hint of foul smell (silly pun). I can't even imagine how fast store bought chicken goes rotten. Something to be said for home processing... and we aren't even clean freaks! Maybe because we only do 1 or 2 at a time.. We now keep the bag closed during rest.

If freezing before resting, I like to mark on the bag that it needs to rest after defrosting. But now I wonder if freezing actually makes the rigor pass sooner somehow?

Yes, you CAN brine before you freeze. EVERY single store chicken (at least the frozen ones and I think a lot that come in the "fresh" area) have already been brined and might contain as much as 25% water! And I wondered about brining during the rest period too. I don't see why not. Of course I would drain off excess.

 

[RUNuts]

The salt raises the boiling point of the water in the meat and it does not boil off as fast. Thereby making a moister meal.

The salt diffuses into the meat (cells) as the water is drawn out into the brine. Depends on how strong your brine is will determine speed and saltiness of meat. Lower salt concentrations can take longer brining. Salty ones must be timed to prevent making salt meat. Some salt meat will make you sick because it wasn't intended to be eaten before boiling and drawing some salt out.

Mine was brined as it was aging. Left it in 2 days longer than planned, but weaker brine was fine. Tasted good.

The rigor passing is a function of time at temperature. But it is a chemical process in the meat fibers that is resolved with time. I'd say that yes freezing helps with aging. But given time, you will get to the same spot.