Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Molpet]

He is 5 months now, so will be 6 months when butchering. I do know there are different methods for different ages. But since I haven't dived into the actual cooking stuff yet all these English terms do not mean much to me at the moment. Luckily I still got all of December to figure out the details

Sorry I forgot, I think this might help
How to Cook: Heritage Chicken — Moomaw's Kitchen https://share.google/ZoaWoNeFoSwXfoqYd

 

[fuzzi]

I dry-brine turkey, which helps keep it juicy with crispy skin, and can also be done with chickens. (Brining involves adding salt a day or more to the bird which somehow automagically keeps the bird juicy, especially the breast.)

I don't know that it's worth actual brining for roasting a chicken, but what I find great is that the herb mixture is added to olive oil or to butter and rubbed under the skin of the breast and legs, making it somewhat self-basting. So flavorful!

Here's the mix I use. I skipped the garlic and lemon, because I have found that they sometimes bring a bitter vibe. If not brining, cut the kosher salt from 3 Tbsp down to 1/2 or 1 Tbsp. Don't use table salt; the added iodine throws the flavor off. As these amounts are for a turkey, I'd probably reduce the whole thing to 1/2 or even 1/3 the original amounts. (For birds injected with a salt-water solution, cut the salt in half.) (Sorry about the vaguely contradictory math.)

Anyway, getting that oil/fat mixture with herbs under the skin is what really sends the flavor.

https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_dry_brine_and_roast_a_turkey/

Edit to add: and oh yes, the world will continue to revolve around the sun if you use dried herbs. If you do that, use half the amount called for with fresh herbs. Sorry, more maffs...

My mother taught me, before roasting, to rub the thawed turkey inside and out with table salt.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Debate about AI spending spreading mechanism in the US (sound familiar?)

https://www.propublica.org/article/...m_medium=email&utm_campaign=weekly-newsletter

Edit: this phone, I swear…

 

[BDutch]

Debate about AI spending mechanism in the US (sound familiar?)

https://www.propublica.org/article/...m_medium=email&utm_campaign=weekly-newsletter

Yes, I had seen this publication before. Have been reading the intro, and I thought it was inaccurate bc it says poultry in the EU is vaccinated. But these are only pilots. Didn’t read the rest of it.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Yes, I had seen this publication before. Have been reading the intro, and I thought it was inaccurate bc it says poultry in the EU is vaccinated. But these are only pilots. Didn’t read the rest of it.

Yes, it’s an article, not a journal publication.

I thought the description of USDA insisting on the biohazard approach (and its apparent futility if this strain of AI is windborne instead) rang a bell.

 

[RoyalChick]

Yes, I had seen this publication before. Have been reading the intro, and I thought it was inaccurate bc it says poultry in the EU is vaccinated. But these are only pilots. Didn’t read the rest of it.

It is at pilot stage for egg laying hens in the Netherlands in the context of an EU-wide vaccine strategy.
France was the pilot for ducks and then did mass vaccination of ducks starting in October 2023. I believe in France it is now compulsory to vaccinate ducks intended for meat.
The US immediately restricted imports of duck meat from France as a consequence of the meat being from vaccinated birds but I saw that the US recently lifted some of the restrictions.
https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/31/7/24-1445_article
https://www.aphis.usda.gov/sites/de...odities-originating-from-or-transiting-eu.pdf

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I hope this isn’t too out there for this thread. Garden Professors is a blog by wonderfully cranky ag academics posting evidence-based information on gardening that contradicts popular advice, much as often happens here regarding chickening.

Many of us are gardeners as well as chickeners, often gardening FOR chickens, so that this isn’t too OT.

https://gardenprofessors.com/weathe...d-how-social-media-misuses-those-predictions/

 

[Shadrach]

I hope this isn’t too out there for this thread. Garden Professors is a blog by wonderfully cranky ag academics posting evidence-based information on gardening that contradicts popular advice, much as often happens here regarding chickening.

Many of us are gardeners as well as chickeners, often gardening FOR chickens, so that this isn’t too OT.

https://gardenprofessors.com/weathe...d-how-social-media-misuses-those-predictions/

This is the best general weather forecast I've found. I've tried a few.
I would say on a day to day basis they get it right, within half an hour 95% of the time.
https://weather.metoffice.gov.uk/forecast/gcnhgjqpx#?date=2025-11-29

 

[Shadrach]

I get sent a lot of these.

The extensive knowledge I'm happy to give people on the topic of stuff growing in the field and chicken breeds.

I've often wondered as I watch people wearing headphones and talking on their mobile phones launching themselves in front of moving vehicles if the do in fact believe in predestination; either that or a portion of our society has lost the ability to assess risk.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

This is the best general weather forecast I've found. I've tried a few.
I would say on a day to day basis they get it right, within half an hour 95% of the time.
https://weather.metoffice.gov.uk/forecast/gcnhgjqpx#?date=2025-11-29

We’re in a forecasting hole, with not nearly enough stations on surrounding mountains. They’re all pretty much a read-hot mess.

I follow this one, since if they’re all wrong, why not? At least this one reflects a neighbor’s data:

https://www.wunderground.com/weather/us/nc/asheville/KNCASHEV250