some questions about some older Old English Games + suggestions of preparing asked

[strangeanimal]

Hello dear BYC'ers here ,

Since I am caught up with being overrun by my yesterday still free range Old English games ( including bantams ) and they suddenly had to move to a run and they do not seem to ever be happy again plus the ages ( bad layers at the time ) I think it's that time to cull a few again and fill up the freezer , BUT their meat tastes to my opinion not as tasty as a younger bird from another breed as well . Now I got caught up with a roo from 6 years old , I felt it while culling him that his meat has become like I dont know how to say it but he felt hard to cut trough if you know what I mean , now it turns out the older hens have that same tendency and the last time I took one of these breeds I did not like the taste plus very much skin and bone but nice breast too , could anyone explain to me wether or not the age makes difference in taste now and in which way ? plus I'm looking for some tips to prepare a roo as I never did that myself before and how could I get the meat a little bit more squeezy ??? I was thinking about boiling as if I'd be making soup but that won't do much good is it ?
Thx in advance ..

 

[Ridgerunner]

Age definitely makes a difference to taste and texture, more for males but also for females. That difference starts to come through during puberty, say 3 to 4 months. Some people don’t like the taste of older chickens, especially roosters, as it can get kind of strong or “gamey”. Some of us prefer that taste.

You definitely have to alter the way you cook older birds. In general the older they are the slower you have to cook them and you need more moisture. Marinating or aging can make a difference too. Many people “brine” their birds, let them soak in salt water in an ice chest or the refrigerator for a few days after they butcher them to tenderize them. When you cook them you do not want to boil them, instead you want a gentle simmer, as an example of slow and moist. In a full rolling boil they will get tough. Remember this if you make soup. Slow simmer, not a boil. And for a long time.

There are several ways to cook an older bird and get them tender and, to me, tasty. Coq au Vin is a traditional French way to turn an old rooster into a gourmet meal. Chicken ‘N Dumplings is old-time southern USA comfort food. Some people use a pressure cooker which isn’t slow but is moist and the meat falls off the bone. Crock pots are also commonly used. I sometimes bake them in a tightly covered baking dish at 240 Fahrenheit for several hours but that’s probably not the best for you and really old chickens. This is more for older cockerels and pullets. One warning on a lot of the recipes you get for these, they sometimes are for the chicken you buy at the store which is young tender chicken, not the older meat you will have. Make sure you have a traditional recipe, not something new and trendy for store-bought chicken. Some people pressure can the meat, using either hot pack or cold pack methods. It’s a long processing time but that meat is very tender when you use it.

There is not much meat on Old English Game chickens. One way I might suggest for you to cook them, especially that older rooster, is to make broth. I use a crock pot but you can do this on stovetop or even in the oven with the right baking dish. I cut the chicken into useable pieces and cook the drumsticks, thighs, breasts and wishbone other ways and use the remainder of the carcass but I suggest you use the entire chicken this way. Put the meat and bones in with a bay leaf, a dozen peppercorns, a rough chopped carrot and celery stick, a rough-chopped onion, a rough-sliced garlic clove or two, and some herbs. I use basil, oregano, thyme, parsley, and maybe chives. Whatever herbs you think you might like. Then I cover with water and cook that very slowly for anywhere from 12 to 16 hours, overnight.

When you finish if you are careful when you take them out the thighs, drumsticks, breasts and wishbone may still be together and able to serve as a piece but the meat could easily have cooked off the bone. I separate the meat and such from the liquid with a slotted spoon and pick through that to get all the meat. That includes the wings, neck, and back. That cooked meat is great for soups, tacos, chicken salad, or anything else you normally use cooked chicken. Be careful when picking the meat, there can be a lot of small bones in there. Be very careful, especially if you are feeding young kids. Picking is a slow process so allocate plenty of time, maybe a weekend if you work.

I strain the liquid through a wire mesh strainer to get all the chunks out, de-fat the liquid, and finally strain it through cheesecloth. You cannot buy better broth at the store. I normally get about three liters of broth from one carcass.

This is just one recipe, hopefully others will chime in with their ways to cook a six-year-old rooster. In Belgium you might be familiar with Coq au Vin, just make sure you use a traditional recipe.

 

[strangeanimal]

Age definitely makes a difference to taste and texture, more for males but also for females. That difference starts to come through during puberty, say 3 to 4 months. Some people don’t like the taste of older chickens, especially roosters, as it can get kind of strong or “gamey”. Some of us prefer that taste.

You definitely have to alter the way you cook older birds. In general the older they are the slower you have to cook them and you need more moisture. Marinating or aging can make a difference too. Many people “brine” their birds, let them soak in salt water in an ice chest or the refrigerator for a few days after they butcher them to tenderize them. When you cook them you do not want to boil them, instead you want a gentle simmer, as an example of slow and moist. In a full rolling boil they will get tough. Remember this if you make soup. Slow simmer, not a boil. And for a long time.

There are several ways to cook an older bird and get them tender and, to me, tasty. Coq au Vin is a traditional French way to turn an old rooster into a gourmet meal. Chicken ‘N Dumplings is old-time southern USA comfort food. Some people use a pressure cooker which isn’t slow but is moist and the meat falls off the bone. Crock pots are also commonly used. I sometimes bake them in a tightly covered baking dish at 240 Fahrenheit for several hours but that’s probably not the best for you and really old chickens. This is more for older cockerels and pullets. One warning on a lot of the recipes you get for these, they sometimes are for the chicken you buy at the store which is young tender chicken, not the older meat you will have. Make sure you have a traditional recipe, not something new and trendy for store-bought chicken. Some people pressure can the meat, using either hot pack or cold pack methods. It’s a long processing time but that meat is very tender when you use it.

There is not much meat on Old English Game chickens. One way I might suggest for you to cook them, especially that older rooster, is to make broth. I use a crock pot but you can do this on stovetop or even in the oven with the right baking dish. I cut the chicken into useable pieces and cook the drumsticks, thighs, breasts and wishbone other ways and use the remainder of the carcass but I suggest you use the entire chicken this way. Put the meat and bones in with a bay leaf, a dozen peppercorns, a rough chopped carrot and celery stick, a rough-chopped onion, a rough-sliced garlic clove or two, and some herbs. I use basil, oregano, thyme, parsley, and maybe chives. Whatever herbs you think you might like. Then I cover with water and cook that very slowly for anywhere from 12 to 16 hours, overnight.

When you finish if you are careful when you take them out the thighs, drumsticks, breasts and wishbone may still be together and able to serve as a piece but the meat could easily have cooked off the bone. I separate the meat and such from the liquid with a slotted spoon and pick through that to get all the meat. That includes the wings, neck, and back. That cooked meat is great for soups, tacos, chicken salad, or anything else you normally use cooked chicken. Be careful when picking the meat, there can be a lot of small bones in there. Be very careful, especially if you are feeding young kids. Picking is a slow process so allocate plenty of time, maybe a weekend if you work.

I strain the liquid through a wire mesh strainer to get all the chunks out, de-fat the liquid, and finally strain it through cheesecloth. You cannot buy better broth at the store. I normally get about three liters of broth from one carcass.

This is just one recipe, hopefully others will chime in with their ways to cook a six-year-old rooster. In Belgium you might be familiar with Coq au Vin, just make sure you use a traditional recipe.

This sounds perfect if you 'd ask me ! as for herbs I use most of the times on chickens rosemary , garlic , and a lot of peppercorns and salt , now to be cooked are in fact more birds than one so I'll sure get some nice stock on broth and even some good meat now I got your reply ! I was honestly doubting the rooster more and certainly given the fact that he is in meat so hard ( he is in to the freezer now already but I waited with the rest because I just did not know any recipe or way of cooking and oddly enough do not ever ask a Belgian person how to cook an old roo ! they will give you that look as if you are torturing the animals ! if they are with that many , well forgive me but I like to eat as well and especially given the fact Old english games can be verrrry tasty too ! they have that bit of a taste like wild , really , I ate one with neighbours ( hens came from me ) few years ago on a ny eve and I can swear to you that the hens are a delite ! best meat ever I tasted from chickens , you can be so surprised on that , really ! ) , unfurtunately they are no longer my neighbours and so I could not go ask what they just did to give it that delicious taste , it was indeed the french recipe btw .
now about the fleshy and bone here , I have been lucky ! these birds are extremely good in their flesh , ok tiny birds so sure not much of meat but for their sizes they have some nice looking breast here , perhaps due the fact these are free ranged I do not know , so if I'd select a few hens , what is it that I should be looking for more specifically ( my daughter eats from that too ... altough she doesn't have to know that the chickens were ours and she will also not even notice as I left the ones that were gonna make food on the ground where they used to live , I did not take them into the run here ) plus the ones in the run ( they just moved ) are so overstressed that they do not look tasty at all and even weightloss is noticed , these were free rangers but circumstances forced me to make them prisoners sort of speak and they are with way too many but as said earlier I did taste them before and they can make an excellent meatbird ! than you for the many tips here because I can not keep the rooster in the freezer much longer and the living ones have to be gone too , usually I select those that are no good at laying anymore but in this case it does not really matter wether they still layed good eggs or not at all , so I more look at how fleshy they are and how healthy they seem .. which they all look a like in fact .. this deserves an update