Swedish Flower Hen Thread

[Overoberyl]

I processed two last week. One at 5+ months and the other at 8+ months. Both healthy and vigorous and looked to be good/normal sized. One weighed 3.5 lbs and the other 3 lbs fully dressed. They were very, very tasty, just little breast meat. Better in soup than as a roast, imo.

Sounds like perhaps the SFH is not a good dual purpose bird. Are they prolific layers? Hopefully that will redeem them, unless they are just pretty lawn decoration

 

[Dahlisgrams]

Quote: They seem to be laying sporadically as pullets but improve in frequency and egg size as they mature a bit. I really love the Swedes but agree they are probably not really a dual purpose bird. Not that I am raising them specifically for meat, but around here a bird needs to earn his/her keep. I think they have great temperaments, good but not great egg laying rates and they taste really good, so I'll continue to process the extra cockerels with split wing and other faults. Have one here with a side sprig on the comb. First time I've seen that in my flock and it didn't show up right away, but he wasn't used for breeding so I'm not concerned. He is being processed next week. I'll post his weight here for anyone interested.

 

[chiques chicks]

My single pullet just started laying two weeks ago. About 4-5 per week. As for dual purpose, mine seem to eat little, preferring to forage. I'm willing to give up size for less feed cost. A hardy bird that can fend for itself is valuable, in my book. Mine do have a lot of space. I don't feel a breed of this type belongs confined, it's not how they developed. I feel they have a place as a homestead chicken.
Just my opinion as a relative newcomer.

 

[SunnySkies]

I processed two last week. One at 5+ months and the other at 8+ months. Both healthy and vigorous and looked to be good/normal sized. One weighed 3.5 lbs and the other 3 lbs fully dressed. They were very, very tasty, just little breast meat. Better in soup than as a roast, imo.

Yeah, not a roaster. But I found this to be true of all the breeds we have (we have not raised any meat breeds yet). We butchered bunch of black Australorpe crosses, and I didn't like them as a roaster either. Not enough meat, even when they were 5 lbs dressed weight. I will be using all my dual purpose breeds from now on as part of a meal, like chicken enchiladas, chicken lasagna, chicken and dumplings, soup, chicken pot pie, etc. If I want a roasting chicken, I'll have to raise some red rangers.

 

[Dahlisgrams]

My single pullet just started laying two weeks ago. About 4-5 per week. As for dual purpose, mine seem to eat little, preferring to forage. I'm willing to give up size for less feed cost. A hardy bird that can fend for itself is valuable, in my book. Mine do have a lot of space. I don't feel a breed of this type belongs confined, it's not how they developed. I feel they have a place as a homestead chicken.
Just my opinion as a relative newcomer.

Their ability to forage and fend are important in my book too. They much prefer to be out and about than standing at the feeder. Some of my laying flock barely leave the coop even while the others are out and about. The SFH cannot wait for their gate to open!

 

[Dahlisgrams]

Quote: Agreed. Funny thing is, I have almost never roasted a chicken in general. If I want roasted, I usually go for turkey rather than chicken anyway so in reality it's not a problem at all. I roasted the first one only to get the true flavor of the meat and just to see. Definitely better than store bought any day of the week.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Have one here with a side sprig on the comb.

Can someone post a photo of the sprig for my education?

 

[Dahlisgrams]

Quote: I will get a photo asap. They are out free ranging at the moment..

 

[dretd]

Agreed. Funny thing is, I have almost never roasted a chicken in general. If I want roasted, I usually go for turkey rather than chicken anyway so in reality it's not a problem at all. I roasted the first one only to get the true flavor of the meat and just to see. Definitely better than store bought any day of the week.

Say maybe you will know. I was wondering, is there a difference in flavor between free-ranged chicken and ones on a grower ration (like there is between corn-fed beef and grass-fed)? Is it more a factor of the breed of chicken vs what they eat? If you want to grow out the boys for processing is there an advantage flavor-wise to letting them forage?

 

[Dahlisgrams]

Quote: I think so. The eggs seem to taste better from free-ranging chickens too. The meat can be a little stringier but there is much more flavor, in my limited experience. I'm looking forward to comparing a few breeds for flavor/texture over the coming season. There really is nothing to compare to the flavor of a free-ranged home grown chicken raised without hormones or antibiotics. I'll never go back to store bought. Ever. They have one bad day with me. All the rest are good. They're taken good care of, fed really well with FF and fresh organic vegetables plus free access to layer, free ranged with access to bugs and grass.. that's a good life for a chicken, imo. I don't think the same can be said for the meat you can buy at the grocers..