tender?

[rigagirl]

I know i have read about this before and i am not sure if i am in right area.
I have RIR i have butchered before and tried baking one and it had good taste but was tough. Someone on here said it was because i cooked it with dry heat. I thought they made some sense so i cooked next one in a crock pot and that was still just as tough as first one. I even let chicken rest in fridge up to 48 hrs as suggested on here. A lady at work says she boils for hrs before they are Tender. My husband was talking to a lady today who is an old farmer and said she never heard of chickens being tough like that and suggested it was maybe my cooking. I have one hen and rooster in my freezer waiting to be cooked but i am scared. Any suggestions or tips.

 

[Flagman]

Try using a cooking bag when you bake it. I usually use that to keep it from drying out and getting tough.

 

[Overeasyplz]

How old was the bird? older=tougher.

 

[rigagirl]

the first 2 might have been 6 months old. in my freezer is a rooster at least 1yr old. i know he wasn't 1.5 yrs. other is a rooster maybe 5 months old.

 

[rigagirl]

i do want to try coq au vin but am worried that it wont come out good.. how about in a slow cooker with tomatoes and vegetable stock?

 

[Ariel301]

The barred rocks that I had growing up were always tough and stringy. We were told it was because they were free-range and too much excercise made them tough. I don't know if that has anything to do with it or not.

 

[rigagirl]

just got to thinking... how is a cooking bag any different from a slow cooker?

 

[Orpstralope]

For Layers: Boil them for sure...I boil mine for an hour or more and then pull all the meat off the bones. Then I put all the meat with a few leg bones back into the pot along with a dash of chicken broth, and two cubes of buillon, some salt, and some pepper. Then I add celery, carrots, and onions, then egg noodles and have chicken noodle soup! Especially when it's cold like this.

 

[mxpres]

Did you let the birds (rest) cooling off in icewater and salt for 24/48 hours before freezing?

 

[jaku]

You'll never have a 1 year old bird keep the texture of a store bird/home grown broiler.