Tough meat!

[JenniferNgo]

Most of our Cornish X turned out tough...

What do you feed your birds? We had them on broiler/finisher and corn. Of course they had grass and vegetable scraps like all the others but they were just not tender at all! What could have caused this? Does weather or temperature have anything to do with it?

Thanks for all your help. We want to order more, but to put up with all the stinking POOP (they do NOT poop like a normal chicken!) I want them to be tasty next time

 

[Clay Valley Farmer]

Did you let them rest in the fridge at least a day or two before eating?

Butchering and cooking are likely the biggest factors, but diet and living conditions might have some effect, my last batch raised in a barn were more tender even at 12 weeks than 8 week olds raised on grass in a tractor.

 

[Fenika]

The most important question here is how did you cook them and did you let them rest 2 days?

Do you still have uncooked birds left?

What did your birds get as babies? How much corn did you feed in relation to their regular ration? (too much unbalances the feed. All treats/supplements should total 10% max)

 

[ChickenCanoe]

The biggest learning curve is what comes after raising. They must be rested to allow rigor to release from the muscles before cooking or freezing. I usually rest for 3 or 4 days.
Also, if they've been using their muscles, they also need to be cooked on low heat very slowly.

My first butchered bird I cooked the first night cause I couldn't wait to taste it. Worse than that I broiled it on a rotisserie which cooked the free ranging bird too fast. It was so tough I couldn't even bite into it.
All is well now that I know what to do.

 

[JenniferNgo]

OMG I had no idea the meat had to rest! YES we ate it within hours of processing. Some of his buddies are in the freezer now...is that ok or did i freeze them too quickly?

The treats were just sprinkled into a chicken tractor. I like the barn idea. We don't have a barn (yet, we don't have a barn YET) but we have a large shed

Live N' Lern! LoL

 

[jdywntr]

I am new to this but I read on BYC somewhere

that you can rest them after thawing too. Just thaw and leave in the fridge for an extra day or two.

 

[JenniferNgo]

Quote:
Spectacular! Thank you!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I never realized it either until I got into it.

Resting after thawing is acceptable.

Studies show that resting with the bone in helps dissipate rigor better so I try not to bone them the first day.
Look at the chart near the bottom of the following link regarding tenderness related to time before de-boning.
http://en.engormix.com/MA-poultry-i...ctors-affecting-poultry-meat-t1218/471-p0.htm

 

[JazminesZoo]

I did not know this! Thanks for the info. I am raising meat birds ~ Chicken/Turkey/Guineafowl & just started so haven't butchered any yet

 

[mama dixie]

we have had this trouble with the meat being really tough, my hubby barbecues them and they are like leather. if you let them rest can you barbecue them or is it just better to get a bird from the store for that? do you feel it is cheaper to raise them or buy from store when on sale. I know it is better for you to raise your own just wonder the cost of each bird I figured it out and it was like almost 10.00 we are going to process our selves this next time it was like $6.00 for each bird last time to process.