Tough skin on roasted heritage chicken

[Engteacher]

I'm hoping some experienced cook can help me with this puzzle...

I harvested five Black Java cockerels in late fall. They were about seven months old when we butchered. I let the meat rest for three days before freezing them and they dressed out at about 5 lbs each. I roasted one last weekend in a slow oven and basted regularly so that the skin was beautifully caramel in color. The meat was tender and juicy, but the skin was like jerky and impossible to chew. Do I need to brine them? I ended up saving the skin and bones for stock, which was predictably rich in color and flavor. Terrific soup base.

Any cooking advice welcome!

 

[tgrlily]

Quote:
I haven't tried it with heritage chickens yet, but I'm a huge fan of brining turkey. I intend to do it when I harvest the Dorkings & Delawares. Have you ever brined?

My fave recipe for turkey brine is my own concoction... came up with it last Thanksgiving. I simmer apple cider with fresh sage, rosemary & thyme then add kosher salt, ice & cold water. Brine for at least 12 hours. Last Thanksgiving we brought the turkey fryer & a brined turkey to my parents house. I offered to bring more than one, but mom insisted on doing her usual slow roast because she was sceptical. Mine came out a little darker than I had hoped -- like dark coffee colored!! I was panicked till I started carving it as Dad teased me about my "black" turkey. Mom & I both put platters with the same amount of turkey on the table and before dinner was over mine was empty & hers was still half full! Sorry, Mom!!

Next year Hubby, Dad & I are frying three of them. I'm pretty sure the dark color is due to the fructose in the cider. It is the tastiest skin I've ever tasted -- if I must say so myself!

Hope you don't mind me adding to your question -- has anyone here ever cooked a brined heritage breed chicken in a turkey fryer?

 

[Engteacher]

We put a 10 lb Cornish cross in the turkey fryer, but it was a flop. We didn't time it right and were shocked at the amount of oil we needed.

My favorite is way to cook chicken is a long, slow bake basting often. Crank up the temp for the last 15 min to crisp the skin.

 

[jaketheeggman]

Thats just the way natural chickens are

. I always take off the skin after i cook it.

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

yes, I'm not a fan of the skin once they get past 4 or 5 months old.

 

[kstaven]

Quote:
At 7 months old brining will not help tenderize the skin. It is a function of age and also more common with some breeds.

 

[Ahab]

Part of your problem is basting. You baste skin deficient in fat, to introduce fat. But an older bird should already have plenty of fat in the skin; adding more merely thickens and toughens it, in my experience.

I find it better to air-dry the bird in the fridge for 12 hours before roasting it; rub it with butter, oil, or (my favorite) bacon fat, and then roast it half the time at 325F in a covered roasting pan, and the last half uncovered at 325F to let the skin crisp.

A younger bird I think is better roasted quickly at 500F, turning three times, in a cast-iron skillet with no rack.

 

[NeilV]

Ahab,

How long do you cook a 4 lb bird using the 500 degree/skillet method? What about seasonings?

I'd like to give that a try and would like some details.

Thanks,

Neil

 

[Ahab]

Quote:
It's pretty simple, really--and not original. I stole it from Fore Street restaurant in Portland, ME, and modified it to fit my kitchen (a wood cookstove Sept-April, a wood-fired pizza oven the rest of the year) and tastes.

I trim the big clumps of fat from around the vent and reserve, then I rub the bird all over, inside and out, with salt and pepper (roughly 1/2 teaspoon of Kosher salt per pound works for us) and whatever strikes my fancy at the time. A good free-range chicken might not need any herbs at all. With a commercial chicken, I use something like an herbes de provence mixture, or thyme, sage, Bell's Seasoning, whatever you like. Then set the chicken on a rack in the fridge for 24 hours, and remove from the fridge an hour or so before cooking. You want the skin dry, or it will never crisp properly.

Cut the reserved fat clumps in half and work them carefully under the breast skin on each side, so that they end up centered over the thickest part of the breast. Then tuck the wing tips under the back, and rub the bird all over with your favorite fat--olive oil, soft butter, bacon grease. If fresh herbs are in season, you can stuff a handful in the cavity, and/or also add a quartered lemon, or a head of garlic, peeled and nuked for 30 seconds to blanch. But with really good chicken, I don't think it needs much more than salt and pepper.

When the oven is hot (at least 475F), preheat the iron skillet for five minutes, then set the chicken in it, breast-up, and roast for 30 minutes. Turn breast-side down, and roast for 10 to 20 minutes more (depending on how big your chicken is, and how hot your oven). Now turn breast-up again and roast for another 10 to 20 minutes, until it's crisp and brown and a leg, when wiggled, moves easily in its socket. The scientifically inclined can use a probe thermometer to check the thigh next to the carcass; you're looking for 160F.

Remove to a rack and tent with foil, and let it rest for 15-20 minutes; you want the juices to retreat into the flesh instead of ending up in the pan. Meanwhile, if you come from the sauce-with-chicken camp, you can pour out the accumulated juices in the pan, let the fat rise to the top, skim it off, and return the pan to lowish heat with a minced shallot. Saute for about 30 seconds, then deglaze the pan (remove the brown fond, where most of the flavor is concentrated) with a splash of white wine or just the stock, and boil down, scraping with a wooden spoon, until it's almost syrupy. Off-heat, swirl in a cold pat of butter and sprinkle with parsley. And you're done. (Except for cleaning the iron skillet, which with a properly seasoned iron skillet is no work at all unless you made a sauce; then, you'll have scour it with salt and oil, and re-season.)

Note that I've never made this with an electric or gas range. I suspect it will tend to smoke up a kitchen, so unless you have a fierce extractor you might want to have someone manning the smoke-detector off-switches. In a wood oven, it's not a problem; all the smoke goes up the chimney.

 

[tgrlily]

Great recipe, Ahab!!!

I have 2 outdoor firepits with heavy metal doors. I do pizza in them sometimes, but the gas grill is so easy (& MUCH closer to the kitchen!) I tend to use that much more. Sounds like I'll have to get thermometers for firepits... or borrow them from the woodstove.