Why was my 4 month old Pullet Broiler Tough?

[Azriel]

I almost always roast my older roos. I try to butcher by 16-18 weeks, but that doesn't always happen. I do mine in an electric roaster at 250 for 3-4 hours and I make sure the roaster never gets dry. The older they are the longer they need to cook, I find them to have more texture but never tough. I do rest my birds in the refrigerator for 3 days before I freeze them.

 

[Organic Acres]

Well, there could be another reason why it was tough. At the start of the thread, the question started out like this: "So I have a flock of 4 month old RIR's and Light Brahma's. I'm only going to keep 4-6 of them as layers, so the rest will be broilers".

"the rest will be broilers"? wait a second, chickens that are bred solely for egg production don't make good meat, and "dual purpose" birds which are for eggs and also meat also have not-so-good meat. Chickens which were specifically bred for meat, which are called "broilers", have the best and most tender meat because they are bred for that.

So, taking a RIR chicken and telling yourself that you will eat it does not make it a "broiler". What makes a broiler a broiler is a specific series of selective breeding steps, this develops a variety of chicken to be fast growing and to have lots of tender meat on the skeleton. This type of bird is referred to as a "broiler", they are white with yellow skin and you'll notice that when raised with layer or dual purpose chicks they will grow 2 or even 3 times faster than the other chicks.

So, perhaps this chicken was tough because it was not a broiler, but rather a layer? Lots of laying chickens have really rubbishy meat, because they were bred to produce eggs, not to be eaten as meat.

Try buying some broiler chicks, and raise those. They will be ready in between 7 and 14 weeks, depending on their conditions and also on the variety you choose.

 

[IndianaHomestea]

Sine I originally posted this thread, I actually did buy 15 broilers (cornish X) ... butchered them around the 9 week mark and didn't notice much of a difference in the quality of the meat.

I've never heard that meat birds (Cornish X... Delaware etc.) have more tender meat. They just grow much faster and larger. The meat is the same. Chicken meat is chicken meat.

What I did wrong with the first flock, which was bred for egg production, was that I didn't bleed them correctly nor did I rest them long enough. The main thing was resting... I didn't rest them, at ALL. Which was obviously a huge mistake.

 

[Organic Acres]

So when you raised the broilers and then bled them properly, and rested them, they were tender but of the same flavor and quality as eating a layer hen?

That's interesting, I was always told that you can't eat a laying hen, because the meat is supposedly stringy and not very good.

 

[IndianaHomestea]

Right. Once I did them correctly the meat was identical. I just got a BUNCH more meat out of the X's and and spent less money on feed, since they grew so quickly. You're thinking of old hens. But even they are still edible. They are just tougher. Many people either use them in soup or cook them in a slow cooker so they are more tender.

 

[LilyD]

Right. Once I did them correctly the meat was identical. I just got a BUNCH more meat out of the X's and and spent less money on feed, since they grew so quickly. You're thinking of old hens. But even they are still edible. They are just tougher. Many people either use them in soup or cook them in a slow cooker so they are more tender.

I totally agree. We don't buy meat from the store anymore and only use excess roosters for our meat. The trick is getting the bird at the right time for the type of meat you want. A broiler is primarily any bird that is younger than 13 weeks of age so that it can still be cooked hot. I have gone as long as 16 weeks and still had good broilers. You do have to rest them longer the older they get. So while you could rest a 12 week bird overnight and it won't be tough afterwards a 24 week bird would need to rest 2 to 4 days to get tender. If they are done right they are not tough at all and the taste is out of this world.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

350 degrees for 45 minutes should be enough oven time to bake a loaf of bread to an internal temperature of over 200 degrees. So you baked a small pullet @ 400 degrees for 45 minutes and you're wondering why it is tough? Oh well.

 

[hdmax]

Well, there could be another reason why it was tough. At the start of the thread, the question started out like this: "So I have a flock of 4 month old RIR's and Light Brahma's. I'm only going to keep 4-6 of them as layers, so the rest will be broilers".

"the rest will be broilers"? wait a second, chickens that are bred solely for egg production don't make good meat, and "dual purpose" birds which are for eggs and also meat also have not-so-good meat. Chickens which were specifically bred for meat, which are called "broilers", have the best and most tender meat because they are bred for that.

So, taking a RIR chicken and telling yourself that you will eat it does not make it a "broiler". What makes a broiler a broiler is a specific series of selective breeding steps, this develops a variety of chicken to be fast growing and to have lots of tender meat on the skeleton. This type of bird is referred to as a "broiler", they are white with yellow skin and you'll notice that when raised with layer or dual purpose chicks they will grow 2 or even 3 times faster than the other chicks.

So, perhaps this chicken was tough because it was not a broiler, but rather a layer? Lots of laying chickens have really rubbishy meat, because they were bred to produce eggs, not to be eaten as meat.

Try buying some broiler chicks, and raise those. They will be ready in between 7 and 14 weeks, depending on their conditions and also on the variety you choose.

I totally disagree with much of what you said here. A young RIR or pretty much any large breed chicken can be just as good (If not better!) and tender as a cross rock. It has to do with how it is processed and prepared. (And age of course.) The egg producers and dual purpose birds take longer, and have less breast meat, but other then that, there isn't a whole lot of difference. In fact,most would say a dual purpose bird has a much better taste then a cross rock.
A tough bird can be had from any age chicken if not processed correctly!

I roast chickens and turkey at no higher temperature then 275*. (And sometimes 215-225* depending on the age of the bird, and how I am roasting it.) A slow roaster bird makes for a much more tender meat.

 

[Bill Matthews]

I am not trying to kick around Organic Acres but ALMOST EVERYTHING in the post is false or misleading; the statement and implication that all broilers are yellow skinned white birds is just one of the most obvious examples. Before the early 1950's when Cornish Crosses became popular, dual purpose breeds and crosses such as New Hampshires, Delewares, Deleware Hamps and Barred Crosses dominated the broiler industry. Again, I am in no way being nasty to Organic Acres.

 

[naadarien]

350 degrees for 45 minutes should be enough oven time to bake a loaf of bread to an internal temperature of over 200 degrees. So you baked a small pullet @ 400 degrees for 45 minutes and you're wondering why it is tough? Oh well.

We have always cooked store-bought chicken (pieces: thighs, drumsticks; I prefer dark meat) at 375-400 degrees for 45 mins...and they are delicious and juicy with a nice crunchy skin. Perfect. No covering, no basting, just a few seasonings, laid out on cast iron, and popped right into the oven. Baked chicken is by far my favorite.

So I can see why someone would think this would work with their home-raised chickens. I certainly would have.

Whole chickens (any kind), we do the same way, but we cook with the breast down so that the fat from the dark meat simmers down into the white. Other than that, they have always been great.

I have yet to butcher and eat my own chickens (but will likely do so over the next year), but I have done this same roasting for chickens (pieces or whole) bought from my local farms. Haven't had a bad experience yet.

Oh and I was watching The Chew a few months back and the hosts were talking about not cooking chicken above 160 degrees for optimum results (not that I care; just found the discussion interesting since so many people cook chicken wrong). I had always liked my chicken, but had never monitored the temperature (I just know what it looks and smells like when done). So I decided to do it the next time I baked chicken just to see to what temperature I was cooking. It was exactly 160 degrees at 375 for 45 minutes. Presumably the difference in density and air flow would explain the disparity in internal temps between bread and chicken when cooked at similar temps and times.