Best ways to cook a home grown chicken

[Amina]

How does everyone like to cook their home grown chickens? They are so flavorful that however they are cooked, the recipe should highlight the chicken flavor, IMO. So things like chicken and dumplings and chicken pot pie work really well. What other recipes really highlight the chicken flavor rather than overwhelming it with other things?

 

[TripleOval]

I often make homemade noodle (nice and thick, my boys love them) chicken noodle soup after roasting my birds in a ceramic (?) Chicken - shaped roaster, of course.
I also use the pulled meat to make cheesy bacon and ranch sandwiches. In this case the bacon and ranch flavors take over, but dang they're good!

 

[Amina]

I often make homemade noodle (nice and thick, my boys love them) chicken noodle soup after roasting my birds in a ceramic (?) Chicken - shaped roaster, of course.
I also use the pulled meat to make cheesy bacon and ranch sandwiches. In this case the bacon and ranch flavors take over, but dang they're good!

Yum! Do you mind posting your recipe?

 

[TripleOval]

Here it is. I got it from someone else, so I don't know the origin.
2 lbs. Chicken
2 8 oz. Packs of cream cheese
2 Packages of dry ranch soup mix
8 oz. Bacon
Put chicken, cream cheese and ranch mix in crock pot (6-8 hours On low or 4 hours on high), then cook bacon and crumble. Add to mixture and stir in. Serve warm.

 

[LOTUSPETAL]

At what age do you eat a homegrown chicken????

 

[newwestchick]

I take a whole cockerel out from freezer camp, then simmer with onion, celery and carrot, peppercorns and salt for a few hours (until the meat pulls off the bone). This results in about 5 quarts of AMAZING chicken stock that we can use immediately or pressure can. Then I cool the carcass and pick all the meat off the bones. Meat can go back into stock for soup, or be used in any kind of chicken dish, or just on sandwiches for the week! I find the meat to be very tender, and I get the least waste this way. Just some skin and bones leftover

Loutspetal, you can eat home raised chickens at any age, but the older they get the tougher the meat is. Even old laying hens can be stewed in traditional "Coq au vin" and are simply delicious! I dressed out my dual purpose cockerels at 16 weeks and they are comparable to store bought for tenderness. Most people raising meat birds will dress them at 8-10 weeks or younger even.

 

[LOTUSPETAL]

This sounds absolutely delicious! Can't wait to try this...!!!!

 

[junebuggena]

Most store bought chicken meat comes from 6 to 8 week old birds. If you hate 'tough' chicken and favor quick cooking methods, then Cornish cross is what you should be raising for meat. If you prefer a deeper, more chickeny flavor and roasting or stewing; dual purpose is the way to go.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

There is a lot of flavor to dual purpose birds. I don't think it can be overwhelmed if a 20 week cockerel cull. I'm a fan chicken gumbo.

 

[slingshotandLAR]

I cook them whole a lot of the time....

This is a 7 week old Cornish X

450 for 15 min than 15 minutes a pound at 350. I use oil and salt free garlic and herb spice a lot of the time. It's absolutely amazing, what ever is left is picked for chicken salad