Has anyone fried or roasted 3 month old heritage breeds?

[Ridgerunner]

I will try frying a few to see how their meat and skin texture are at that age.

I consider that an excellent idea. We all have our own tastes and preferences, find out how you like it.

I know at 5 months old their meat and skin are like rubber and needs to be stewed or used to make soup.

No they don't. You can certainly cook them that way but you have more options. The way I cook 5 to 6 month old cockerels or 8 to 10 month old pullets after aging is to cut into serving pieces, rinse off but do not dry. Put those pieces in a baking dish with a tight cover. Cover it with herbs, think herb crusted. I typically use basil and oregano and sometimes add parsley. I grow and dehydrate those so I have and use plenty. Toss in a rough chopped onion, a clove or two of garlic, a carrot and celery, and bake at 250 F for 2-1/2 to 3 hours. Carefully remove with a slotted spoon, the meat can fall off of the bone. The liquid makes great broth.

If you cook one this way let me know if you still think they are like rubber.

 

[CNJ]

If you cook one this way let me know if you still think they are like rubber.

I already tried that, its similar to stewing.............the meat and skin become soft.

I use a glass casserole pot with cover for this video recipe, but don't cover it until it has some color. I use both dark and white meat and cook it until it becomes soft.

In the summer, I grow okra in 5 gallon wicking tubs and make a lot of chicken gumbo. I use corn starch instead of flour to thicken my gumbo. https://www.thespruceeats.com/cajun-trinity-of-cooking-3052290

 

[Morrigan]

We've deep fried cockerels in the 12-14 week range. Crispy skins and (we thought) delicious. Definitely a little more texture than the younger birds, but I actually like that.

I've brined and oven roasted cockerels in the 4 months range and thought they were tasty and tender.

Last year I culled a 2 year old rooster and we pressure canned the legs and thighs to make gumbo. Seriously, that was some of the best chicken meat I have ever eaten. It was dark and rich, almost more like chuck steak then chicken.

There no too old to be tender -- you just have to find the right technique.

 

[CNJ]

We've deep fried cockerels in the 12-14 week range. Crispy skins and (we thought) delicious. Definitely a little more texture than the younger birds, but I actually like that.

I made fried chicken with 5 month old Buff Orpington roosters and thought to myself, " I think heritage breeds are not meant to be fried?"

However, I never made fried chicken with 12 weeks old birds, so I am curious. Thanks for the feed back on frying, this is something I am curious about.

 

[raingarden]

've brined and oven roasted cockerels in the 4 months range and thought they were tasty and tender.

I did the brining thing once but thought it tasted too salty. I lightly rinsed it but didn't try too hard to get the salt out. Are we supposed to soak the bird or something after brining to get rid of the salt?

 

[Morrigan]

I made fried chicken with 5 month old Buff Orpington roosters and thought to myself, " I think heritage breeds are not meant to be fried?"

However, I never made fried chicken with 12 weeks old birds, so I am curious. Thanks for the feed back on frying, this is something I am curious about.

For deep frying, 12 weeks is a good target. You can go later, but It depends on the cockerel -- fast vs. slow maturing breeds -- as well as the time of year. I've found that cockerels who are growing out in the late fall/early winter, tend to be a bit later in coming into the hormones that make them tougher -- later to crow, later to start harassing hens and smaller "oysters" when butchered. A 14 week old, given the right conditions, can still be tender enough to fry.

I did the brining thing once but thought it tasted too salty. I lightly rinsed it but didn't try too hard to get the salt out. Are we supposed to soak the bird or something after brining to get rid of the salt?

I only lightly rinse it as well and don't find if overly salty. But I don't brine with a ton of salt; I put in lots of herbs, citrus and some brown sugar.

 

[3KillerBs]

I did the brining thing once but thought it tasted too salty. I lightly rinsed it but didn't try too hard to get the salt out. Are we supposed to soak the bird or something after brining to get rid of the salt?

I've never brined because that's exactly the result I expect from it -- making good meat taste like the salty, nasty, mushy stuff that you get when you buy "enhanced" meat from the grocery store.

 

[CNJ]

I've never brined because that's exactly the result I expect from it -- making good meat taste like the salty, nasty, mushy stuff that you get when you buy "enhanced" meat from the grocery store.

I use 1 cup coarse salt, 1 cup brown sugar, garlic, 1tsp paprika, 1tsp black pepper to 1 gallon of water. This is a classic hunter's brine that I got from a Field and Stream magazine over 20 years ago. After marinating for 24 hours, let the meat drain on a rack for at least 15 minutes before smoking.

Smoked meat is great pupu/appetizer for beer coinsures on the Hawaiian Islands.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

I did the brining thing once but thought it tasted too salty. I lightly rinsed it but didn't try too hard to get the salt out. Are we supposed to soak the bird or something after brining to get rid of the salt?

The great thing about brining is that you can adjust the salt content. If you like it less salty just use less salt next time. I like mine a little less salty so I use 2/3 cups of salt per gallon while most people I know use 1 cup per gallon.

 

[ashcons]

yellow corn flour, then I mix it with regular flour, salt and water

Same for fish batter.