My birds are too tough (help needed!)

[AlecBGreen]

I raised some chickens this year and they were too old by the time I could slaughter them. So, the meat is a bit tough. Im starving hungry and the best looking food I have is a leftover leg/thigh.

How can I tenderize this puppy and get some dinner in a hurry? My stomach has reached Defcon 5!

[Lucinda]

1. I would say roast it in the oven.

I brush olive oil on chicken, sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper and roast at 425 until golden brown and done (45 minutes to an hour)

You could boil it and make soup faster, but that wouldn't be as tender as roasting.

[Sentath]

7. I hate to argue with people

But that amount of time will only cook the kind of bird he's talking about. It will not render it eatable.

For future work with that quality of bird try an initial roast like Lucinda has suggested in an open but lid-able container, followed by a slow (~250F) covered bake until tender. I once baked a bird for nearly 4 hours before it met my expectations.

For what its worth it was a whole bird seasoned with poultry seasoning and a dash of fresh ground fennel seed on the inside, salt on the outside, stuffed with a cut up lemon and as much of an onion as I could fit in the cavity. Reroasted the bones a couple days later and made it into a wonderful soup with the thick noodles from the frozen section.

[Lucinda]

13. The olive oil makes all the difference.

It sort of seals in the moisture which makes the meat tender. It's totally different than dry roasting a bird.
A slow bake is obviously the optimum way though. Or a pressure cooker. :) Which I didn't even think of.

[Sentath]

2. Oh Dear

Well, the fastest way to get something edible might just be to strip the flesh off the bones and cut the muscles into medallions 1/4 in or so thick. Cook them quickly over high heat in a little fat.

I'll reply to another post with the non-emergency thoughts.

[elleng]

3. Experts around here may have ideas,

but I can't think of anything for someone in a hurry! STEWED might tenderize.

Try this:

http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Best-Chicken-Stew-Recipes&id=1581588

[hippywife]

4. Yeah, I don't think hurry is going to accomplish

what you want. Once they are that old, it's nothing less than a long slow stew that will tenderize that bird.

[The empressof all]

5. Old Birds need braising IMO

If you have a pressure cooker you could brown the bird and finish him off in the pressure cooker with some tomato sauce, lots of garlic and what ever veggies you have around the house. Add a bit of wine and you'll have a great dinner.

[Warpy]

12. They do

Hence, the term "stewing hen."

You can hurry the process a bit by taking the meat off the bone, cutting it up, and braising it in wine with veggies for an hour or so. Throw in some rice for the last 20 minutes of cooking time.

It's not wonderful but it's edible and won't get as stuck in your teeth as treating it like a broiler will.

[AlecBGreen]

6. thanks for all the good ideas yall!

hunger wins out over tender. Im gonna follow Sentaths advice and cut it off the bone and cook it quick.

[AlecBGreen]

8. p.s. I gotta get a pressure cooker!

[eleny]

9. I'm probably too late...

But when I was little, mom always said they sold the odler chickens for soup since soup cooks for a while and slowly. Frankly, I think that soup tastes better than ones I make today with younger, tender birds.

If you have a pressure cooker, you could make a soup. Pressure cookers would make short work of a tough chicken. There are other p/cooker recipes you could make but soup comes too mind.

Edited - I should have read the whole thread. I'm delighted that you've got a cooker!!! Good luck!

[Tangerine LaBamba]

14. Coq au vin

It never comes out even faintly as good as when I use an old stewing chicken - when I can get one.

[hobbit709]

10. Crockpots are perfect for that

[Warpy]

11. Got a pressure cooker?

Cooking it in a little water with a bunch of veggies to flavor will give you the tenderest meat possible from an old birdie.

Lacking a pressure cooker, I'd suggest cutting it in small cubes off the bone and braising in liquid with the bone and some veggies and wine for an hour. That will tenderize it a bit, too.