We All Love Our Chicken, Broiled, Fried Or Roasted
They can crow all they like about “the other white meat,” but Americans love the original. Where mealtime staples are concerned, chicken’s the king.
It helps to have a handle on what’s out there, so you can get the juiciest and most tender dish for the least possible effort.
Broiler-fryer is the standard term that the poultry industry has applied to most of the chicken sold today, according to the National Broiler Council.
Broiler-fryers are, generally speaking, the youngest chickens commonly available - less than six months old. Typically weighing under 3-1/2 pounds, these chickens are tender enough for broiling or grilling, deep-frying or pan-sauteing, or brief poaching in flavored liquids. Their delicate flesh - especially the breast meat - cooks in a relatively few minutes, making boneless, skinless white meat a perfect addition for quick-cooking stir-fries and other types of pan-frying.
Roasters are somewhat older birds. Usually dressed before the end of their eighth month, those additional weeks of feeding yield a larger chicken (3-1/2 to 5-1/2 pounds) with an ample, meaty breast.
As the name implies, with their more pronounced flavor these plump birds hold up well to the intense heat of open-pan oven roasting. Because they tend to be a bit fatter, as the flesh cooks, those deposits of fat exude and self-baste - an important feature, because as the bird slowly roasts, fat drips from the skin and meat, accumulating in the pan.
That’s where a “roasting rack” is an important kitchen tool. Inexpensive adjustable versions enable you to accommodate a range of poultry sizes, from small game hens to great turkeys.
Stewers are the cronies of the barnyard. In times past they were the oldest laying hens past their productive prime. Usually a year or so old, they had lost their youthful fat and developed leaner, tougher muscles. Long, slow, tenderizing cooking was a must.
Today’s stewers can be downright succulently plump. Some are culled and dressed when still fairly tender; others really do deserve the conventional braising. These 6- to 8-pound hens are almost always destined for soups and stews.
Free-range poultry is a fairly new term, and one that has taken on considerable panache.
Free-range chickens are birds raised by the once-common practice of allowing flocks to roam freely in loosely-penned areas.
Free-range birds peck and scratch for whatever wild fare they can forage. Such livestock build stronger muscles and develop a deeper, naturally more gamey flavor.
Free-range poultry may sometimes be tougher, which is the price of that muscle-building and resulting flavor. You’ll want to time cooking carefully, especially when roasting or baking, basting and/or masking with foil to prevent drying or overcooking.
For diners who have come to appreciate the relatively inoffensive (some might say innocuous) flavor that everyday chicken provides, tasting free-range poultry can be a bit jarring. But for those who are willing to go to the bother of finding or special-ordering a free-range roasting chicken, the results can be a downright revelation.