can you freeze whole?

[delfargo]

well, my first flock is coming to it's end. they are past thier prime and ready for the freezer. i have "culled" only one so far (a mean rooster this past summer) skinned him, cut him up and he made a nice stew, but i'm going to start "thinning the herd" before the winter really kicks in. my question is - can you freeze your chix whole, or do they need to be cut up first? i will be skinning them, as we don't eat the skin. i figured feezing whole would save on time. any thoughts?
thanx.

 

[CapricornFarm]

Yes, as long as you take the guts out first.

 

[wyoDreamer]

In my opinion, unless you are going to cook them whole, freezing whole takes more room in the freezer that I would rather not waste. Also, I think it would present more surface area for freezer burn.
I also like to use the breast for general eats and the dark meat for stews and soups, so I will seperate into different packages for freezing.

 

[Avalon1984]

Quote:
Could I go a bit deeper into this? What are the chances of getting freezer burn if you stuck the chicken in a ziplock bag? I have a whole roo in the freezer and it looks good fo far. I was planning on cooking it whole.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

The chances of getting freezer burn are excellent. It was a small investment but I bought a vacuum sealer on e-bay. It paid for itself quickly. I got one with 2 sizes of rolls to make my own bags and the large will hold a whole chicken nicely.
I used the 3 gallon zip locks first and quickly got freezer burn.
If I skin the bird I cut it up, if I don't skin I keep it whole for broiling/baking and the ensuing carcass makes great soup.

 

[Avalon1984]

Quote:
Wow, thanks for the headsup. I may look for that too and be sure to eat the chicken this week. It has been in the freezer for 2 weeks

 

[wyoDreamer]

You will notice that the chicken will start to turn white and dry looking as it starts to freezer burn.

If you buy the frozen boneless, skinless chicken breast from the grocery store, it will have a layer of "flavoring" on it to keep it from getting freezer burn. You will see it as juice in the bottom of the container when you defrost the meat.

 

[Avalon1984]

Quote:
Ah. you are right, I have seen that before. Thank you for the great advise!

 

[Oregon Blues]

Ziploc bags are no longer air tight. They've been "new and improved". So I only use Ziplocs for things that won't be frozen for more than a month or two.

Yes, chickens can be frozen whole. I do not think it increases the chances of freezer burn if they are properly packaged. I freeze my ducks whole, and with the chickens, some are frozen whole, some are frozen halved, and some are in pieces. I have different ways that I cook chicken, and the birds are packaged ready to cook in various ways.

One thing that I do with all the chickens is to cut the wings off. The tips go into broth and the "wingettes" are all packaged together in a large package to make a big meal of Buffalo wings. With the ridiculous price of chicken wings, that is the only way I can justify cooking Buffalo wings. I sure won't buy a bag of wings to make it.

 

[DanIndiana]

I just recently used the Ziploc Pump bags, and they worked really well. Quite cheap, and nearly as good as vacuum sealed.