Tender chicken meat? Here's a pro tip to fix your woes.

[Chick-in]

For those who don't already know about this tip:

Ever wonder how Asian restaurants get such tender and succulent chicken cutlets?

Ever get frustrated with how tough your slightly older bird is? You know, the one that you spent months feeding and keeping alive and then processed yourself....

Here's a helpful cooking tip (which works for all types of meat by the way. Granted I don't think I'd try it on fish or seafood). It's often referred to as "velveting". A type of meat tenderizing. Some places use factory based chemicals to achieve the process. But there are readily available and safe alternatives.

*Drum Roll*

Baking Soda

That's right!

• 2 tsp per lb of cutlets or enough to lightly coat a 2 inch thick piece of meat. (Some dissolve their baking Soda in water first. I personally don't notice a difference. )

More for thicker chunks.

• Allow your coated meat to sit in the baking soda.

-5 minutes for cutlets
-30 minutes to an hour for breasts.

** I would double the time for older birds.

• After the time is up, rinse your meat off.

• Next you marinade or add seasoning as you normally would.

• Finally, cook zee bird!

 

[troyer]

Definitely following this! I've got some older birds I need to process and have just always pressure cooked them to get it chewable.

 

[Chick-in]

Definitely following this! I've got some older birds I need to process and have just always pressure cooked them to get it chewable.

I haven't done a whole carcass yet. But I'd recommend 1/4 cup at least for a larger carcass and rub good on the inside and out. Wrap and let it sit 2 hours min.

I recieved 6 month old Cornish cross that were the size of turkeys... and as tough as a 2-5 yo bird. But I chop those up because it's a lot of meat.

 

[Chick-in]

Okay. Throughly rubbed whole chicken inside and out. Put in fridge overnight, tenderized a very tough whole chicken just fine for roasting!