Chicken - More Than Just Big Breast

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posted on

July 9, 2021

Chicken breast is by far one of our most popular selling products.

It's easy to see why people gravitate towards this delicious, simple cut. Chicken breast is easy to cook, can be used for various meals, and almost always turns out moist and juicy.

But there are more parts to a chicken than just the big breast portion.

They have meaty dark thighs and delicious drumsticks.

I want to take a minute to reintroduce the rest of the chicken...

Let's start with the wonderfully delicious and juicy drumsticks:

(click the picture for the recipe)

I'm not quite sure why drumsticks are not as popular. They are great finger food, are moist and juicy, and have fabulous dark meat. Drumsticks are a hit among kids since they love eating with their fingers!

We cooked up a batch of drumsticks the other day. A super simple meal that made everyone happy. We were all fighting for the last drumstick!

Next are the chicken thighs:

If you are looking for a very satisfying meal, chicken thighs will fit the bill. Chicken thighs have an abundance of dark, juicy, flavorful meat on them by leaving the skin on your lock in all that moist and savory chicken flavor.

Finally, you have the humble chicken wings:

Chicken wings have become very popular in the last decade. They are great finger food for game day or a family BBQ.

All these cuts are the "forgotten" parts of the chicken. I argue that they are more favorable than chicken breast. And, these are significantly more economical than the popular chicken breast.

You are in luck. Right now, all these alternative cuts are nicely discounted as we make way for our new batch of chicken. It is the perfect opportunity to stock up a bit while giving some overlooked cuts of our premium pastured poultry a test drive.

You won't be sorry!

We are your one-stop shop for pastured chicken in the Boise area.

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Bird Flu Explained

Ask anyone who buys eggs regularly at the grocery store, and you'll be met with the question.Why are egg prices so high?!Basic conventional raised eggs at the grocery store have reached record-high prices, and most stores are limiting the number of eggs people can purchase.There is clearly a supply and demand issue at the moment, but what is causing such an egg shortage?This might surprise some of you, but the egg shortage is directly correlated with the governments policy of handling the outbreak of the avian bird flu.Bird flu isn't new; it has been present worldwide since the early 2000s, yet it has recently gained renewed attention.The United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) policy regarding bird flu states that if your flock tests positive for the virus, all poultry on that farm will be "depopulated" (a euphemism for being killed). This means that if one bird shows signs of illness or dies and the USDA confirms it as bird flu, they will eliminate the entire flock of chickens or turkeys on the farm. The testing method used for bird flu is the PCR test, which gained notoriety during the COVID outbreak for its false positives.This isn't speculation. We witnessed this firsthand with our friends this fall when their turkey flock became sick and died. The USDA came and tested, confirming that it was indeed bird flu. They didn't have to kill any turkeys because their flock succumbed to the virus quickly. However, their small group of laying hens, which they kept for personal egg consumption and were healthy despite being exposed to the turkeys, had to be killed if they wanted any compensation from the USDA.Large confinement operations can house up to 250,000 chickens. Many of these farms have multiple houses, so if a large operation is confirmed to have bird flu, it is required to cull all the chickens on the farm; sometimes, this number well exceeds 250,000. In the last two years, over 160 million chickens and turkeys have been killed to "slow the spread." Yet, bird flu continues to spread.The USDA blames wild birds for carrying and transmitting the disease, yet I have yet to hear the USDA consider a widespread extermination plan for wild birds like starlings, pigeons, and chickadees, but only for the farmers who have chickens and turkeys?For a chicken to start laying eggs, they must be at least 5 months old before they begin to lay regularly. So if a laying operation has to depopulate their entire farm, they will have a minimum of 5 months before they have eggs again, and that's IF they can find chicks to restock their farm. There has been no discussion about breeding chickens that have contracted bird flu but survived the disease. What happened to the survival of the fittest?With millions of chickens being exterminated from the food supply, it's no wonder that egg prices are skyrocketing! Unless the USDA policy changes, it's unlikely we'll see a significant drop in egg prices, unless many new farmers enter the market willing to raise and sell eggs. In the meantime, we will continue to supply our customers with our small flock of laying hens that my daughter raises.

Subscribe & Save 5% Storewide + Free Item with Every Order of $175+!

Subscribe & Save 5% Storewide + Free Item with Every Order of $175+!

Chicken - More Than Just Big Breast

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