11. To be able to select chicken properly, the housewife must be
familiar with the terms that are applied to chickens to designate their
age or the cookery process for which they are most suitable. _Chicken_
is a general name for all varieties of this kind of poultry, but in its
specific use it means a common domestic fowl that is less than 1 year
old. _Fowl_ is also a general term; but in its restricted use in cookery
it refers to the full-grown domestic hen or cock over 1 year of age, as
distinguished from the chicken or pullet. A _broiler_ is chicken from 2
to 4 months old which, because of its tenderness, is suitable for
broiling. A _frying chicken_ is at least 6 months old, and a _roasting
chicken_ is between 6 months and 1 year old. With these terms
understood, it can readily be seen that if fried chicken is desired a
2-year-old fowl would not be a wise purchase.
The quality of the bird is the next consideration in the selection of
chicken. A number of things have a bearing on the quality. Among these,
as has already been pointed out, are the feeding and care that the bird
has received during its growth, the way in which it has been prepared
for market, and so on. All of these things may be determined by careful
observation before making a purchase. However, if the bird is drawn, and
especially if the head and feet are removed, there is less chance to
determine these things accurately.
[Illustration: FIG. 1]
12. GENERAL MARKS OF GOOD QUALITY.--A chicken older than a broiler that
has been plucked should not be scrawny nor drawn looking like that shown
in Fig. 1, nor should the flesh have a blue tinge that shows through the
skin. Rather, it should be plump and well rounded like the one shown in
Fig. 2. There should be a sufficient amount of fat to give a rich,
yellow color. It should be plucked clean, and the skin should be clear
and of an even color over the entire bird. Tender, easily broken skin
indicates a young bird; tougher skin indicates an older one. The skin
should be whole and unbroken; likewise, when pressed with the fingers,
it should be neither flabby nor stiff, but pliable.
[Illustration: FIG. 2]
13. The increase of age in a chicken is to some extent an advantage,
because with age there is an increase in flavor. Thus, a year-old
chicken will have more flavor than a broiler. However, after more than
a year, the flavor increases to such an extent that it becomes strong
and disagreeable. With the advance of age there is also a loss of
tenderness in the flesh, and this after 1-1/2 or 2 years becomes so
extreme as to render the bird almost unfit for use. As the age of a
chicken increases, the proportion of flesh to bone also increases up to
the complete maturity of the bird. Hence, one large bird is a more
economical purchase than two small ones that equal its weight, because
the proportion of bone to flesh is less in the large bird than in the
small ones.
14. DETERMINING THE AGE OF CHICKEN.--An excellent way in which to
determine the age of a chicken that has been dressed consists in feeling
of the breast bone at the point where it protrudes below the neck. In a
very young chicken, a broiler, for instance, the point of this bone will
feel like cartilage, which is firm, elastic tissue, and may be very
easily bent. If the bird is about a year old, the bone will be brittle,
and in a very old one it will be hard and will not bend.
15. If the head has been left on, the condition of the beak is a means
of determining age. In a young chicken, it will be smooth and unmarred;
in an old one, it will be rough and probably darker in color. If the
feet have been left on, they too will serve to indicate the age. The
feet of a young chicken are smooth and soft; whereas, those of an old
bird are rough, hard, and scaly. The claws of a young one are short and
sharp; but as the bird grows older they grow stronger and become blunt
and marred with use. The spur, which is a projection just above the foot
on the back of each leg, is small in the young chicken, and increases in
size as the age increases. However, the spurs are more pronounced in
males than in females.
16. Another way of telling the age of dressed chicken is to observe the
skin. After plucking, young birds usually have some pin feathers left in
the skin. _Pin feathers_ are small unformed feathers that do not pull
out with the larger ones. Older birds are usually free from pin
feathers, but have occasional long hairs remaining in the skin after the
feathers have been plucked. These do not pull out readily and must be
singed off when the chicken is being prepared for cooking.
17. DETERMINING THE FRESHNESS OF CHICKEN.--There are a number of points
that indicate whether or not a chicken is fresh. In a freshly killed
chicken, the feet will be soft and pliable and moist to the touch; also,
the head will be unshrunken and the eyes full and bright. The flesh of
such a chicken will give a little when pressed, but no part of the flesh
should be softer than another. As actual decomposition sets in, the skin
begins to discolor. The first marks of discoloration occur underneath
the legs and wings, at the points where they are attached to the body.
Any dark or greenish color indicates decomposition, as does also any
slimy feeling of the skin. The odor given off by the chicken is also an
indication of freshness. Any offensive odor, of course, means that the
flesh has become unfit for food.
18. LIVE CHICKENS.--Occasionally chickens are brought to the market and
sold alive. This means, of course, that the birds are subjected to a
certain amount of fright and needless cruelty and that the work of
slaughtering falls to the purchaser. The cost, however, is decreased a
few cents on the pound. Such birds must be chosen first of all by weight
and then by the marks that indicate age, which have already been given.