Understanding Poultry and Game Birds



Hello Welcome again to my blog . Its me again , today we gonna learn about CHAPTER 5: UNDERSTANDING POULTRY AND GAME BIRDS

Composition and Structure
The muscle tissue contains:
  • Water (Approximately 75% water)
  • Protein (20%)
  • Fat (Up to 5%)
  • Small amounts of elements and carbohydrates
  • Muscle consists muscle fibers are held together by connective tissue
Young birds are almost always more tender than older birds. Bird that do fly always have dark meat.
Maturity and Tenderness
Tenderness of a piece of meat or poultry is related to connective-issue and that connective-issue with:
  • Use or exercise of the muscle
  • Maturity and age of the animal and bird
Young, tender birds are cooked by dry heat methods, such as broiling, frying, roasting, and moist methods. Older tough birds are primarily cooked by moist heat.
"Light Meat" and "Dark Meat"
Light Meat: Less fat, less connective tissue, cooks faster. Ex: Breast and wings
Dark Meat: More fat, more connective tissue, longer cooking time. Ex: Drumsticks and thighs
Free-range Chicken
Free-range chicken are allowed to go outdoors and move and eat freely in a natural environment. A lot of people think they are worth the cost. A term related to free-range is organic.
A Major Problem With Roasting

  • Basting with fat only
  • Roasting birds' breast down for part of the time
  • Barding
  • Roasting separately
A major problem with roasting is cooking the legs to doneness without overcooking the breasts.
Cooking Poultry Parts
Many recipes have been developed to prepare poultry parts like wings, drumsticks, and boneless chicken breasts.
Grading of Poultry and Inspection
All poultry consumed in the U.S. is subject to USDA inspection.

  • A guarantee of wholesomeness
  • Required by law
This ensures that products are produced under strict sanitary guidelines and are wholesome and fit for human consumption.
Grading
Grading voluntary but virtually universal. Birds are graded according to their overall quality.

Grades from the highest to the lowest:

  • USDA Grade A (Best)
  • USDA Grade B
  • USDA Grade C
The grades have no bearing on tenderness and flavor.
Grade is based on:
  • Shape of carcass
  • Amount of flash
  • Amount of fat
  • Pinfeathers
  • Skin tears, cuts, broken bones
  • Blemishes and bruises
Classifications and Market Forms
  • Kind: Species, such as chicken, turkey, or duck.
  • Class: The subdivision of kind, depending on age and sex.
  • Style: Amount of cleaning and processing: Live, dressed, whole, in parts, and ready-to-cook.
  • State of Refrigeration: Chilled and frozen.
Poultry
Poultry is the collective term for domesticated birds bred for eating. It includes:
  • Chickens
  • Ducks
  • Geese
  • Guineas
  • Squabs 
  • Turkeys
  • Goose
  • Pigeon

Chicken
  • The most popular and widely eaten poultry in the world.
  • It contains white and dark meat.
  • Can be cooked by almost any cooking method.
  • It is readily available fresh and frozen.
  • Poussin: A special bird, similar to Rock Cornish game hens weighs 1 pound (454 grams); expensive.

Turkey
  • Turkey is the second most popular poultry in the United States.
  • It has both white and dark meat.
  • It has a small amount of fat.
  • A young turkey lends itself to being prepared in any manner.
  • Breasts can be cut into cutlets or scaloppine.

Duck and Geese
  • The roasting of duck and geese is mostly in food service operations.
  • Duck and geese have only dark meat.
  • Duck and geese have a high percentage of bone to fat to meat ratio.
  • Duck and geese have a large percentage of fat.

Pigeon (Squab)
  • The young pigeon is commercially referred to as a squab.
  • It is dark-meated and well suited for broiling, sauteing, or roasting.
  • Squab has very little fat so it will benefit from barding.

Guineas
  • Are domestically raised.
  • Tastes like flavorful chicken.
  • Descendant of the pheasant.
Ratites
  • Ratites are a family of flightless birds with small wings and flat breastbones.
  • They include Ostrich (native to Africa), and Emu (native to Australia), and Rhea (native to South America).
Handling and Storing
Poultry can be purchased in many forms:
  • Fresh
  • Frozen
  • Cut-up
  • Portioned controlled (PC)
  • Individually quick frozen (IQF)
They are extremely perishable. Cross-contaminating should be avoided at all cost as it is detrimental. They often carries salmonella bacteria. All poultry is a potentially hazardous food. Fresh chickens and small birds can be stored on ice or at 0 to 1c for no more than four days. Frozen poultry should be held at -17c and can be held for six months. Frozen items should also be thawed under refrigeration. Do not refreeze poultry.
Doneness
Domestic poultry is almost always cooked well done (except for squab and sauteed duck breast). There is a difference between well done and overcooked.
Dry-Heat Cooking Methods
1.     Broiling
2.     Grilling
3.     Roasting
The four methods used to determine doneness of poultry:
  • Touch
  • Temperature
  • Looseness of Joints
  • Color of Juices

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