Is organic chicken better than regular chicken?
- Thread starter MilKii
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone that enjoys cooking.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
redkitty
Executive Chef
If it's organic free-range chicken it means the chickens are allowed to roam free and are not stuffed into cages. Battery chicken farms are far more inhumane, which is where most chicken purchased in stores comes from.
As far as taste goes, I'm pretty sure you would not notice anything different between organic and non organic chicken, I could be wrong though! I don't eat chicken anymore but when I did I always bought organic free range.
Some good reading on organic food Organic foods: Are they safer? More nutritious? - MayoClinic.com
I found this article on organic chicken Chicken
As far as taste goes, I'm pretty sure you would not notice anything different between organic and non organic chicken, I could be wrong though! I don't eat chicken anymore but when I did I always bought organic free range.
Some good reading on organic food Organic foods: Are they safer? More nutritious? - MayoClinic.com
I found this article on organic chicken Chicken
Last edited:
Ask-A-Butcher
Senior Cook
You may want to consider an "air chilled" chicken. I've done a side by side comparison and there is a definite taste difference. Both were seasoned and cooked the same way and the "air chilled" tasted more like the chicken that I grew up with on the farm.
These chickens are fed a vegetable grain diet. They have not been given any chemicals, hormones, or antibiotics. They are killed, hand plucked and gutted. Then hung up and spray rinsed and air dried or chilled. They don't come in contact with water again.
A little more on the Air Chilling process……during the traditional water-chilling process, chickens are slaughtered, cleaned, inspected, and the carcasses are immersed in often-chlorinated water below 40° F. The chickens are moved by paddles through the chill tank from 45 minutes to an hour to bring down their internal temperature to 40° F. After the optimum temperature is reached, the birds are pushed out of the tank and onto a shake table — and then to a drip line to shed excess water that was absorbed during the cooling process. Finally, the chickens are either packed whole or cut up into pieces.
In air chilling, chickens are suspended or sent by conveyor through two large chilling chambers and blasted with icy air. The first chamber reduces about 75 percent of the bird’s heat. The second chamber balances the 32° F to 34° F degree range.
A study by the University of Nebraska relays that air-chilled chicken have bacteria counts up to 80-percent lower than water-chilled chickens, extending its shelf life. Water-chilled chicken has whiter skin and a juicier flesh; air-chilled chicken has creamy-looking skin, a firmer texture, and shrinks less when cooked. Both chickens contain the same nutritional value.
These ‘Air Chilled’ chickens can be found in the Southeast at Publix supermarkets under their “GreenWise” private label.
These chickens are fed a vegetable grain diet. They have not been given any chemicals, hormones, or antibiotics. They are killed, hand plucked and gutted. Then hung up and spray rinsed and air dried or chilled. They don't come in contact with water again.
A little more on the Air Chilling process……during the traditional water-chilling process, chickens are slaughtered, cleaned, inspected, and the carcasses are immersed in often-chlorinated water below 40° F. The chickens are moved by paddles through the chill tank from 45 minutes to an hour to bring down their internal temperature to 40° F. After the optimum temperature is reached, the birds are pushed out of the tank and onto a shake table — and then to a drip line to shed excess water that was absorbed during the cooling process. Finally, the chickens are either packed whole or cut up into pieces.
In air chilling, chickens are suspended or sent by conveyor through two large chilling chambers and blasted with icy air. The first chamber reduces about 75 percent of the bird’s heat. The second chamber balances the 32° F to 34° F degree range.
A study by the University of Nebraska relays that air-chilled chicken have bacteria counts up to 80-percent lower than water-chilled chickens, extending its shelf life. Water-chilled chicken has whiter skin and a juicier flesh; air-chilled chicken has creamy-looking skin, a firmer texture, and shrinks less when cooked. Both chickens contain the same nutritional value.
These ‘Air Chilled’ chickens can be found in the Southeast at Publix supermarkets under their “GreenWise” private label.
DramaQueen
Head Chef
I love roast chicken and make it often, but I buy Foster Farms from the supermarket. A couple of weeks ago I thought I would try an organic chicken from Whole Foods, (paid 15.00 for it, am I nuts or what?) and I have to tell you it was the most tasteless, bland chicken I've ever made. I have no idea why, but will never buy organic chicken again.
I had dinner at a friend's house not too long ago and she is organic crazy. They threw some organic steaks on the grill, and the steak was a total waste. She admitted that the steaks have little flavor but she is into organic for health reasons.
You know what? I will continue to buy "unhealthy" chickens and steaks.
I had dinner at a friend's house not too long ago and she is organic crazy. They threw some organic steaks on the grill, and the steak was a total waste. She admitted that the steaks have little flavor but she is into organic for health reasons.
You know what? I will continue to buy "unhealthy" chickens and steaks.
rmalik23
Assistant Cook
I don't know what you mean by "better". But, organic chickens are raised naturally. That means, they don't have any steroids or hormones pumped into them. Like Ask-A-Butcher said, nutritional value is the same, so it really depends on opinion.
GotGarlic
Chef Extraordinaire
FYI, it has been illegal for decades in the U.S., Canada and Europe to add hormones to poultry:
Don't Eat Chicken Wings! - Netlore Archive
Focus On: Chicken
miniman
Executive Chef
I think it is very difficult - I've come across really poor tasting organic meat & great ordinary meat. They still need to be raised in a good way and be fed good quality food. Some farmers still do organic in a cheap way.
I look for free range rather than organic - for one there is much more meat on the bird and it is better textured IMHO. We have a local farm shop that sells their own free range chickens which are really great. This farm does not want to be organic but rather look to raise animals traditionally (rather than intensive). Their meat is great and we get 90% of our meat from them.
I look for free range rather than organic - for one there is much more meat on the bird and it is better textured IMHO. We have a local farm shop that sells their own free range chickens which are really great. This farm does not want to be organic but rather look to raise animals traditionally (rather than intensive). Their meat is great and we get 90% of our meat from them.
rmalik23
Assistant Cook
Just because it's illegal, doesn't mean people don't do it. Too much chicken is processed for the goverment to check it all throughly.
Similar threads
- Locked
