Poultry for Christmas

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 81, Issue 5, 15 November 1950, Page 472

Poultry for Christmas

SOME people may consider that the, centrepiece of the Christmas C* feast should be goose or turkey, but for the majority of New Zealanders it is more likely to be lamb or humbler poultry-perhaps a young duck or a tender cockerel, but more often just fowl, a designation which can cover anything from a well-fleshed yearling pullet to an old, scraggy hen. The age of the bird matters less than its quality and the cooking. First step toward a poultry dinner is either the purchase of a ready-dressed bird or the buying or selection of one alive and preparing it for the table; in this article those

preparatory stages are explained by

W. L. Mclver,

Poultry Instructor,

IX / e - j--- ~ ' / . . . - •—} Department of Agriculture, Hamilton. Good cooking can do a little to improve the poor-quality bird, but poor cooking can ruin the best of meat, so Eva Topping, Rural Sociologist, Department of Agriculture, Auckland, advises on ways to ensure good cooking of good poultry.

THAT many housewives do not think a Christmas dinner complete without poultry is the more curious because the same wives seldom serve poultry all the rest of the year. The explanation probably is that poultry is regarded as both a luxury meat and a bother to prepare. Yet the festive outlook toward Christmas is so strong that the practice of serving some kind of poultry meat then seems unlikely to die out. For many reasons it is to be hoped that this is correct, for many, varieties - of poultry can supply the basis for an attractive dinner, but unfortunately many housewives do not realise that poultry need not be a luxury meat or troublesome to prepare.

Admittedly, the purchase price of dressed poultry varies considerably throughout New Zealand and is high in the larger cities. Prices are .also affected by the season, for as long as housewives flock to buy poultry for Christmas but not for the rest of the' year, Christmas prices . will remain high. Prices can be expected to be lowered permanently only if the public creates an increased demand for poultry and the farmer finds; competing for the trade worth while. At present, with few exceptions, the farmer and the poulterer do not have to compete for trade because the. public is not demanding either the quality or the quantity to warrant competition among suppliers. When that

[Photographs on this page by Sparrow Industrial Pictures Ltd.

demand does develop farmers will have to rear special poultry for consumers who want young, tender, wellfleshed birds and poulterers w’ill need to make available turkeys, geese, ducks, and fowls attractively dressed, trussed, and wrapped.

Prices vary considerably in New Zealand according to the district, the variety of poultry, and whether the bird is bought alive or dressed. The demand at Christmas for the lesscommon poultry is great enough to keep prices high for turkeys, geese, and ’ even ducks, and that helps to maintain prices for fowls. Prices of dressed hens charged by poulterers are much the same throughout the country, as the birds are sold mainly on the basis of weight after dressing, but shops in smaller towns tend not to charge maximum allowable prices and prices tend to be lower in the south. Prices in Invercargill are lower than those in Auckland. This trend is even more noticeable in prices of live birds, so that cheaper live poultry •can be bought from country than from town farms and from southern than from northern farms.

If price is a factor, poultry should be bought alive and not dressed, but not only townspeople look on plucking and gutting as difficult, a nuisance, and even repugnant. The consumption of poultry on general farms and town properties running a few fowls is much lower than it should be. Home-reared fowls or those bought alive from country farms at reasonable prices compare very favourably with other meats in cost.

Dressing a bird is not difficult. Admittedly, practice is desirable to increase efficiency, but even without frequent practice little time is required to dress a bird provided the general principles are understood. This proviso is important because, though anybody can get the feathers off a bird and take out its inside more or less quickly, few have seen the job well done and know what to do. Selecting Poultry When buying dressed poultry from a shop the customer has little chance of using special knowledge to ensure obtaining a reasonably young bird. Very young birds do show special signs, mainly on the shanks, feet, and keel: The keelbone is soft and pliable,

not rigid as it is in an old bird, and the scales on the shanks and the skin of the feet are obviously softer. It is better to seek the advice of the poulterer about the quality of older birds; if he states the age of the bird, that information should be accepted with some doubt, because there is no way of telling by appearance whether it is 1, 2, or more years of age. Weights of Birds One piece of evidence the customer can use safely is the weight of the dressed carcass in relation to its breed. The better fleshed a bird is the better its eating qualities are likely to be. Average, good-quality, adult birds should dress at the following weights: Breed Males Females

Many carcasses will weigh more, but that is a good sign. Dressed carcasses

which weigh less could still be excellent in quality, but as a rule a heavy bird is a better buy than a light one. Plucking The first decision to make is whether to dry or wet pluck the bird. A young bird should be dry plucked, as the skin is soft and tender and tears easily. Turkeys of all ages are very easy to pluck dry. Geese, whether young or old, are the most difficult birds to pluck, with the possible exception of swans; one experience is usually sufficient to teach the amateur that a goose is better plucked by a poulterer. Ducks are not very easy, partly because of the oil in the feathers and the pin -feathers present at certain ages; if the scalding is carried out correctly, ducks are easier to wet pluck, but achieving a successful scald is far more difficult with ducks than with fowls, so the amateur is better advised to dry pluck ducks, even if it takes longer. Fowls can be scalded readily and they wet pluck very easily. Dry plucking should be started as soon as the bird has been killed. Do

not wait for it to cease kicking, but begin plucking the feathers out immediately after dislocating the neck, Start at the neck end and work back to the tail. Do the breast and keel first, then the back, sides, and legs, Leave the tail and wings until last. The secret of success in wet plucking is the scald. Many poulterers like the water close to 160 degrees F., but temperatures up to 180 degrees are satisfactory if the time of dipping is reduced. If the bird is dipped too long, the skin will scald too soft and tear as the feathers are plucked, especially on the legs, wings, and breast; if the dipping time is not sufficiently long, the feathers will be just as hard to“take out a*? in dX plucking as nara to take out as in ary plucking. Use a bucket wide and deep enough to permit the bird to be put into it easily. Use sufficient water at about 170 degrees F. to submerge the bird completely. Scalding is best done about 20 and not more than 30 minutes after the bird has been killed. Dip the bird for a couple of seconds, pull it out of the water, and immediately submerge it again, moving it around in the water as much as possible. At the end of 25 seconds pull it out again and test whether the scald is sufficient by pulling one wing feather. If it comes out readily, the scald is right; I*? 0 ?’ J ub “: e n rge l he R n^ c ? a £L ore and test again 5 or 6 seconds later. The order of taking out the feathers is entirely different from that in dry

plucking. Do the wings first, then the tail, the legs, the back (working from tail to neck), and last the keel, breast, and abdomen. A few feathers will be missed in the first pluck, but these are attended to in the final “fine” pluck. ■ Gutting For the. person who seldom prepares poultry for the table there are only two aspects to guttinghow to get out the crop and how to cope with the rest of the internal organs. Te crop is best taken out from the neck end An +u ' . + , _ All the rest of the organs are removed through a cut made in the abdomen . This cut can be made in one of three ways. The most popular is to make a long incision from the end of the keelbone right to the vent. Another way is to make a long cut from side to side across the abdomen, halfway between the keel and the vent. Both these methods make it easy for a person even with large hands to do the job quickly, but they leave an unsightly gap and compel the cook to stitch together the abdominal skin after stuffing the carcass. The roast poultry illustrated on page 476 was gutted by this second method. In the bird illustrated on the next page the hole through which the gutting was done is so small that it can barely be seen. The leg bone

is tucked into the hole, which because of its smallness stops, the leg from springing out; this is one method of trussing. This third method of gutting needs only a small stab cut on one side of the abdomen; full details were given on page 437 of the “Journal” for November, 1949. It is a slower way than the other two, but the carcass looks a great deal more attractive both after completion of the job and after being cooked. Take out the lungs and wash the carcass well, but, if the poultry is not going to be cooked soon, drain and dry it thoroughly. Water does not harm poultry flesh because it is protected by an internal as well as an external skin. Old Hens > An old hen should not be despised as a table bird. There are many misconceptions about the old hen. Some people condemn females as table birds, others say second-year birds are tough, and some insist on using only heavybreed varieties. Neither the age nor the variety matters very much if the bird is well fleshed, especially on the breast, keel, and legs, in which case it can be cooked so that it will be tender and can compare favourably with any other kind of poultry. It is more important to have some idea of the age of the bird, not so much in terms of months or years, but by the classification of young, very young, or not young. The bird should then be cooked according to its classification. COOKING POULTRY Chickens and Hens Very young chickens may be roasted or fried; in fact, they are the only type of bird suitable for frying, as any other would be too tough for this method. Fried Chicken Cut the bird into neat serving pieces, dredge them with wellseasoned flour, and fry them in bacon fat until they are tender and golden brown. Do not fry the chicken too quickly or for too long. Serve it with bacon rolls and fried parsley. Fried Chicken in Batter 1 young chicken, cut i cup of . flour into serving pieces 1 small onion, 2 eggs chopped finely 1 tablespoon of • 1 tablespoon of melted butter chopped parsley A little gravy or 2 tomatoes stock Salt and pepper Beat the yolks of the eggs and stir in the cooled melted butter, a little gravy, and the flour. Pour in 1 cup of cold water to make a smooth batter and put it aside to set. Whip the egg whites until they are stiff and add them to the batter, also stirring in the parsley and onion. Dredge the pieces of chicken with flour, dip them in the batter, and fry them i-n hot fat. Drain the fried chicken on soft gaper and serve it on a hot dish garnished with parsley, slices of fresh tomato, and small strips of fried bacon.

Roast Chicken

Young chickens or birds which have just reached maturity are best for roasting. After being dressed the bird can be stuffed at the crop and in the body cavity with one of the stuffings for which recipes are given at the end of this article. Fill the crop and shape it to continue the line of the breastbone; do not fill it too full, as some allowance must be made for the stuffing swelling during the cooking. The skin should be secured by skewers or stitching or the stuffing will escape and spoil the finished appearance of the bird. Skewers and thread should be removed when the poultry is dished. Put the bird into a roasting pan, breast side up, with plenty of fat for basting. Have the oven temperature 325 to 350 degrees and allow 20 to 25 minutes for each lib. dressed weight of the bird; for example, a 3jlb. chicken needs to be cooked for 1 hour 20 minutes to 1| hours. For the first hour cook it with the breast side up, then turn it on to the breast for 15 minutes, and finish the cooking with the breast upward again. Slices of bacon may be laid over the breast and legs, and sausages roasted in the pan with the bird. Gravy: The gibletsthat is, the heart, liver, neck, and gizzard—make a good gravy. Prepare them by removing the gall bladder and any discoloured portions from the liver. Cut through the thickest part of the gizzard, remove the gritty contents, and peel off the inner lining. Wash the heart and neck. Peel and slice a small onion and brown it in a tablespoon of melted dripping. Add the prepared giblets, | teaspoon of salt, a sprig of thyme, some parsley, a little pepper, and a pint of water or stock. Simmer them gently for 1 hour. Take out the liver, mash it well, and return it to the saucepan to simmer for. a few minutes longer. Strain the liquor and use it to make a thick brown gravy in the roasting pan in the usual manner. Serve roast chicken on a hot dish with the sausages and bacon, the brown gravy, and bread sauce. Recipes for Older Hens Old hens may be boiled and served hot with egg sauce or cold with salads. They may also be used for many made-up chicken dishes. Boiled Fowl with Oatmeal Stuffing 1 old fowl 1 teaspoon of chopped Jib. of oatmeal parsley Jib. of bread J teaspoon of mixed Jib. of chopped suet herbs 1 small onion, Salt and pepper . chopped finely Milk 1 beaten egg Soak the bread in hot water, squeeze it dry, and beat it with a fork. Add the oatmeal, suet, onion, parsley, herbs, salt, and pepper. Moisten the stuffing with beaten egg and milk. Stuff the old fowl with the mixture, filling the crop no more than half full, as the stuffing swells considerably. Secure the stuffing well by stitching and skewering. Put the prepared fowl into a saucepan and cover it with cold water. Bring it slowly to the boil and simmer it gently for 3 hours.

Meantime make a ’sauce to pour over the fowl, as follows: 1 tablespoon of butter J pint of milk 1 tablespoon of flour J pint of chicken 2 hard-boiled eggs liquor Melt the butter, stir in the flour, and add the milk and 1 pint of the liquor in which the fowl is boiled. Cook the mixture until it is smooth and thick. Add the chopped-up whites of the eggs. Pour the sauce over the boiled fowl and then sprinkle the sieved yolks over the top. Chicken Pie 1 old fowl Sprigs of thyme 2 onions, chopped 3 hard-boiled eggs Jib. of ham or bacon, Chopped parsley cut into small Salt squares Short pastry A few peppercorns Cut the fowl into neat, small pieces and put it into a saucepan with the ham or bacon, the onions, and the peppercorns and thyme tied in a muslin bag. Cover them with cold water, add salt, bring the water to boiling point, and simmer the ingredients gently until the meat is quite tender. Turn the contents of the saucepan into a bowl, remove the seasoning bag, and leave the remainder until it is cold; skim off the fat. Put a layer of fowl into a pie dish, pour in a little of the gravy, and cover it with a layer of hardboiled egg and chopped parsley; repeat the layers until the dish is filled. Cover it with a short-pastry crust and bake the pie in a hot oven until the pastry is crisp and nicely browned. Ham-and-chicken Brawn 1 old fowl Thyme, parsley, lib. of ham or bacon peppercorns, and 2 Pepper and salt cloves tied in a muslin bag

Cut the fowl into joints, put it into a saucepan with just enough water to cover it, and add the bacon, herbs, spices, salt, and pepper. Simmer it gently for 3 hours. Cut the meat into very small pieces. Rinse a large mould or pudding basin with cold water, pack in the meat, and strain enough of the liquor over it to make the jelly between the pieces of meat. If desired, pieces of hard-boiled egg and tomato may be set in the bottom of the mould for decoration. Turkeys As with chicken, only young turkeys are ' suitable for roasting; old birds can be very tough and unappetising if cooked in this manner. Roast Turkey Turkeys are roasted in the way described for chickens and stuffed with one of the stuffings given at the end of this article. Slow, gentle roasting gives best results, leaving the meat tender and juicy and the skin browned and crisp without being toughened. Prepare the turkey, stuff the crop and body cavity, secure the stuffing firmly, and cover the breast with slices of fat bacon. Allow 10 to 15 minutes roasting 1 for each lib. of dressed weight. Cook the bird at 300 to 325 degrees, basting it frequently and turning it over two or three times while it is cooking. Half an hour before the roasting is finished remove the bacon from the breast and put sausages in the pan. Make the giblets into stock for the gravy as described for roast chicken. Serve bread sauce, bacon, and sausages with roast turkey.

Older Turkeys

An old turkey can be boiled for 1| to 2 hours, then served covered with white sauce made .from the liquor and sprinkled with chopped parsley or hard-boiled egg yolk. If preferred, it may be roasted for i hour or until lightly browned after being boiled. The bird should be dredged with flour and basted frequently with plenty of hot fat or it will be dry and tasteless. Old turkeys boiled until tender are good for madeup dishes, for which the remains of a roast turkey can also be used. Turkey Loaf Take the bones from a boiled turkey or the remains of a roast turkey and mince the meat with a small onion. Season it well with pepper, salt, 1 teaspoon of chopped parsley, and a little grated nutmeg. Moisten the meat with gravy and bind the mixture with beaten egg. Form it into a roll and flour it well. Roll it in a floured cloth and put it into a saucepan containing just enough boiling water to cover it. Add an onion and a carrot to the water and gently simmer the loaf for lj hours. Remove the cloth and serve the loaf hot, or leave it until it is cold, glaze it, and serve it with salad. The glaze for a cold turkey loaf is made by soaking 1 flat teaspoon of gelatine in 1 tablespoon of water, putting it in a saucepan with J teaspoon of meat or vegetable extract and another tablespoon of water, and heating until the gelatine is dissolved. Wipe the loaf with a cloth wrung out of hot water and brush the glaze over it.

Ducks Young mature ducks are for roasting, but old ducks can be made into a delicious dish by braising and simmering them. ■ Duckling and Green Peas Roast two ducklings for 1 hour at 325 degrees. Put a tablespoon of butter into a large saucepan, brown it slowly, and add 1 tablespoon of flour. Add 1 cup of water while stirring continually, add salt and pepper, and bring the sauce to the boil. Lay the ducklings in the sauce and add the desired quantity of green peas. Cover the pan and stew the birds gently for 20 minutes. Roast Duck Dress the duck, stuff it, dredge flour . over it, and put it into a roasting pan with dripping. Cover the breast with a buttered paper and roast the bird at 325 degrees, allowing 20 to 25 minutes per lib. Serve the birds with gravy made from the giblets and apple sauce. Stewed Duck 1 old duck Beef gravy or stock 2 onions, sliced Flour Sage Dripping Melt the dripping in a large saucepan and brown the duck and sliced onions. Pour off the fat, cover the bird with thinned beef gravy or stock, and add salt, pepper, and a sprig of sage. Cover the pan and simmer the bird gently for 1 to 1| hours. Strain off the liquor and thicken it with a little flour. Pour it back into the saucepan and bring it to boiling point.

Put the stewed duck on a deep serving dish with freshly cooked green peas round it.

Cooking an Old Duck

Prepare the duck and stuff it as for roasting. Melt some dripping in a saucepan and braise the duck for about I hour, turning it several times. Add a breakfast cup of cold water, cover the bird, and simmer it for 4 hours. Even a duck up to 5 years old is tender and appetising if cooked in this manner. Goslings and Geese Geese are cooked in the same ways as described for ducks, allowing 20 to 25 minutes’ roasting at 325 degrees for each lib. dressed weight. If the goose is old, steam it for 1 hour before roasting. Goslings are not usually stuffed but are roasted with a pat of seasoned butter in the body cavity. Goose gravy can be sharpened with a few drops of vinegar or lemon juice added just before it is poured into the gravy boat. Stuffings for Roast Chickens and Turkeys Herb Stuffing 2 cups of bread- Leaves from 2 sprigs crumbs of thyme 2oz. of chopped suet Salt and pepper 1 rasher of bacon, 1 teaspoon of grated cut small lemon rind 1 tablespoon of 1 egg, beaten chopped parsley Mix all the ingredients but the egg together and bind them with the beaten egg, adding a little milk if necessary. Sausage Meat Stuffing 1 cup of breadcrumbs Thyme or mixed . 1 cup of sausage , herbs to taste meat ' Salt and pepper 1 tablespoon of Milk or stock if chopped parsley needed 1 egg Giblet Stuffing 1 set of giblets Milk 2 minced onions Salt, pepper, and 2 cups of soaked . crushed herbs to .bread taste Soak stale bread in " milk’ and squeeze it dry before measuring it. Cut the cooked heart, liver, and gizzard into small pieces. Mix all the ingredients together. Stuffings for Ducks and Geese Apple Stuffing 2 cups of chopped 1 cup of soft breadapples crumbs 1 tablespoon of 2 tablespoons of dripchopped onion ping or butter Salt and pepper Water or stock Melt the dripping, fry the onion until it is lightly browned, then stir in the apples. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the breadcrumbs, salt and pepper, and sufficient water or stock to moisten the mixture. Sage-and-onion Stuffing 6 onions 3 tablespoons of IS tablespoons of breadcrumbs chopped sage ' Salt • and pepper 1% flat tablespoons of dripping Chop the onions, put them in a saucepan, cover them with water, and boil them until they are tender. Drain them well and stir in the breadcrumbs, sage, dripping, salt, and pepper.

(lb.) (lb.) White Leghorn and other light-breed fowls .. .. 4 31 Australorp and other heavybreed fowls .... 5i ■ 4i 41 Khaki Campbell ducks .. . 5 4 Pekin ducks .. .. 6 5 Turkeys .. ... 11 8 Geese .. ...... 12 9