TIPS FOR COOKING PASTURE RAISED CHICKEN
This isn't your store bought chicken! Learn why it's different and how to cook it.
Nutritionally, a pastured chicken is far superior to traditionally raised chicken. Chickens that are running around on pasture eating insects, worms, and forage have a great taste, but they also have muscle tone. And chickens with muscle tone are not as tender. But that does not mean you have to settle for tough meat! The answer is simple. Brining the chicken results in moist and tender meat. In addition to that, there are a few other tips that work well.
- As described above, brines work well. In fact this is a big reason store bought meat is so forgiving. They are packed in a saline solution. However, by buying pasture raised chicken and making your own brine, you get to choose the salt. So you can choose a healthy, mineral rich salt and not settle for processed table salt.
- Let the meat thaw and reach room temperature. This allows the meat to rest.
- Start with a HOT oven, (425) for 15-20 minutes, then push it down to 350 for the remaining cook time. Then let bird rest again for 10 minutes before carving to keep more of the juice inside the meat.
- Use a pressure cooker. This will reduce cook times as well as giving you moist, tender meat.
So how do you make those brines?
These recipes can be scaled up or back depending on how much brine you need. You want enough to cover the chicken.
Simple Brine:
- gallon of water
- 3/4 cups of Sea Salt or other salt of your liking
Buttermilk Brine:
- 1/2 gallon Buttermilk or Cream
- 7 Tbs of Sea Salt or other salt of your liking
RECIPES FOR CHICKEN LEGS, THIGHS, WINGS & BREASTS
To make these great recipes, head over to our online store and purchase your favorite cuts of our Pasture Raised Chicken!
Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken has the most amazing creamy garlic sauce with spinach and sun dried tomatoes.
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- 1½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 1 tsp. garlic powder or minced garlic clove
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- 1 cup spinach, chopped
- ½ cup sun dried tomatoes
In a large skillet add olive oil and cook the chicken on medium heat for 5-10 minutes on each side or until brown on each side and cooked until no longer pink in center. Remove chicken and set aside on a plate. Add the heavy cream, chicken broth, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and Parmesan cheese. Whisk over medium high heat until it starts to thicken. Add the spinach and sundried tomatoes and let it simmer until the spinach starts to wilt. Add the chicken back to the pan and serve over pasta if desired.
Chicken with Bacon and Mustard Sauce – an absolute comfort food!
- Chicken Breasts
- Chicken Broth
- Dijon mustard
- Paprika
- Pink Sea Salt
- Pepper
- Local Bacon
- Onion
- Olive Oil
Combine Dijon mustard, paprika, salt and pepper in a small bowl, to make a paste. Spread the paste evenly on both sides of chicken breasts. Set aside.
In a large skillet, cook chopped bacon on medium-high heat just until it starts to brown. Remove to a plate, leaving bacon fat in a skillet. To the same skillet, add chopped onion and cook in bacon fat until softened. Remove to the same plate, with bacon.
Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to the same, now empty, hot skillet. Cook chicken breast (with mustard paste on it), on medium heat, about 2 minutes on each side. The chicken will not be done as you will continue cooking it in the next step. Remove chicken to a plate.
To the same skillet, add 1 and 1/2 cups chicken broth, bring to boil, scraping the bottom of the pan. Add back bacon and onions, mix well. Add back the chicken breast, reduce the heat to low-medium and cook for about 15-20 minutes, turning chicken once, until chicken breast is fully cooked and no longer pink in the center.
Chicken Marinades
- Pick your favoite marinade from below and mix all the ingredients. (some require a blender or food processor)
- Place the chicken in a casserole dish with the marinade. Be sure to cover the dish with a lid or tinfoil. You may let this sit for a while if you choose.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 1 and a half hours.
We recommend fresh organic ingredients and any salt used, we recommend sea salt or pink Himalayan salt.
- 1 tsp. dried thyme
- 1/2 tsp. ground allspice
- 1 1/2 tbsp. Local honey
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. cayenne
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 tbsp. lime juice
- 2 limes approx. 4 tbsp. juice, juiced
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp. lemon zest
- 3 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tbsp. black peppercorns crushed
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 tsp. adobo sauce (or puree adobo peppers)
- 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp. onion powder
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lime juice
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1/4 cup raw local honey
- 1/3 cup stone ground mustard
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/3 cup lime juice (approx. 2-3 limes)
- 1/4 cup pineapple juice (no sugar added)
- 2 tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes, or more to taste
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup raw local honey
- 2 tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup raw local honey
- 2 tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- Ginger root
- Half an orange
Many people love chicken breast, and they are great, but the real nutrition powerhouses lie in the off cuts like necks, backs and even feet. They're basically a collagen gold mine, ready to ramp up your energy, aid in digestion and rebuild everything from joints to fingernails. So here's your chance to try your hand at using some different parts of the chicken! Order some backbones and feet from us and try this recipe! We usually have backbones and feet available at the farmers market too.
INGREDIENTS
Chicken neck and back
Chicken feet (optional)
1 small onion
2 cloves of garlic
2 to 3 celery stalks
2 to 4 carrots
1 to 2 leeks
2 tbs fresh parsley
1 tbs fresh basil
1 tsp turmeric
2 tbs Himalayan Pink Salt or as desired to taste
1 tsp black pepper
1 to 2 cups diced tomatoes
6 cups water
Small amount of Olive oil
DIRECTIONS
- Saute onions. celery, carrots and leeks in a small amount of olive oil. Add fresh chopped garlic. Be careful not the burn the garlic.
- Add a 1/2 tsp of salt and pinch of pepper.
- Add water, chicken neck, chicken back, chicken feet and tomatoes.
- Season with salt, pepper and turmeric (season to taste).
- Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 2 to 3 hours.
- Remove the neck, back and feet. Our backbones typically have a good bit of meat on them. We recommend cutting off the meat and leaving it in the stock.
- If desired, cool and freeze in small containers to use at another time or make rice and have chicken and rice soup! Delicious!
This recipe can also be put in a blender and used for casseroles, creamed soups or sauces!
To prepare chicken feet, it seems like a lot of time consuming but to get the right flavor and texture, it is necessary. This is a Korean dish, and usually in Korea, they like their chicken feet to be fire hot! But doesn’t meant you have to eat that way. Control the spicy amount to your taste so you can enjoy!
- 1 lb chicken feet
- 2 Tbs Pink Sea Salt
- ½ cup grass-fed milk
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 small chunks ginger
- 1 to 9 Thai chili (as many as you wish, it’s optional.)
- 1 Tbs gochujang, Korean red pepper paste
- 2 Tbs gochugaru, Korean red pepper flakes
- 1 Tbs soy sauce
- 1 Tbs mirin
- 1 Tbs oyster sauce
- 1 Tbs Local Honey
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- sesame oil
- sesame seeds
- chopped green onion
DIRECTIONS
- Cut chicken feet nails one by one using a pair of kitchen scissors.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine nail-less chicken feet, pink sea salt and milk. Give them a good massage for about 1 minute. Let it sit in same liquid for 10 to 20 minutes, then drain and wash in cold water at least 3 times.
- Bring water to boil in your steamer pot or a wok. Add clean chicken feet. Cover with a lid and steam for 1 hour or until chicken feet is fall-off-bone tender.
- Meanwhile make sauce by blending all ingredients for sauce in a hand blender. Set aside.
- Remove chicken feet from steamer or wok and toss in sauce while it’s still hot so it will absorb flavor well. Cover and let it cool completely in a refrigerator at least 2 hour to overnight.
- At this stage, you can choose either grill, broil or stove top cooking. Either way, all you need to do is cook them 4 to 5 minutes each side over medium high heat, (For stove top, use a little bit of oil) until they are reheated completely and have some char around edges.
- Transfer to a serving plate and garnish with sesame oil, sesame seeds and chopped green onion. Serve immediately and enjoy!