Not every deal is a good deal

 A few weeks ago, there was a meat sale at the local grocery store. I saw a 40-pound box of chicken breast for $58. How can you pass up on that deal? 

 So, I picked up a box and proceeded to vacuum pack them in sizes that we could just pull out to make one meal. 

 Planning ahead is always a good idea and I don’t know about most people but chicken is an economical meal. 

 To my surprise the breast were all large to Chernobyl size. One breast was large enough to feed a family of 4. Needless to say, they were tough and rubbery all the way through.

 Now I am not a chicken farmer, but I know when you raise chickens the longer they are on the ground the tougher the meat will get. My research has taught me you should use a chicken that is within 8-9 months old. 

 Most commercial chicken farmers use a cornish cross. This would be a cross between a cornish and a white rock bird. Those chickens are obsessed with feed and designed to reach butchering weight very quickly. 

 They are not good for a pet as they will get sick over time. You can expect the birds to dress (how much it will weigh after butchering and cleaning) at around 5 pounds.

 Now there are four ways to tenderize a chicken if you need to. 

 Obtain a meat tenderizing tool. These are generally wooden or metal mallets with a bumpy head that are used to pound meat to make it more tender. You can buy a meat tenderizing tool from any kitchen supply store. 

 Use a plain yogurt or buttermilk marinade. Yogurt and buttermilk contain enzymes and acids that work together to break down the proteins in chicken meat, causing it to become more tender. 

 That’s why so many cooks know that soaking chicken in yogurt or buttermilk overnight before frying chicken results in the very best fried chicken imaginable. 

 You can use other brines or marinades to help with this. 

 Just like a steak, pineapple juice, vinegar, or wine all have acids that will soft the meat. Don’t leave these to marinade overnight as they will cause the meat to be mushy. 

 The last method is using a crockpot and cooking low and slow to produce a shredded chicken product for soups or tacos.

 Sharon cooked on Friday and found this recipe on the bottle of sauce her parents sent from Hawaii. I don’t know if you can buy it on the mainland, but it was so good I am searching the internet to find another bottle.

Tropical Asian BBQ chickenIngredients

2 pound of chicken breast

Sauce

¾ cup ketchup

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons Lee & Perrins Worcestershire sauce

4 tbsp. shoyu seasoned rice wine vinegar

½ cup brown sugar

½ cup guava puree

¼ cup mango puree

1 tbsp. liquid smoke with ¾ cup water