W. Hilditch
Active member
Everyone reading this knows how to cook a chicken in a pot, right? Probably not. First, clean the chicken. Remove the plastic bags and pieces from the neck and main cavities and rinse inside & out. Clean out all you can with your finger nails pulling loose pieces out of the cavity. Very important, clean out any blood along the backbone. There are two large pockets of blood toward the rear of the backbone that are covered with a membranes. Blood will leave the broth with a tart taste. Rinse well.
Choose a pot where the chicken will fit snuggly and you will be able to cover it with water with room to spare above. Todays chickens will probably need larger than a #8 Dutch oven which are normally 4 quarts. Add some water, then the chicken, then cover with water and add two or three tsp salt. You can always add more salt later.
Cover and bring to a boil. After boiling for a few minutes without the cover skim any foam off the top. Then cover, & turn the heat down. You want a slow rolling boil. If the top is spitting or clanging the heat is too high. A little steam release is what you want. Check periodically to see that the chicken is still covered in water with a rolling boil. Add water if required.
This will take a few hours. When the meat is falling off the bones use a slotted scoop and remove everything you can from the pot but the broth. Add all other ingredients/spices for the recipe you are making & bring back to the rolling boil. When the chicken cools separate the meat from the skin & bones and return the meat to the pot, and any bones you wish. Note: the meat has almost no flavor at this point. All the flavor from the meat and the bones is in the broth. Adjust salt and spices & cook until done. Taste. Salt? Serve.
Hilditch
Choose a pot where the chicken will fit snuggly and you will be able to cover it with water with room to spare above. Todays chickens will probably need larger than a #8 Dutch oven which are normally 4 quarts. Add some water, then the chicken, then cover with water and add two or three tsp salt. You can always add more salt later.
Cover and bring to a boil. After boiling for a few minutes without the cover skim any foam off the top. Then cover, & turn the heat down. You want a slow rolling boil. If the top is spitting or clanging the heat is too high. A little steam release is what you want. Check periodically to see that the chicken is still covered in water with a rolling boil. Add water if required.
This will take a few hours. When the meat is falling off the bones use a slotted scoop and remove everything you can from the pot but the broth. Add all other ingredients/spices for the recipe you are making & bring back to the rolling boil. When the chicken cools separate the meat from the skin & bones and return the meat to the pot, and any bones you wish. Note: the meat has almost no flavor at this point. All the flavor from the meat and the bones is in the broth. Adjust salt and spices & cook until done. Taste. Salt? Serve.
Hilditch