THE SEMI-MONTHLY MACAZINE SECTION
b HOW TO CHOOSE
YOUR HOLIDAY POULTRY
BY ANNA BIILD STEWART
ILLUSTRATIONS FR.OM PHOTOGRAPHS
ill
Fint,
putt back the
eyelids
IIIK THtKEY is the bird for the hol
iday season, as typical of it as the
eagle is of the Fourth of July. In
the old country the roast goose has
always been the Christmas dish, for
the turkev is pure American. When
we sit down, therefore, to our Christ
mas dinner we may excuse
our appetites on the score
of patriotism. Turkey pa
triotism in these days, how
ever, is apt to be an ex
pensive virtue. Some of
us may have to "make be
lieve" with iv fat chicken.
Others may .wish to prove
devotion to historical tra
dition by roasting a goose;
or we may even show orig
inality and a disregard for
the convenience of the
carver bv selecting a duck.
Hut the chances are that our choice for Christmas
dinner will fall on turkey.
Having decided, the next thing to do is to select
our bird. We are paying well for it, so we want
the very best obtainable. What are the rules by
which to judge? How can the young or inexperi
enced buyer, without relying solely upon the word
of the dealer, know young and fresh poultry from
I he old or long killed?
There is less likelihood of cold storage turkey
being sold than perhaps any other variety of poul
try. The old-fashioned plan of raising turkeys
under the natural conditions has been superseded
by the advanced methods of modern science, worked
nut with the aim of insuring a more even market
for the product. As a rule, turkeys are marketed
practically full grown, not young like spring chick
ens. They are seldom kept over, nor is the market
often overstocked.
f one wishes a turkey out of season, then a stor
age bird is better than one freshly killed. The qual
ity of the meat of a live turkey begins to deteriorate
about March, while if the frozen product has been
properly fed, slaughtered, bled, packed and stored,
there is no appreciable loss of tenderness or tlavor
within six months.
In some markets, it is possible to buy all kinds of
fowl alive; this guarantees the age and freshness of
tho meat. Hut remember that after the birds have
been killed, they should be hung in a cool, draughty
place for from twenty-four to forty-eight hours, as
the flavor improves. If used at once, the taste is
unsavory and the meat is invariably tough.
People who live in small towns or who have a
back yard where they can keep poultry cooped up
and fed on cereal grain for a few days before kill
ing, will be assured of delicate, tender and sweet
savored flesh. The kind of feed absolutely deter
mines tho character of the meat. Tho cleaner the
diet, the more delicate the flavor of the meat will be.
Milk-fed poultry is
the most popular.
This means that the
fowls are given milk
to drink instead of
water, and are fed
with a mash of corn
meal mixed with
milk. Tho color of
tho corn determines
the color of the skin,
yellow corn m e a 1
making yellow skin
and white corn mak
ing white skin. Many
consider that a yel
low skin denotes a
richer meat.
In choosing poul
try, first pull back
the eyelids and examine the pupils of the eye-.
All freshly killed birds have full, bright eyes and
moist, soft, limber feet. If stale, the eyes be
come dry and sunken, and the feet and leirs st i IV.
When too stale for use. parts or all of the body
darken, sometimes turning green. Incomplete re
moval of blood shows in red dots over the thighs
and wings, in small veins in the wing
and breast and in large veins in the
neck. This blood, as well as clots formed
by bruises, should be removed by soak
ing in cold salt water; but, if possible,
buy poultry that has been properly bled
at the start. It tastes better. The neck
is the first place to discolor, becoming
red, purplo and at last green, as age
progresses. A bluish or greenish look
around tho veins indicates decay. Hlu
ish or shiny skin is another sign of
danger. If there is any doubt about a.
The breast bone should bend easily
fowl already bought, pour hot water
on the inside, after drawing. If a dis
agreeable odor results, do not use the
fowl under any consideration.
Having made sure by bright eyes,
supple feet and clear skin that the bird
is freshly killed, the next thing to find
out is its age. A young fowl has pin
feathers, and a cartilaginous end to
the breast bone. Tho latter should bend
easily from side to side, and feel like
tho gristle of the ear. An old fowl has
long hairs and a hard breast bone. Tho
legs of young turkeys are smooth and dark;
other kinds of poultry are better with light-colored
legs. Old turkeys and chickens have legs
with scales that are thick and rough. Tho head of
a pin can be pressed easily into tho breast-skin of a
young turkey, goose, duck, chicken or other fowl.
If tender, pressure of tho finger under the breast
bono or wing will break the skin, and tho joints will
yield readily when tho wing is turned back. Young
Remove the head, taring the neclr for the giblet sauce
The chances are that our choice for Christmas dinner
will fall on turkey
poultry in the hc-t condition will hae a thin ten
tier skin, a fat breast and a thick body.
In general, these are the rules that tit' tho selection
of all kinds of poultry. There are, however, cer
tain useful suggestions applying to the choice of
particular kinds of fowls.
In choosing a turkey for a small family, get a
young hen if possible, for it will be plumper and
generally fatter than a cock of the same age. A
young gobbler is a better selection if a larger bird
is desired. An old turkey is suitable only for boiling
and boning. A very large turkey, even though young,
is more apt to be tough than one of medium si.e.
Press across tho breast of a turkey to see if the
wish bone is pliable, and make sure of a soft gristly
hone where the brea.-t joins the stomach. I'Yoquontly ,
the breast hone of a turkey is out of shape, due to
roosting on a narrow perch. If extremely crooked,
the quantity of flesh on one side of the breast will
be le-sened, but there will he no injury in quality,
(let a straight breast bone if possible, in order to
obtain the greatest amount of white meat. Tho bird
is old if the breast bone is hard and covered wilh
lough-looking, thick, soft fal skin, or if tho flesh i
purplish where il shows on the legs and back, under
the skin.
Tho spring chicken or broiler is distinguished from
the full grown lieu or fowl, as tho dealers term il,
just as a young turkey is judged. Young chickens
l.ae tender skin, light, fresh colored hills, smooth red
combs and smooth feet. The spurs of a cockerel
are soft, short and loose.
When old they become
firm and fixed. At tho age
of a year, a chicken's breast
bone hardens and the bird
pnsses out of tho broiler
class.
A broiler should weigh
from one to one and a half
pounds. A fowl or pullet
for roasting should of
course ho larger and should
have plump, fat, white
flesh that will mash on the
breast under the flnecr. A
rooster is good only for soup. Never take a coarse,
long legged, thin breasted chicken because it is heav
ier. There will be more breast meat and less bone
in the plump, full breasted, partridge shaped fowl,
which will also be juicy, lino grained and of good
flavor. Haired Plymouth Hocks and Hralunas make
especially fine roasting chickens, and these varieties
aro much used for the best capons.
There is nothing better in poultry than tho capon.
Tho body is larger,
taller, and plumper
I ban thai of tho com
mon fowl. Tho head
is small for tho size
of the body, the
comb pule, short and
withered, and the
neck feathers uuusu
ully long. A thick
win on each side of
the breast may usu
ally be seen, running
into a hard, fat Mom
ach. If very young
tho logs will be
smooth and the spurs
short, thick and soft.
Tho capon commands
(ConCnuaJ on Page li)
The legs of voung turkeys are
smooth and dark
Close the opening at the rump with long stitches