What's the gelatin-like stuff in the tray of a Costco roasted chicken? archived

It's all of that, and bones and marrow. It's aspic. If you've ever made chicken stock and found it Jell-o-like in the refrigerator the next day: that. If you heat it up, it melts. It's not gelatin-like, it's really gelatin -- the product of cooking bones, skin and cartilage -- and is what makes stock silky. My Scottish great-grandmother would say that it's good for what ails ya.

I try to keep myself from eating it straight out of the container. Otherwise I use it to flavor rice or veggies that I am sauteeing. Sometimes I save it in the fridge or freezer for future use.

I'll bet it's got a mountain of salt in it. Wasn't there a thread about how much salt they use to inject or marinade Costco Chix? That said, love them!

Best Regards,
Ron Carter

That stuff is better than chicken meat, I tell ya. I could give up meat if I could just have stuff like rice mixed with gelatin and chicken fat. Whenever I have a dish like arroz con pollo, I'll eat only a little bit of the meat. All I want is the smooshy rice.

From posts on another board so I can't say they are accurate plus some of those posters are from Canada so the ingredients may differ...

Costco ingredients:
"Ingredients: whole chicken,water,salt,sodium phosphate, modified food starch, sugar,carrageenan,soy lecithin,flavorings and xanthan gum.

"No Preservatives,MSG, Gluten, Artificial Flavors or colors.""

or:

"One KFC Drumstick = 310mg sodium
3 ozs of Costco rotisserie chicken = 460mg sodium

One KFC Drumstick = 7 Grams of fat 1.5 Grams saturated fat
3 ozs of Costco rotisserie chicken = 7 Grams of fat 2.5 Grams saturated fat

Many people are under the impression that Costco's rotisserie chicken is better for you than friend chicken when in fact it has more sodium, the same amount of fat and more saturated fat."

Well that gives one pause. All the while I'm thinking the Rot. Chx is a bit healthier! Just a bit...

Best Regards,
Ron Carter

Gross.

New studies suggest that salt isn't as bad as we thought. Most of us probably don't need to worry about it.

rcarter31 said:

"Many people are under the impression that Costco's rotisserie chicken is better for you than friend chicken when in fact it has more sodium, the same amount of fat and more saturated fat."

But I don't want to eat my chicken friend... :-D

More:

http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/nutrition-calories/food/costco/rotisserie-chicken/

Who are they kidding: Serving size is 3oz. I eat close to a half and that just "pickin'"

-Ron

You know, your neighbor's chicken from their backyard... sorry... )
-Ron

rcarter31 said:

You know, your neighbor's chicken from their backyard... sorry... )
-Ron

:-( I couldn't raise chickens for eating... I think I might grow too attached...

Tom_Reingold said:

That stuff is better than chicken meat, I tell ya. I could give up meat if I could just have stuff like rice mixed with gelatin and chicken fat. Whenever I have a dish like arroz con pollo, I'll eat only a little bit of the meat. All I want is the smooshy rice.

First I strip the skin off the chicken and then smoosh it around the gelatin/fat. Then I throw the rest of the chicken out (half kidding -- the stripped chicken usually sits in the fridge until it's ready to be discarded).

I think the next business somebody should open in Maplewood is a crispy skin store (oh, is that the sound of my arteries hardening???) )

Jamie, we're going to need some policing as this is degenerating into food porn!

-Ron Carter

I'm often at a loss with all that fatty dark meat left over after we eat the breasts. My husband doesn't like dark meat but can deal with it in soup or stew or pot pie -- but I need to render out all that fat.

(the brussels sprouts and tomatoes were delicious!)

I toss it on dog food

rcarter31 said:

Jamie, we're going to need some policing as this is degenerating into food porn!

-Ron Carter

) ) )

If you like crispy skin, lay some prosciutto slices on top of the next roast you make. I did this with a rib roast over the holidays, and the prosciutto ended up like crisp turkey skin, only from an alternate dimension where crisp turkey skin is even more mind-blowingly awesome. We put it in a bowl on the table and it got decimated.

Schmaltz! My cat's favorite treat (along with the chicken itself).

amie said:

I'm often at a loss with all that fatty dark meat left over after we eat the breasts. My husband doesn't like dark meat but can deal with it in soup or stew or pot pie -- but I need to render out all that fat.

I have pretty much given up on buying whole birds and now I roast 4 bone-in chicken breasts for more than enough meat to feed the family and have yummy leftovers.
I season them, then sear them skin side down in a skillet. I then flip them over and transfer the whole skillet to a hot oven to roast for 12-15 minutes. Done!

amie, I "pull" that dark meat (which makes it easy to separate the fat) and use the pieces in tacos/tortillas/"stir fries" or some other really quick dish. I have been known to freeze appropriate quantities for later use (within a week or two is best.) Nice to have the protein ready to go after I get home from work so I can concentrate my efforts on cutting fresh veggies, etc.