Can I use chicken meat that's been simmering 18 hours?

[Snow Cherries]

I'm VERY new to TF and one of my first "projects" is making chicken stock. I've had a whole chicken simmering for the past 18 hours and I'm getting ready to strain it all and portion up the stock. I kind of combined a few different recipes and I'm confused about whether or not the chicken meat is usable. A couple of the recipes simply say to "strain out the solids and discard," but the one in NT talks about using the chicken meat. I've boiled chicken meat before (just to cook it quickly and then shred it for a casserole or something) and the idea of cooking chicken in water for so long makes me think it would be really tough? Maybe I should have removed the meat after only an hour or so and returned the bones etc. to the pot?

Can anyone help? I don't want to waste perfectly good meat!

[dakotablue]

I don't know about the meat

I know when I make broth I boil just bones or carcass with veggies for a long time and throw everything but the water out. Then add the meat and soup veggies we eat in.

[amcal]

There's no reason you can't but, it might be on the tough side.

Is there a reason you made stock out of the whole chicken?

Personally, I prefer to roast the chicken, strip off the meat and then make stock from the carcass. That way the meat isn't wasted if it does get tough while simmering.

[JamieCatheryn]

That does sound like a waste, flavorless tough meat now probably. I generally roast the chicken, serve the meat, then simmer what's left in water with a bit of red wine vinegar. It's all a learning experience though.

[CarrieMF]

taste the meat & see if it's tough. We've used it. Though I don't simmer for 18 hours, usually just 4-5.

[Snow Cherries]

Thanks for the replies! I ended up trying a bit and it was like rubber. So I saved a bit for the cat and threw the rest out. About an hour after I started it, I thought I should have just roasted the chicken and used the bones for the stock. But I was following a recipe (well, a couple different recipes) and it said to use the whole chicken. I really don't know why, now that I've thought about it.

Next time, I'll be roasting the chicken first. Thanks!

[AJP]

If you don't want to roast it first to get usable meat, you can still throw the whole chicken in to boil and then after a couple of hours take the meat off and return the bones to the stock to continue simmering. I find that after about 2 hours of simmering, the meat pulls off very easily in large pieces that are tender and still have chicken flavor, and if you've put onions, celery, carrots, etc. in the water the meat will have absorbed some of that flavor. You can then salt to taste and use it for anything (chicken salad, tacos, casseroles, whatever). I think I've let it go as long as 3 hours before pulling out the meat with acceptable results, but much longer than that leaches a lot of flavor out of the meat.

[weliveintheforest]

The recipe in Nourishing Traditions calls for the chicken whole, and I tried it. I used the meat and it was bland but not terrible. Now I always do a roast chicken and just use the carcass.

[raksmama]

Nourishing Traditions does call for the meat that has been used to make stock with in it's the chicken recipes. I also found that makes chicken way too over cooked. I also now just cook the chicken for about 2 hours,take the meat off the bones, put the bones back in and then continue simmering them in the stock.

Amcal, I was wondering the broth made using the meat from roasted chicken has the same nutritional value?

[JMJ]

I sometimes do that and then throw the meat into soups.

[redvlagrl]

I also just use bones. I collect them and put them in the freezer until there are enough to make a good stock.

if you want to use a whole bird then try and buy 'boilers' which are old chickens no good for eating. They are cheaper. You can also buy meat hens.