Eating chicken intentionally. What exactly does that mean?
This is a topic I’ve been wanting to share about for a while. Especially with those that are members of my menu plan on a budget to explain why there aren’t many chicken recipes included.
Don’t get me wrong, there are chicken recipes included such as these adobo chicken tacos that I may share later this week 😉
However, I’m speaking more about all of those wonderful looking chicken breast recipes that we’re highly encouraged to fit into our diet.
Today, chicken is one of the cheapest cuts of meat you can buy at the grocery store. You can buy 18 packs of drumsticks, thighs, or even giant bags of frozen breasts all under $6.00. What a bargain, right?
Since it’s promoted as the best, low fat, source of protein, and can be purchased at such cheap prices, many households eat chicken most days of the week.
Because of this approach in eating and that it’s highly promoted as a “healthy” meat, these chickens are raised in places like this scattered all throughout our nation.
These chickens are housed and raised in this environment for five weeks at a time. They eat a grain diet made up of soy (learn the dangers here) and has been proven to have traces of arsenic.
Besides the nutritional differences in locally raised versus industrially raised chicken, my reasoning for feeding my family locally raised, organic, and home raised chicken is about stewardship.
Many people that have been following my website for awhile, know that I raise my own chickens for eggs and meat. I started raising my own chickens because it was a cheaper alternative than buying locally raised or organic chicken meat at the grocery store. It was an economic solution to providing the best meat for my family.
The one thing that I didn’t realize I would discover is the humanity level in raising chickens.
Chickens are sweet animals. Yes, they are a bit dumb but brilliant at the same time. Now that my husband has been the key caretaker of the chickens since Little Mama was born, they trust him.
They know he’s the hand that feeds them, so they don’t peck at him like they used to. They wiggle their rumps and come flocking to him as soon as they hear our backdoor open. They follow him at his feet as he swings the coop door open to bring in their feed and fresh water for the day.
As he checks their nesting boxes, they allow him to gently prop up their sitting booties to check for freshly laid eggs.
They’re smart, docile, and gentle. They’re a living animal.
Today, the majority of us live in urban areas and are dependent upon other people for our food. We are unintentionally ignorant to how food makes it to our dinner table.
I know, most people are now aware of buying local and the importance of knowing where our food comes from, but, are we really. Are we making the changes necessary to create change?
I feel that in order to truly understand what eating chicken intentionally means, we need to get closer to this.
It takes a lot of work to raise a chicken in the way God intended. To continually check on them, feed them, and tend to them when they’re sick can take approximately 12-16 weeks of hard work.
This hard work is both about promoting sustainability and ensuring the nutritional value in the meat and fat itself.
When you spend this kind of time, commitment, or money it’s easier to correlate the value with the meat and start to think about it responsibly and intentionally – it becomes quite apparent that each chicken only contains
- 2 legs
- 2 thighs
- 2 wings
- 2 drumettes (part of the wing)
- 2 breasts
- backbone (stock)
- wing tips (stock)
- 2 feet (stock)
That’s it.
Eating Chicken Intentionally
At the very definition, eating chicken intentionally is about being responsible about how much of it that we eat.
For me, the best thing that has saved my family money has been creating my menu plan on a budget. I’ve been able to stretch meat farther than I could have ever imagined.
These are my techniques to eating chicken intentionally that I have been teaching others.
- Chicken is going to cost money, however, it can be stretched to 2-3 meals which then becomes economical.
- Chicken should mostly start with stock. The nutritional value in it alone, will save us money in other areas. Such as frequent trips to the doctor for illness’s, especially during the wintertime.
- Buying local is best, but organic is also okay. I purchase organic drumsticks and thighs from Trader Joes or Costco. Not on a frequent basis.
- There is much more flavor and moisture in dark meat with bones in – It’s also more economical to buy organic.
It’s been heart warming to hear from families using my menuplan how this new approach of eating chicken intentionally makes them feel aware, responsible, and genuinely happy knowing they’re taking part in sustainability and feeding their families the best quality meats within their budgets.
Sure, we don’t get to eat a lot of grilled chicken breasts or 20 piece wing servings but our families are being nourished and at the same time we’re making lifestyle changes creating an inner peace that we are tending to God’s animals in the way he intended and at the same time are being responsible to this Earth that we were called to steward.
Have you considered raising chickens for meat? Spring time is here and the perfect time to order chicks. If you’re interested in learning, check out my series on urban chicken keeping.
Love this post, Diana… And, I couldn’t agree more. While I don’t have the opportunity to raise chickens at my house, I have really started to pay attention to getting to know the farmers at our local farmer’s market. I am especially fond of two stands where I buy almost all of my meat and poultry now… Both have photos of the animals and how they are raised on the farm, and you can just tell, through their photos and the way they talk about the animals, that they really care for them. When you change your mindset, it’s amazing how many meals you can get out of a single roast chicken… And, it’s also amazing how much more you appreciate it!
I completely agree 😀 Thanks for stopping by, Jen!!
We live in a apartment making ends meet. I buy even though it is more chicken that has no added hormones, additives, antibiotic free and when I can free range whas. But I have deficiencies, and Mcs and pernicious anemia. I am under weight but I don’t like dark meat. Alot of allergies.
I have 11 chickens right now, for eggs (6 of them at laying age). I really want to raise meat birds, just trying to get my family on board!
I totally agree with you about chicken. My co-worker raises chickens as a hobby. I purchase my eggs from her and I purchase organic chicken meat from a local farmer.
Love this post. Thanks for sharing.
Velva
My web site was typed incorrectly- it was www. Tomatoesonthevine-Velva.blogspot.com
Sorry.
Thanks, Velva!
What a great blog posting! I just watched the documentary called “Fresh” last night too! (: I want my husband to watch it with me. It’s SO amazing and logical how God designed farming to work so well. But them people had to get big ideas and ruin everything creating big problems, when their real problem was not wanting better ways but the love of money, which is the root of all evil.
I am very happy having switched to only locally raised beef, chicken and pork since starting Diana’s AMAZING menu plan! We were already eating locally raised ground beef, but we bought and would use 6 lbs a week, plus 4 dozen local farm eggs. I wanted to buy locally raised chicken but felt it was too expensive. But Diana has changed that all for us. We buy other beef and pork cuts now and sometimes whole chicken other times bags of legs. And with all the veggies and other healthy food, the meat and poultry REALLY go far!! Which is good, cuz my bunnies (children) are ALWAYS hungry! But we eat like the French and don’t usually snack. An occasional la gouter is all. Nourish our bodies well at meal time and hydrate of course, but it’s ok to feel hungry between meals. (: It means the next meal will taste that much better. Thank you to all local farmers and homesteaders who grow and raise responsibly, the way God intended.
*them people haha! I meant THEN, people….
<3 This!! Thanks, Alicia!
Barry is starting on my chicken coop on Saturday. 🙂
That’s great, Stacy!! We’ll be ordering more chicks soon 😀
Great article Diana.
Hey, thanks for writing this! I was going to mention, you should check out the co-op! They have everything from conventional to completely grass-fed and non-GMO! I love it. 🙂 I don’t order ever cycle, but it’s really nice to support local farmers who treat their animals and bodies well also! http://iowafood.coop/?doing_wp_cron=1364912290.8069510459899902343750
Jasanna, yes, I usually forget about the coop! Thanks for sharing that with us 😀
Will you share that recipe for the delicious looking soup in this post? Oh my. I want that for dinner tonight!
Wendy, I’ll share it this week 😉
Amen!
Oh, I so agree with you. I can’t believe the amount of boneless, skinless chicken breasts I consumed before I switched to a better way of eating…and how much was missing by leaving out legs and thighs and all the (dark) meat that actually has flavor! 🙂 Seeing documentaries about how chickens in the coop houses are raised just broke my heart. We just joined a local chicken CSA this year that I’m really excited about as we’re not in a place where we can have our own chickens yet. Hopefully more and more people will get into backyard chickens! 🙂
That’s great that you joined a chicken CSA! I like that 😀 I wish there were more farmers that did something like that.
We raise our own pork, beef and lamb but haven’t tried chicken yet. We don’t eat it often, but when we do it’s either from a somewhat local farm or Trader Joe’s organic. I cringe a little at $16 for a whole bird, but my family of 3 gets at least 3 meals plus stock from it, so looking at it that way doesn’t seem so bad.
I hope more people will join the local food movement and dethrone the industry giants. Thanks for sharing!
I cringe to, Kelly! Especially when you’re on a tight budget. What I do is buy organic chicken legs instead of an entire bird. Usually, when I want to make stock so it’s not every week. It’s the best I can do right now since I wasn’t able to raise my own last year.
Even though we live way out in the country, we are in an apartment and so can’t raise our own chickens. Despite the fact that I am SO not an animal-loving type of girl, I look forward to the day when we can have our own chickens. In the meantime, I’m incredibly blessed to be able to buy our fresh eggs and milk from one neighbour and our meat chickens from another neighbour. Most years I like to buy 20 large chickens to get us through the year, but this year I was only able to afford 10. That means that once a month or so I roast a large chicken, then after dinner I pick off and dice all the meat, freeze it in baggies and that’s our chicken for the rest of the month. So we only eat chicken less than once a week, but I’m okay with that. I treasure those chickens in my freezer 🙂 We actually eat more beef because we also buy a quarter cow from a local farm every year.
The meat we buy isn’t organic, it’s fed with traditional feed that probably contains corn or soy. But at this point, I’m thankful that we’re doing what we can to avoid buying chicken that never had a breath of outside air or saw the sun, or cows that lived their entire lives up to their knees in their own manure. Someday I will raise my own!
I love your contentment, Emily! I wasn’t able to raise chickens last year since I had my baby girl. So, I had to do the best that I could. I bought about 6 or so from a local Amish farmer and have been buying from Trader Joes as well. I’m sure with soy, but it’s the best I can do. I wouldn’t feel bad at all that your meat is not organic 😉 Yes, we were eating more pork for awhile because our beef hadn’t come in. Now that we have our half side, we’ve been eating more beef as well. That with a ton of beans 😉
Hi,
I enjoy your website regarding chickens and eggs. Here in Canada even if you have land we are not allowed to keep chickens at all. I grow all my foods and also have land to keep chickens but cant keep them because it is bylaw of the city. . I buy my chickens from Halal store whereby all the blood has been has been removed after killing the animal. Blood is taken out in order to protect yourself from any diseases from the blood. As blood carries all the diseases so it is better that way.
Thanks for sending and hope you will keep sending.
almas
almas- I’m Canadian, too and wanted to mention that keeping urban chickens is the jurisdiction of municipalities. The bylaws will vary widely throughout a province let along throughout the country. There are many places that allow chickens in Canada- usually with a limitation of 3-4 hens, no roosters in towns/cities.
Diana- love this post. I started buying locally & humanely raised meat several years ago and found a wonderful butcher in a nearby town with similar values to mine. All of the meat is hormone and antibiotic free and sourced locally. I had the opportunity to have a lengthy discussion with him about local food and he also explained that not only does he inspect all of his supply farms but the abattoirs as well to ensure humane treatment- quite impressive for a butcher. However, because of cost I often would only buy whole chicken and use it much as you do- every bit of it. I may have been motivated by the cost and eliminating waste but it made me think about the living chicken as a whole. I know that if you buy a pack of chicken breasts that all the other parts do get completely used but in such a industrial manner- mechanically separated, stirred into a slurry and form into nuggets- seems so demeaning to the living being that it once was. I usually only buy whole and put the entire bird to good use- feeding us wholly.
I have recently found an even closer local source, a couple miles down the road- a farm store on an actual farm that raises their own chicken, beef and eggs and sells local milk, pork, maple syrup, honey and animal/bird feed (even that is from local small farms). I love it- I speak directly with the owners on their farm, pet their dog and know my neighbours that help me to feed my family well. One caveat (and I’ll take it) is that they are out of chicken b/c they sold out- I will have to wait several weeks before they’re new flock is ready. I prefer that to an endless supply of quickly-produced chickens that never scratch the ground.
As a note, these awesome farmers are selling their beef for the same price (sometimes cheaper) than our supermarket and definitely their free range eggs are cheaper. However, that’s at regular price, supermarket sales are cheaper but I expect my choice for local, humane and chemical free food to cost more.
Thanks for sharing!
We too rarely have chicken breasts in our house. Unfortunately our city does not allow for urban chicken keeping, or we would raise what we could, but we do purchase whole chickens from a local farmer. It is what I call an investment-a whole chicken is $15+ each! Hopefully soon we can find some land and start raising our own meat. We are on a tight budget as well, so for now, we typically skip the roasted chicken dinner and I cook the chickens whole, shred them and freeze them in meal-sized portions and then make stock with the carcass. We love chicken as a family, but for now we usually use shredded meat in meals–I think I can get 4-6 meals from one chicken now, plus the stocks from the bones. So for us $15 is well worth the investment, as it can stretch a little ways! I do occasionally splurge and buy chicken breasts from our local coop to make my kids homemade chicken strips! 😉
Diana,
Ever since reading your article, I am feeling rather piggie-ish for all that we consume. It is rather humbling all that goes into responsibly raising and growing animals for food. Thank you for this perspective! We have slowed down on our meat/poultry consumption since your menu plan. No more wavering between heavy on the carbs or heavy on the meat/poultry. We have loved the salads so much, we usually have it once or twice on the weekends as well. When we make pizza, it’s just one 14″ pizza for the 6 of us and we have a big salad with vinaigrette first. I’m just excited for starting gardening this year. The children will so enjoy caring and picking their own produce! When you are the one to take the time and care, it means so much more.
Alisha
We, too, avoid eating chicken. But on the other hand we avoid eating meat in general. Don’t get me wrong we are not vegetarian, but there are so many other options for cheap, easy and tasty protein sources. We eat some sort of meat about every 4-5 days, which means I can afford pasture raised cows and chickens. (Although we almost never eat beef) We also roast a whole chicken about once a month and then save the leftover bits for a second or third meal, like enchiladas, and simmer the carcass for stock. But I find we feel so much better to eat mostly veges and whole grains; and its SO much better for the environment.
Wonderful post filled with respect for life. Chickens are beautiful and amazing birds.
Now I understand why my aunt’s chickens pecked me when Auntie sent me out to gather eggs. I was a visiting stranger. I apologize to those ladies, decades too late.
Great reminders! We have recently been trying to buy (and eat) less chicken breasts and instead buy whole chickens or packages of thighs. Unfortunately, we can’t afford to buy it locally, but thank goodness for Trader Joe’s.