Process Matters

To quote the folks at Cooks Illustrated "Over the years at Cooks Illustrated we have found that process matters, that when compared side by side, one method is actually better than another...." and Friday I realized just how true this is. I had a busy morning as it was the day to take the meat birds to Roberto for processing. A friend told me about him, he processes chickens cheaper than the areas small operations USDA place, so off I went. I arrived with my 8 birds and found Roberto. The small facility he processes in was very clean and there was no odor, so I felt comfortable leaving my birds. Now I was prepared to return in a couple of hours with cooler and ice but Roberto said he'd be done in 1/2 hour so I quickly went to the store to get my ice! It wasn't until I got home and was rinsing and preparing the poultry for the freezer that I realized just how valuable Roberto is! He takes care of each bird individually even hand plucking them. This means my birds are tender and unbruised as they haven't been beaten by a commercial plucker. Their skin is soft and undamaged, and I understood why in part our Turkey last Thanksgiving was so deliciously tender...Roberto had been a a part of the process...

We had grilled chicken on Friday night and it was absolutely delicious so naturally I'm already looking forward to this years turkey ( Blue Slate Heritage breed raised by one of my friends) and I'm thankful Roberto will be part of the process...