Supermarket chickens put to the taste test to find roast with the most
IT’S AUSTRALIA’S favourite meat, but when it comes to the humble roast chook, which bird is best? We put the most readily available free-range chickens to the test to see which offers a roast with the most
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IT IS ONE of life’s simple, timeless, boundless pleasures.
Immune to trends, its pan-generational charms provide solace in times of need, comfort in times of change, nourishing sustenance even when times are tough and last-meal status when time’s up.
It is, of course, the humble roast chook.
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Versatile, easy-to-master and easy-to-please, a single roast chicken provides the lot: succulent white meat to be eaten with knife and fork, robust drumsticks to pick up with your hands; a wishbone for the future and sandwiches for tomorrow and a carcass for stock to make the best soup. It’s no wonder it’s Australia’s favourite meat — and not just when cooking at home.
“Chicken is still the number one protein for the restaurant consumer,” says chef Paul Wilson, who serves 250 roast chickens a week at his Prahran restaurant Wilson + Market.
“It’s easy, it’s comfortable, it’s comforting. It’s familiar. It gives a sense of value, sense of fulfilment. Chicken relaxes you, in a restaurant environment. If you order chicken, you won’t be challenged. That’s an appeal.”
Paul roasts two types of chicken at the restaurant: the Queen of the birds, the slow-growing, heritage breed Sommerlad and the more accessible Milawa that flies out of the kitchen.
“It’s important for us to communicate the background story, the husbandry, to show our commitment to ethical farming, and I suppose, good food,” he says.
“I’ve always tried to do chicken well through my career, to take a simple product and elevate it to gastronomic level.”
Paul says his key considerations for choosing the chicken to serve in the restaurant included a commitment to ethical, local farming. The Milawa free range Ross chicken is an excellent product — order it at Wilson + Market to be converted — but most people will pick up a chicken to roast from the supermarket, or chook shop at a push.
Partly driven by chefs such as Paul raising awareness of food issues that include ethical farming, consumers are increasingly looking to make similar decisions when doing the weekly shop. But which bird to choose? We put the most readily available free-range chickens to the test to see which, if any, offer a roast with the most.
THE BIRDS
Readily available from the major supermarkets and markets, all birds were bought from retail outlets at the same time. They had comparable use-by dates (thus a similar packaging age) and were of comparable size. All chickens for consideration were accredited free range, with the exception of La Ionica, which are processed chemical free. The Bare Bird is also 100 per cent antibiotic free. They range in price from $5.50 to $10.70 per kg*
THE METHOD
All chickens (1.7kg) were brought up to room temperature for 45mins. They were then washed and patted dry. Each bird was rubbed with olive oil (70ml) and seasoned with salt (6g) and pepper (2g).
They were roasted by Wilson + Market head chef Ryan Spurrell in a 220C oven for 20 mins which was then reduced to 170C for a further 25 mins. Out of the oven they were rested for 20 mins, before being blasted in a hot oven to reheat for 5mins before each was carved and presented for tasting.
THE TASTING
Chickens were assessed on their appearance, aroma, texture, mouthfeel and flavour, and scored out of 10 for each for a total score out of 50. Each bird was blind tasted separately, with judges keeping their notes and thoughts confidential until the end of the tasting. After all scoring sheets had been collected, the names of each sample were revealed.
THE JUDGES
A six-person judging panel was made up of Wilson + Market founder/executive chef Paul Wilson; butcher and co-owner of Meatsmith Troy Wheeler; Zenon Misko from the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival; keen home cook and mum of three roast chicken aficionados Simone Norris; Herald Sun’s Megan Miller and Dan Stock.
THE BENCHMARK
Paul says most chickens are produced to appeal to the average consumer.
“We’re looking for a lovely juicy simply tasting chicken. It should be moist, succulent, tender, and probably won’t have a big poultry flavour. It should have a crisp skin from high fat content.”
THE RESULTS
SAMPLE 1 — The Bare Bird, available at Coles, $8.50/kg
Overall score: 33.7/50
Fed a vegetarian diet and reared without antibiotics, The Bare Bird is a new brand from Hazeldenes launched in response to concerns about antibiotic resistance in the food chain.
Judges praised the light golden, crisp skin and neutral aroma, but many found the texture chalky and grainy and dry in parts.
SAMPLE 2 — Bannockburn free range, available at chicken shops, $10.70/kg
Overall score 39.7/50 — Winner
This was the clear winner, with half the panel awarding it their highest score. Judges noted its meat with great flavour that was creamy, moist and tender but still firm, with tasty, crisp skin. A rich aroma, and a thicker layer of fat under the skin helped win the panel over.
SAMPLE 3 — Willowton free range, available at Aldi, $5.99/kg
Overall score: 37.8/50 — second place (equal)
The Aldi chicken fared well, with judges praising its appearance — good skin colour, a consistent white — and firm but juicy texture. Soft and gelatinous in parts, a slightly chalky mouthfeel in others, its “darker and richer characteristics” saw it score highly for taste by a few judges.
One commented: “This would be great the second day, in sandwiches.”
SAMPLE 4 — La Ionica processed chemical free, available at chicken shops, $6.40/kg
Overall score: 35.8/50
Winning points for being the juiciest sample, judges noted the supreme tenderness and succulence of this bird. That tenderness, for some, was too cushiony soft and borderline mushy, though its clean flavour and neutral aroma was praised.
SAMPLE 5 — Macro free range, available at Woolworths $5.50/kg
Overall score: 37.8/50 — second place (equal)
Woolworths’ Macro-range chook was the topscored chicken for two of our judges, who noted its bold flavour, firm texture and light golden skin. With a dense mouthfeel and full-flavoured meat, it is, one judge noted, “a proper old-school roast that smells and tastes of chicken”.
OVERALL
There was little overall difference between of the samples, with each of the chickens presenting well — varying shades of golden skin, meat that was tender and clean-tasting, with no noticeable bleach aromas.
While Bannockburn scored highest, it is also the most expensive, and the antibiotic-free farming of the Bare Bird should be applauded.
“They were all of a surprisingly good quality, none stood out for being bad,” Paul says. “You’d be happy to serve any of them to your family.”
*NOTE Lilydale free range chicken was unavailable in uncooked form on the day of tasting and so was unable to be included.
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