Are American Bresse chickens REALLY Worth All The HYPE? Honest review after 1.5 years...
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ก.ย. 2024
- Today we are giving an honest review of the American Bresse Chickens.
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We have the bielefelder which is a German breed good for meat and egg production. Very affordable too.
@user-jb6jn2ut9x we do too. Love them.
@@Truthseeker-f1kcan you tell me more about the breed? What do they cost? Where are you located ?
North Star Farms is the best!!! We got 100-ABC chicks from them this year. I’m convinced they’re one of the very best breeders in the US right now.
Does NorthStar sell fertilized eggs? I can’t find eggs on their site.
I must say, when you do videos like this, along with your normal “get the job done” content, it’s easy to see what dynamos you both must have been in your prior careers. Given that, how brave you were to jump off that horrible corporate hamster wheel! You are seriously great models for all who dream about homesteading. Thank you for truly exceptional content.
I have had AB for 3-4 years now from "Breezy Bird Farm" in Manitoba, Canada. They have been a keeper for us. By 14 weeks old 50% of my pullets are laying. I process them 14-16 weeks and am pleased with their size. One thing you didn't mention that although smaller than Cornish cross the Bresse being a fine boned breed, meat to bone ratio is better. The only thing I don't care for is that they are white skin, I prefer yellow skin for dual purpose birds. Maybe a cross with New Hampshire (also early maturing) would be interesting.
Why yellow skin over white? I am a curious person and have found the conversation very interesting.
@@ninadukette3340 Makes a more free range look. I also think it roasts crispier as it's usually thicker and stronger.
Thank you so much for the video and thank you for sharing how easy cut whole chicken in to small pieces take care.
Glad it was helpful!
7:57 We have Easter Eggers and American Bresse and our easter egger rooster has been in charge the whole time. The only time there was a problem is when we separated the biggest Bresse Roosters for breeding. He began attacking everyone, even my kids, so he had to go, but even the second biggest rooster was protecting the main rooster from him, and they both protected my daughter from the mad rooster. I've only had chickens a couple of years.
Great video and thorough teaching!! Thank you and God Bless!
Have you ever considered caponizing your young roosters? Capons are to roosters as steers are to young bulls, - no hormones mean the meat is more like a hen, - tender and juicy, and they grow more robust, with more meat on them.
If you want more tender older chicken marinate it in milk or preferably buttermilk. At least 24 hrs.
Any animal, regardless if it is beef ,pork,chicken,lamb or goat will always be more tender when kept in a smaller pen. Allowing free range or large pastures causes the meat to be tough. Instead of meat they grow muscles,the long stringy kind. Any chicken or hog grown with corn soaked in milk will be better tasting and more tender.
The longer you hang a beef up the more tender it will be. The same reasoning for your other meat will cause it to be more tender. You need enzymes to start breaking the muscle tissue down.
jumbo 70 g
Extra Large 63 g
Large 56 g
Medium 49 g
Small 42 g
egg sizes the 70g is about 2.5oz
You do a great job with chickens, supplying your homesteading plans. But, I think that you have not adressed something that I am very interested in. Please do a video on your orchard. I have some fruit trees and would like to know how your trees are doing. Are they producing yet? Are they growing well and have you started your berries yet?
so in short as mr. salatin once said, "dual purpose = do badly both".
Here the omly issue we have is excessive traditionalism, and once september hits, you cannot find chicks anymore. but, I will definitely stick with hybrids. Not the cornish cross. Other hybrids. You are lucky to have good hatcheries that deliver chicks all year round, See "freedom range hatchery". Albeit it may seem weird to start meat chickens in the fall, it has to become the rule. temperatures are too high in summer for pretty much anything.
Hybrids we buy are either from SASSO or HUBBARD INC. in 16 weeks, with the same setup you describe, they get to 4 to 4.5 KG. the females on around 3 to 3.5KG.
The taste is excellent and are never tough or stringy. Now thanks to not being able to find anything to raise, we will have these hybrids breed and get fertilized eggs from them, we did this before and the results are still great, but they grow a little slower. the females are similar with egg quantity per week. they are just big hens, and it's not very economical, but they do lay well. Hybrids good for eggs and feed conversion are LOHMAN BROWN and if you want to be more on the Heritage side, even though they are still hybrids, LEGHORNS. lightweight, smart, resiliant birds.
In one word no we went down that hole the very best and all that did the lard pigs also but it is the time twice the time it is just to much labor for us. But at the same time have to have a flock that reproduces to be more self sufficient. We are going with black Australorp because of how much they lay. But the ducks
❤❤
Interesting. I find the biggest reason folks are having trouble with toughness in the older birds or any bird for that matter is that they speed up the chilling process, much like they do for the cornish. After butchering older birds should remain in a chill bath for a minimum of 24 - 48 hours. Personally, I chill in ice water for 4 - 6 hours (even for cornish) and then drained and put into the fridge to chill for the remaining time. This allows the rigor process to happen and the natural acids to tenderize the meat, much like you hang a beef before cutting up. When cooking,, a slow oven is also key! I did some 10 month old birds, cooked up some legs, thighs and breasts and you could cut with a fork. Anyway, just my opinion. Thanks for sharing.
I agree
Older to me is OLD...LOL. LIKE 3 years after a hen retires.
@@rebeccaplumlee9601 Fair enough. However, I find that young birds benefit from the same treatment after processing
I so appreciate you sharing this knowledge!!
I took a screen shot of the information so that I can refer back yo it.
Thanks for this! Highlighted > Ctrl C > and Ctrl V into a word doc. Can't wait to try this. We love our Bielefelders because they're easy going and free range so well. They invent new ways to graze and over summer they discovered that grazing horses stir up a lot of bugs and their feeder goes nearly untouched. The breast aren't big but are tender, even from the roosters that got way, way past the planned harvest time. But all that traveling put some really tough legs and thighs on those birds. We love pulled chicken in sandwiches, tacos, stir fry, etc., so long, slow simmering worked fine to tenderize those legs and thighs. I was kind of shocked at how fast I personally went through all the freezer bags of pulled chicken, probably because it's so easy and fast to just take it out of the bag, thaw and heat in the microwave. At the same time, I like baked or smoked chicken quarters. Next harvest, hopefully on time, I'm definitely going to give this a shot. Thanks!
My husband has 11 chickens that follow him around our tiny property...so much so, that 4 days ago, he forgot to close the storm door...I had 6 hens in my house...😅😅😅
Took me forever to get them out lol
Never a dull moment.
That's s funny ❤😂❤😂❤
They love you. 😊😊😊
🤣😂🤣
🤣🤣🐓🐔🐓🐔🐓🐔🐓🤣🤣
HAHAHA That is so awesome. Ma and Pa Kettle anyone?
You don't often see both "roasting" younger chickens and "stewing" older chickens in the store anymore, so people have forgotten the cooking conventions for different aged birds.
My grandmother loved capons. I never see those.
You're right! I used to see them when I was a kid, you don't see them anymore.
Thank you so much for the update! Last Spring, I got my first batch of AB chicks from North Star Farms, and couldn't be happier! My homestead is considerably smaller, but even so, in this day and age sustainability is so very important. I listened to you folks, and did my research. These birds are amazing! They arrived vigorous and larger than the Barred Rock or Rhode Island Reds I had previously raised. No, these are not like Buff Orpingtons - not the kind you'd raise for your kids' pets - but they are not aggressive, either. They make it clear that they really don't want to be picked up, but become quite docile when you do! One thing to beware of, though, is they're smart, and have minds of their own. I have one hen that I refer to as the "escape artist." All of the others are content to stay in the run until I let them out, but not this one. It took me a week of watching her to figure out how she was doing it, too. Little minx!!!
Hi Carol! Haha! We have Little Minx' around here too. They figured out the best bushes to sleep in and started using anything and everything to jump off of to sleep as high in that poor tree as possible. I thought I had a flock of sea gulls up there in one, midnight excursion to the coops... then laughed at myself as I realized it was 15 hens in a bush. They were quite annoyed that my headlamp revealed their hiddy hole. LOL
What's the name of that machine that took off the feathers that was awesome And where can I purchase one.
Sustainability is the key to this breed. You're not having to depend on the uncertainty of the supply chain to maintain your flock.
that is a high consideration for me and i was impressed with the dressed out chicken
My grandma told me when she was a little girl that they didn’t eat any chicken over 5lbs because it wasn’t “normal”. They raised all the animals they ate and you just didn’t hear of these massive birds back then! ❤️
We have a mixed flock of free range chickens. Egg production was horrible this summer. After you mentioned too many roosters could slow production of eggs… I removed several roosters. Literally doubled egg production overnight. Thank you so much for mentioning that.
Dear Kevin and Sarah,
This overview of your experience with the American Bresse chickens was superb in every way. I am very happy that your experience with the American Bresse chickens has been so positive. You covered everything very well so that others can make a well-informed decision regarding this breed. I hope your experience with this breed continues to be positive over the years.
Sincerely,
Larry Lewis
Ontario, Canada.
We started raising AB 1 1/2 years ago, just this week we rehomed our small flock of 10 breeders.
For us, what we found….
They eat double of all the other layers and they are not very good layers. We also live in northern Wisconsin so our growing season for meat birds is much shorter windows in the summer. We just couldn’t hit our numbers unless we wanted to be butchering smaller batches multiple times through the summer and on a homestead we just don’t have time to set aside that many butcher days. For us, bringing in 100 Cornish cross in May and butchering at 8 weeks with a butchering party was the best option for us.
Interesting reply, new to the American Bresse chicken. So now to see if we will need to "subsidize" via purchasing Cornish crosses back!
Thanks for the information, and for your excellent presentation.
Not to take away from your American Bresse, but I have had a flock of Slow Whites from Welp Hatchery for years. They DO compare to the cornish cross in size, only 2 to 3 weeks slower in growing. They are very good egg layers and are a sustainable flock. Unlike Cornish, you can free feed them. They eat as much as a regular dual purpose breed.
@@maddyinaz2423 I may look in to a few and see what we think. What is average butcher size?
I doubt you could ever top a Cornish X for fast and cheap meat. Bresse do eat a lot, especially in that first 20 weeks. Better feed = less feed eaten. We did find that Fertrell based recipes from Jeff Mattocks they ate about a third less and prospered, grew, and had higher fertility as well as eggs at 14-16 weeks in the spring/summer grow out groups (light does play into it/weather). You are right, butchering small batches does take time and planning. If you don't, then you are feeding "non breeder" birds as yard birds for that catch and eat day. Filling your freezer fast, maybe try the Slow Whites? I have heard a few folks really liking them. My neighbor as them, waiting to see how it goes. She is comparing Bresse with them. So far she liked the flavor of the Bresse better. Always give and take and trade offs. Thank you for the comment!
Cold weather in the great white north is definitely going to put some kinks in fast food production. Buddy was in Northern MN for many years. Growing season is shorter, even when you go only 100 miles. Less hay cuttings for instance. Everyone has a unique situation!
This is my 3rd year with them and I'm pleased with the results. They grow pretty fast in comparison to other dual purpose birds, the meat is excellent, and they are better layers and lay larger eggs than say, the Orpingtons or Wyandottes. I love my assortment of heritage breeds, but if I had to pick only one for production, be it meat or eggs, it's the Bresse, hands down.
Would you share with me your success in reproduction of this breed , do they tend to go broody , or do you incubate the eggs ?
@@JamesWayne-kn1yg 1 of ten chicken go brody, if you have them natural way, they will be brody more, I have bresse, they can be brody also I have other chickens and when they are brody I put bressse eggs under them and have bresse chick
I love your teaching video’s. I wish I had been interested in this lifestyle as a young married woman but I wasn’t. Now I’m too old and alone but I enjoy living it thru both of you. God bless you both, ❤
The older birds are called stewing chickens. They are cooked very differently.
You are so correct! Most people don't realize there is a difference. The young are fryers and that is what most people have experienced.
Perfect for crock Pots or instant pots
Yes!. I am 61 and my Grandmother would use stewing chickens for certain long cooking recipes or she would put a small one in her pressure co
cooker. I still have the pressure cooker!@@cheryllamb8831
@@cheryllamb8831broilers, fyers, roasters and finally stew is the category to cook them based on age
Finally! We’ve been waiting patiently 😂. You kept the 20 hens, what has been your breeding technique? Separating certain hens with one rooster, for how long/. How many do you incubate at a time? We are looking to harvest around 50 each year. Have you culled any hens? So many questions! Thank you!
Good questions and now to await a reply!
Hey there friends!!! What a great video!! I am so happy you love the American bresse as much as I love my French Bresse chickens...but there is one thing that I would like to talk about... when we process the chicken here... and I live in Belgium next to France ... that's why I have the French variety... we process them at 16 weeks just like in America ... but... there I one difference... we always wait for 48 up to 72 hours after butchering to freeze the chicken... and you might think like why??? Because they're is a process in the body after we die ... it's called rigor mortis... and if you freeze before ... well actually its often during the the rigor mortis... it's starts a few hours after the killing of the bird... then your bird will not be very tender... we also have the Ross type... which I believe is similar to the Cornish cross... and you can easily get away with freezing them immediately after the butchering and cleaning and still have a very tender bird because like you said they are babies... but with the French Bresse... we really need to wait 2 to 3 days... then the meat will be so soft and tasty!
Oh and we also pasture raise them, and free feed... but we keep the protein at 22 percent for the 16 weeks ... and yes the milk feeding is a thing in France 😂 I think it's so weird but it actually works...we also do it with pigs hahaha ... oh God us Europeans are so weird 😂😂...God bless my friends ❤
@@rebeccavanbrussel9460 Thank you for your post! I have been researching Bresse, and recently have started my flock, 12 at 6 weeks, and I have 12 at 2 weeks. Here in the US they finish the Bresse for 2-4 weeks on milk and grain, but do you feed them that mix the whole 16 weeks? I would think that they may get too fat, but it is just a question? Thanks Kevin & Sarah for the videos...always learning something that improves my homestead!
The two of you are fantastic teachers. I appreciate you both so much! Thank you for ALL you do to educate your viewers.
You have been very clear in sharing the reasons for choosing the American Bresse chicken, before and since getting them. Sustainability
We started raising them shortly after you. We feel the same way as you about them!
Northstar farms is great and their birds top quality. We did try and diversify our flock and get genetics from anothere breeder. It did not go well. The birds had deformities and were the worst genetics we have seen in any chicken, so I would advise anyone else looking into this breed do their research on where they get their flock from. We LOVE your channel! Thank you for the clean, respectful content!
Yikes... Did you have issues with your feed regiment? Sometimes lack of Vitamins such as B's can make for curled toes and such that are not related to the genetics necessarily. Glad you liked our birds. Just wanted to say that nutrition is the key to negating as many possible "bad" things that aren't necessarily the genes. You might have had great genes but something else going on. For instance, we used to use those red feeders from TSC... then had crooked keels showing up, all in the same spot. Turns out the keel is soft at hatch and gets bone later, like babies' soft spot. I thought we had crooked keels as a genetic issue, and we got rid of a lot of birds 6 years ago that I really wish we had known it was something as simple as the roost...
Best wishes going forward!
@@NORTHSTARBRESSE I looked on your website, but can I please ask what kind of feeder you use? I’m looking at ordering chicks from you. I just have to figure out when I want them. Also if my friend wants to get some at the same time. Thank you. 🧡 Lorie 😊
We tried the American Breese chickens after we saw them on your channel. We recently decided they weren't for us. They started off in an non impressive way by the roosters being very aggressive towards each other, so much so that we had to keep separating them so that no one would be killed. We don't like their meat as much and if we have to put them in small cages or something to get better meat we don't want to go to that length. If we were milking our cows yet we might have tried soaking corn and giving it to them, but without a cheap or free milk supply these chickens become expensive to finish off that way.
I can attest to the roosters being very aggressive towards one another.
L'on voit que vous ne connaissez pas bien la race de volaille Bresse : ils ne sont pas agressifs, sauf s'ils sont enfermés sur des petits parcours. Oui pour les engraisser ils faut leur donner du maïs cuit, du lait mélangé avec du pain dur. Une magnifique pâtée qui fera de magnifiques poulets bien gros avec une chair excellente. Dire que vous n'aimez pas cette chair. Vraiment incompréhensible car elle est vraiment bonne. Peut être êtes vous habitué à manger de la viande de poulet blanc modifier et alors oui vous devez trouver la viande de poulet de Bresse bien plus forte. Je vous conseille d'élever plutôt des poules de la race Bresse. Vous aurez des animaux tranquilles avec une chair délicieuse. Le meilleur est de les élever jusqu'à 5 , 6 mois et de les sacrifier juste avant la ponte. Vous serez content du résultat. Bonne continuation
My Am. Bresse started laying the 14th of this month. They’d hatched May 15th. The first egg was quite large. I waited a couple days and another egg but smaller. Next day a small one and a large one. Broke the large ones open and both were double yolker!!! Yesterday we were blessed with 3 small pullet eggs. Maybe today another double yolker!!!??
I have a flock of 10 hens/roosters. To many roosters in the flock so some have to go!!!
And you’re right!!! They are not a friendly chicken breed and they love to forage!!! They turn our compost pile very nicely 😊
Colene
We use chicken tractors as means to protect our meat chickens from predators and hawks… They get moved everyday and are not free fed… definitely not the same as confinement.
No, I had switched and they are jerks... my roosters killed each other fighting while in the rooster pen without females. The rooster we have with our flock is so mean I can't even go in the yard. We are looking to sell our flock now. I'd rather do quick Cornish cross.
Try Buckeyes. Great dual purpose breed. Not flighty at all.
Great info ! Excited to start these guys in the near future.
As a carpenter that is semi retired, i turn work away everyday here in Missouri. There are very few you,ger carpenters in my area and all the older ones are trying to retire like me. If he is a honest decent carpenter, he will have no problem making a very good living in Missouri.
It would be better fo you to reply to the original comment to make sure they see your comment.
As always. Great information delivered in brief concise way. You would make great teachers.
Thank you soooooo much for this video! We are working toward switching to American bresse and our chicks are six weeks old. This video answered a few questions and supported a couple of plans we have made in how we will manage them. Feeling more confident in our plans and excited to be more sustainable. I am marking my calendar so I don’t go over the 16 week mark!
COULD YOU COVER HOW YOU SELECT WHICH ROOSTER FROM A PARTICULAR BATCH TO KEEP?
Good question
@@carmenmariacortesmarin2664 Agree as we will have to make the same decision!
We did do a few short videos about selecting roosters. We are not pro's at video tech, so be kind, but you should get the general idea.
@@NORTHSTARBRESSE Thank You and we will look it up. Always kind as never a reason not to be!
@@NORTHSTARBRESSE Thank you
For some of the same reasons as you, we purchased out first American Bresse chickens. They are now seven weeks old. Yes they are also VERY skittish and did someone mention they can fly too! We ordered 24 chicks and still have all 24. So very hardy as well. Fortunately (?) we got a majority of females. So now to patiently wait until egg laying time and butchering. Which will almost coincide!
We got Canadian Bresse based on the introduction video you did. We have found they are a flighty bird compared to our "Sasso" scarlet and ivory who are friendly but small dual purpose we have for their nearly daily egg production. The Bresse eggs have taken a long time to size up, but they are getting to a reasonable size now at about 6 months old. I love them, hubby, not so much.
We raise black australorps for similar reasons. Theyre great layers and make a decent table bird. I will admit that they eat alot and im probably not gonna get but a 4lb bird at 16-18 weeks,but its enough for our small family when combined with the rabbits and quail we raise. I wish we had more land so we could get some goats and hogs,but for now deer and turkey hunting will help fill the gap
I like ISA Browns. They’re like the yellow labs of chickens! Docile, friendly, great egg layers.
I obtained an AB roo from my friend who is raising them. I have him with a mixed group of dual purpose hens (RIR, New Hampshire, Australorp, Orpington) and in the spring we're going to work on a sustainable meat flock. I'm hoping for the best of all of these breeds: good meat, nice egg production, friendly chickens. Our roo is super good to his girls and is friendly to us. We still raise CC for our meat but want something more sustainable if needed.
Try adding rye seed to feed for roosters. It's supposed to be really good for chickens.
A+ Content; Terrific information about Bresse Chickens (!!)
Had experience with the breed in France -milk soaked feed surprisingly has an impact. The motivation purely better tasting 'poulette' (!!) 120 Days from hatching about prime time / wouldn’t recomend a Chicken Tracktor makes for unhappy birds
Thanks for your videos. I have another great recommendation for a dual purpose bird. Have you considered Buckeyes? They also are great foragers, but are much less flighty. They're actually very curious and friendly. They mature at 16-20 weeks, and the roosters weigh in at 9 pounds. The pullets start laying a bit later than standard laying hens, but are good layers with large eggs. They also lay better in winter.
Just something to consider. Buckeyes are on the conservation list as "watch" so I'm always encouraging more people to raise this awesome breed!
Do you have a source for Buckeye chickens ?
I got mine from a local farm store a few years back. I believe they got them from a hatchery in Arizona. However, this breed was developed in Ohio long ago, so I would imagine there are Midwest hatcheries that carry them. Nowadays most of the major hatcheries carry them. One that specializes in preservation of the breed is Shumaker Farm in Ohio.
@@rcjo2 excellent thank you
I work on a hatchery egg production farm of the 3 cornish cross sub breeds. There are 3 stabilized Cornish breeds, the Ross 308, Ross 708 and the Cobb 500. And yes, you can breed true to type. The issue is that to reach mature breeding age (24-26 weeks), feed needs to be very carefully administered on a very specific schedule. I am speculating but I think that the hunger gene has been messed with because they will eat loads more then they need and often fail to reach maturity.
We have been breeding and raising Bresse here in the Northern Rockies for 5 years. Our honest opinion is that at this altitude, they are a waste of time and resources. In more temperate climate.. maybe worthwhile, but not here.
1. Inconsistent layers. Our laying flock of 25 hens produces 3 to 5 eggs a day at most… many days zero eggs.
2. As meat birds, way too slow growing. Birds we hatch in March aren’t ready to harvest until November, pastured and fed 20% feed.
3. Cold sensitive. Worthless in our winter weather. Combs and toes freeze while other breeds do just fine.
If I want meat birds I will stay with CornishxCross and for Layers I will use one of the specialty production breeds..... Just my thoughts Rick
Especially in times like these, sustainability is important.
Wonderful, honest review of your experience and expectations for Bresse. Great video as always!
Have to say I prefer my Plymouth rock chickens. They’re not particularly noisy. They are not aggressive. Easy to handle and very good with children. Good in Canadian winters eat a snowstorm for breakfast. Absolutely great egg layers +200 a year and beautiful big brown eggs. Give them lots of greens and you’ll get amazing orange yolks. Really good mothers. Can be butchered at 16 weeks or older. The meat is tasty and juicy and who doesn’t love that.
Sarah, I haven’t watched in a few months. Girl! You are getting younger and more beautiful with every day! ❤
just looked at american bresse at northstar,159$for 10!!! wow!
Perhaps I missed it but if not can you comment on feed conversion ratio? I understand they take longer and I'm used to that with our American Guinea Hogs. Using the AGH for example, they take longer but the feed conversion is similar to conventional hogs because the AGH eat less per day. Is that similar in your experience with the Bresse?
First, let me say I truly enjoy your channel. I have been trying to pay attention to see if I see you doing what I want to suggest to you as a way to use zucchini. A couple of years ago I purchased a freeze dryer (got excited watching you use yours) and have been experimenting with excess garden items. My daughter "rolled her eyes" when I bought it but has since changed her mind and brings me things to freeze dry for her. 🙂 A couple of her favorite things is sliced zucchini and cantaloupe chunks. I slice the zucchini and sprinkle lightly with salt. The cantaloupe is cut into bite size chunks and also lightly salted. They both make a great healthy snack. If you haven't tried these I hope you will. I don't know much about KETO but think they should be a good fit, at least the zucchini. Thank you for taking time to read this and thank you for not being "fear mongers" on your website. Consequently, when you do have one that is encouraging us to be prepared, I take note. God bless! 🙂
Good morning Kevin and Sarah!🌄😊 Very well thought out and informative video! I loved seeing how you piece out the processed bird. I have always been challenged cutting the thighs. But will try it doing your way next time I thaw some out. We would love to have Bresse chickens, but are waiting till we have more land than 1 acre.
My daughter and son in law have been talking about moving out of MN. I keep telling them that Missouri is a great place. But the son in law , as a business owner, seems to think there is not enough construction business there. I tell him he's wrong. But, this is a guy who read Robert Kiyosaki's book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad when he was 9 years old!
We age our chickens in the refrigerator for 3 days then put them in the freezer. If eating fresh, we age 5 days. We butcher and vacuum pack. Then, put them into the fridge. This allows the rigor process to happen. This improves the texture tremendously. We just started a small flock of Bresse. We are very happy with them. The pullets started laying at 16 weeks. The rooster was doing his job earlier than that. We have our first batch of 8 half Buff Orpington chicks that are free-ranging with their momma. We butchered one rooster to taste just to be sure we liked them. Very good duel purpose breed.
We just bought a few Bress to try but we have been raising midget white turkeys for meat. The meat chickens can't survive at our elevation. They just can't get enough air and die by 3wks old.
Okay, I can't handle the 'processing'. 😮😢
We made the switch to American Bresse some time ago and for the purpose of being able to hatch our our own meat birds and get eggs for eating. Same as you stated. Nice video.
In balancing morality with food needs and sustainability, , I have issues with how cornish cross were bred to grow so fast they are prone to death by heart attack. Other heritage breeds may take longer and more costly to feed but that is a factor in my choice.
I have raised Cornish Cross chickens twice and never lost a bird and no broken legs or anything. I gave them feed during the day and took it away at night. I also had them on grass and put their water and feed a ways away from each other so they had to walk around a lot. They had kind of sparse feathers because that’s how the “breed” is, but other than that there were no problems. I think we had them butchered at about 8 weeks.
Just wondering...are you still breeding rabbits too?
I like that egg scale that is really neat. God bless your family.
I raised Cornish cross for 8 weeks they dressed out at 8 to 10 pounds and were tough and stringy
Thank you so very much for this update. I started AB chickens this past spring after watching your videos for the same reasons that you are now raising them. I am planning on incubating eggs for next years batch of meat chickens... Can you do a video on the incubation process as well as the taste of the AB. I raised mine following the French Bresse method, no grower feed, lots of foraging in a large area, (tho I lost 3-4 to a prairie falcon and 2 to a mountain lion) then confined in a much smaller area for the past 2-3 weeks giving them wheat berries and cracked corn soaked in raw milk. They are 16 weeks this week so will butcher soon. They do eat a lot, hopefully the taste of the meat will be worth it. I'll let you know, next year I may feed them the way you did. Thanks so much for the update!!
I’m going to have to brag on y’all! I love watching the your channel. You are good teachers. Recommend you all the time to folks. Especially those starting from scratch. I’m an old woman doing homesteading a long time and I’ve learned a lot from you. I needed this video and I waited patiently for it. Thank you soooo much for your godly approach to life and homesteading.
Thank you for doing these updates on the American Bresse! It really helps me make decisions about whether they’re the right fit for our goals and I think they are! I’m looking forward to bringing them to our homestead!
Great video as always. As just a thought, have you ever considered making a video about how to make chicken burger or chicken sausage out of older chickens? ( Similar to turkey burger)
You two are looking really good. Kudos to Keto.
I have been listening to you guys for years now. And even though I don't live on a farm, though so wish I could, I get so much good information from you. You always explain everything so well, and I think that you are helping to bring back info we have lost as a society. Thank you so much.
Do you feel, as I do, that they teach so much more than just how to homestead? Their conscientiousness and work ethic comes through all the time, how they think out projects and consistency in principles. Plus they are a great team
😂Very Good Video! You actually held my husband’s attention!!
We had chickens years ago and just got them this year again. We are rusty about breeds and butchering. We have Rhode Island Reds and a few Dominique hens. We are down to 9 hens mixed and 4 red roosters. Lol, my husband butchered one rooster and it was awful. I think waited too long and processing wasn’t quite right. I read that it’s the testosterone in roosters that contributes to poor quality.
Years ago we also had rubber band roosters and those were leghorns that got a lot of excercise.
Hopefully going forward we will get it right from helpful folks like you two.
Our red roosters follow us around like dogs. I’m happy they are friendly unlike those vicious leghorns we had that attacked with their spurs.
Big pat on the back for great editing as well. Some videos would show the tedious every move of cutting the chicken, ect. Bravo that you clipped those parts and was straight to the point on all info!
Thank you both!
Thank you for the great video. Loved the mini lesson on butchering a chicken Sarah!
Off topic slightly but what type / brand of butchering knife, shears, etc. do you use and what (and how) do you sharpen them with to keep them sharp? That's the most frustrating thing I've dealt with when home processing the smaller stock.
That’s a nice size chicken. I think Americans are used to giant, hormone filled, factory farmed chickens. When I watch American cooking shows the chicken breasts always look as if they’ve come off an ostrich. 😂
Frankienboobs 😂
Bery informative video, as always 👏👏👏
I would love it if we could have an update on all of your cattle. I miss them ❤️ Thank you
Any thoughts or data collected on FCR (Feed Conversion Ratio) for AB vs other dual purpose?
No, but we are considering a comparison next spring.
We also purchased AB a year and a half ago and have gone through a couple reproduction cycles. Our flock is smaller - below a couple dozen. They were housed only with other AB chickens. There were other flocks that would free range in similar areas but they each kept to their own flock with no fighting. Our AB rooster that became dominate was a good head of the flock and watched over his girls. These birds were excellent free range birds. I did not notice them eating more food than my other breeds. They got what we provide for a certain number of chickens. We had two AB hens that went broody and raised chicks…in fact, one just hatched out 8 chicks in September. Our birds used for meat were 41/2 to 5 lbs, which works for us and the meat is tasty. We only harvested roosters, which were kept with the original flock. They were not over fed, just a standard level which is always used attempting to reproduce how we would feed everyday. When we attempted to provide more feed, they would leave the food and go free ranging. Our meat flavor and size met our expectations and I liked that a couple hens went broody. What I did not like is their large combs got frostbite just a bit. None of our roosters were aggressive. These were an easy to care for group of birds. Our birds are raised to return to their coop at night for lock up and they free range our pastures and woods during the day. They really liked the woods. Yes, we have predators but only lost a couple. Our birds were closer to five months when harvested but we also allow the meat to rest properly before packaging and know how to cook meat.
My family got our 1st flock from North Star Farms as well. Drove 4 hours to pick ours up and so worth it. The flavor really is so much better than the other meat birds. I free range mine and I only feed them in the morning. They do a fantastic job at keeping the bugs down here at our home in SC. I gotta thank y'all for recommending them initially. I would probably still be raising Ginger Broilers if it weren't for you two. Have a blessed day 🥰
That is awesome!
@LivingTraditionsHomestead You 2 are fantastic and bring tons of value... All the best to your family God bless you
I know some people get squeaked out watching the butchering process, but I was amazed to discover that there is a machine now to defeather the birds. I can remember plucking chickens by hand a few times when I was younger. Not my most favorite job. I'd rather do the butchering part than the defeathering part! Thanks so much for showing that.
Your evaluation is greatly appreciated. Wishing you great success in your future endeavors.
Love your channel it's my favorite along with Deep South Homestead , and Perma Pasture Farms .
God Bless .
GREAT information!!!!
As a sustainable option I get it. We butcher at 16 weeks free fed and even finished that last week with confinement and milk soaked feed and still found they were tough and prefer the Cornish cross 10-1. We gave up on the bresse and will stick with the Cornish cross. 7-8 weeks to raise 60 birds once a year is the best for us.
The quarter cup chicken feed per bird plus foraging does that increase in winter when nothing is growing outside? Is that a special sharp strong kitchen shears that you are using? Link?
A four-pound whole chicken is the largest that fits in my small instant pot. Perfect size.
Great video! I'm wanting to get some chickens but I'm not allowed roosters since I live in town.
Hello fellow Missourian's! We're so glad that you did a favorable review on the American Bresse chicken! We've raised them for six years now and have nothing but good to say about them, in fact so much so it is the only breed we now have on our farm. Our farms varieties are the blue, black and white and we have also found our colored varieties are prolific egg layers.
We did AB for about 1 1/2 years as well we were not impressed at all...we raise Delaware broilers and beilfeilder and the difference is huge..all lay really well and we get the twice the meat per bird and they don't eat any more than layers....
How do the Delaware taste? I've been looking into them
@TacklingTheGiants excellent and wayyyy more meat then the AB...the German Bielefelders are excellent too, great taste and lots of meat, I've never weighed them because my scales don't work but huge difference next to the AB..and I think both taste better then the AB, plus if you finish the AB the way they recommend it's veryyyyyyy expensive.
@@tamihindman9431awesome thanks! How do you cook the Delaware to make them tender(I've heard they can be tough is that true?)? I'm between the Delaware, new Hampshire, and American bresse right now.
Also, where did you buy your Delaware from?
@TacklingTheGiants I got fertile eggs from a friend and hatched them ..but Murry mcmurry sells them, I don't know if they have any available right now...another good one is ginger broilers
I just put my American bresse roosters in the freezer. Looking forward to trying them. Love raising them.
I just met Jenn and Buddy of North Star Farm a couple weeks ago when I picked up some adult birds (I'm lucky enough to live local). They are truly wonderful people and shared a wealth of knowledge with me!
Awe, thank you. Honored.
We tried the traditional way of raising them - they were quite small and very fatty. At 14 weeks the Roos were tough. We have 2 blood lines. The newer bloodlines are bigger birds. The meat tastes like the chicken I remember growing up. We have found that if we cook the older birds in the solar oven or in a slow cooker - they are very moist, tender, and succulent. They are a bit more flighty but are fantastic layers. They have a permanent home on our homestead!
Thank you for a very informative video. With older birds you might want to try French "coq au vain" Really yummy, and a recipe you can possibly share sometime
Thank you for your experience with Bresse.. We don't have them but do raise duel purpose chickens for meat and eggs. What we do with the older birds including pheasant, turkey, chicken, quail is dry can the legs and meat and make broth out of the carcass's.. The meat is tender and delicious and a good way to preserve those older birds. Again thank you so much for this info.
interesting info on american crest chickens, we give you guys most credit for getting us raising cornish cross chicken (120 to 200 per year) . Were very pleased with them and process them at 7 weeks with an average on almost 6lbs, its so nice to be finished with the chickens in less than 2 months and end up with an amazing amount meat. You mentioned that after 6 months you average about 5 lbs, so at 16 week are they 4lbs or less?
Yes, we averaged right around 4 lbs. at 16 weeks.
Terrific explanation, advice, review, commentary. So helpful, as usual. Thank you.
How old do you keep birds for laying? Then afterwards you do what with them? Also how much space do you need per bird?
Hens, fed correctly and molted correctly so that they lose weight (see Poultry Keeper's 360 TH-cam vids) will lay well into year 6+.
Old hens are considered the ultimate stew pot bird. I have not had the heart to retire my old ladies that way and instead sell them for local layer flocks that just need eggs for 1-2 people. Bresse are more of a big area bird. Small spaces make them more anxious. We have a min of 3-4 square foot per bird in the coops/roost space. The larger the runs the better. 30plus square feet per bird if possible. Free range or open range much better, they LOVE it. They are like snow on grass out there, having a grand time.
And they’ve done it again! I’ve watched the whole video and I don’t even eat meat. 😂
Thank you! We appreciate it.
Thank you for the review. We are going to start layer hens this coming spring. It will be my first time with chickens, but my bf is experienced with them. I’d like to get some experience under my belt before investing in ABC. I hope to one day do something similar to what you all do to rotate your flock for meat and eggs. God Bless!
Enjoyed this video, as always. I wanted to say, I have that exact, same antique egg grader! I don't have chickens to grade eggs, but it looks nice in my country kitchen. Have a great week. God bless.
Isn't that just the cutest tool ever!~
The stringy chicken is something I have experienced. I had an aunt and uncle who were a “butter and egg” man who had a delivery service. From time to time they would butcher the old layer hens when they stopped laying. That was the first problem; old worn out chickens. My aunt was a person who processed EVERYTHING that grew on their farm. She gave me 5 hens to process. Bad idea!
My husband came home from work to the task of having to “wring the necks” of those old birds. He grabbed one by the neck and instead of the usual result of this process, the chicken spun around in his hand and an egg with a shell intact flung out of the chicken and the egg went “splat” on my husband’s forehead and then another egg with no shell followed close behind. Of course my daughters started laughing and so did I. My husband needless to say was not laughing. We girls went inside as the rest of the chickens were dispatched.
After I finished processing the chickens by freezing them, I cooked one of the chickens. Shoe leather was soft in comparison to that worn out old laying hen. I couldn’t even pressure cook them tender. My husband issued an edict, he refused to wring anymore chickens even if grocery store chickens cost $10.00 a pound. Moral of the story, don’t let your chickens get past their prime when you butcher them. Just wanted to give you a laugh and reinforce Kevin and Sarah’s advice on processing young birds only.