Aaron's Best Kosher Chicken

Our local Trader Joe's sells Aaron's Best kosher chicken. Pop it in the oven at 375 and cook until done. So good, it requires absolutely no seasoning. This is without a doubt, the best chicken I've had since the days my gradmother shopped at Bernie the butcher on Roosevelt & Keeler. Back then, she'd select her bird and it was slaughtered on site. Friday night dinner was the best chicken and/or chicken soup in the world, while watching Superman and Captain Video on the old black and white.

Believe it or not, the Jewel on Howard near McCormick sells Aaron's Chickens in their pretty large kosher department.

stevez wrote:Believe it or not, the Jewel on Howard near McCormick sells Aaron's Chickens in their pretty large kosher department.

Yes, and they go on sale pretty regularly.

We don't keep kosher, never will, yet my family prefers kosher chicken to any old chicken from the store. It's got more flavor. I recently bought "regular" chicken for dinner and cooked it the same way I usually cook chicken. I've been instructed to never buy "regular" chicken again -- it just doesn't taste that good to my family any more.

When I can't buy kosher, the Amish brand of chicken is acceptable to my family. I think it's Miller's Amish, but I'm not 100% sure.

Suzy

sdritz wrote:We don't keep kosher, never will, yet my family prefers kosher chicken to any old chicken from the store. It's got more flavor. I recently bought "regular" chicken for dinner and cooked it the same way I usually cook chicken. I've been instructed to never buy "regular" chicken again -- it just doesn't taste that good to my family any more.

When I can't buy kosher, the Amish brand of chicken is acceptable to my family. I think it's Miller's Amish, but I'm not 100% sure.

Suzy

I don't keep kosher, either, but when faced with a time shortage, I'll buy kosher poultry because I consider it the "lazy man's brine".

The Aaron's chickens are tastey, but like the Kosher turkeys - they often have quite a few feathers that need removing.

sdritz wrote:We don't keep kosher, never will, yet my family prefers kosher chicken to any old chicken from the store. It's got more flavor. I recently bought "regular" chicken for dinner and cooked it the same way I usually cook chicken. I've been instructed to never buy "regular" chicken again -- it just doesn't taste that good to my family any more.

When I can't buy kosher, the Amish brand of chicken is acceptable to my family. I think it's Miller's Amish, but I'm not 100% sure.

Suzy

Just to elaborate on Stevez's early comment about kosher chicken's being a poor man's brine...there is a good reason that kosher chickens taste good. The koshering process basically covers the chicken in salt. Although the salt is eventually washed off, the process has the same effect on the meat as would brining a so-called regular chicken.

When you have the time, try brining the Amish chicken (or a good farmer's market chicken).

You half-answered my question - are the birds in question good-quality, beyond the salt? I had an Amish bird a while back, and we're having trouble eating just plain chicken..

Mhays wrote:You half-answered my question - are the birds in question good-quality, beyond the salt?

Yes.

Mhays wrote:You half-answered my question - are the birds in question good-quality, beyond the salt? I had an Amish bird a while back, and we're having trouble eating just plain chicken..

In general, yes. As with non-kosher birds, there is variation in the quality of the kosher chickens from brand to brand. My guess is that the average quality of kosher birds is higher than the average quality of non-kosher birds, and considerably higher than mass-market brands (i.e. Tyson).

Thanks, guys - good to know. Much as I don't generally like Jewels, I do shop at that one quite often: not only is it convenient, but they often have food I like that other Jewels don't carry.

Darren72 wrote:When you have the time, try brining the Amish chicken (or a good farmer's market chicken).

Well, if what you're trying to emulate is the taste of a kosher chicken, why not just kasher it? Takes less time than brining:

Submerge the bird in tepid water for 30 minutes. Drain. Coat thoroughly with kosher salt, inside and outside, and let stand on a slanted board 1 hour. Rinse thoroughly.

It used to be that every Jewish housewife did this herself, but nowadays the butchers mostly do it.

LAZ wrote:

Darren72 wrote:When you have the time, try brining the Amish chicken (or a good farmer's market chicken).

Well, if what you're trying to emulate is the taste of a kosher chicken, why not just kasher it? Takes less time than brining:

Submerge the bird in tepid water for 30 minutes. Drain. Coat thoroughly with kosher salt, inside and outside, and let stand on a slanted board 1 hour. Rinse thoroughly.

It used to be that every Jewish housewife did this herself, but nowadays the butchers mostly do it.

Good to know. I never knew what was literally involved.

I wasn't actually suggesting that any try to emulate the taste of a kosher chicken. My comment about brining the farmers' market chicken was just a suggestion to have a great tasting bird.

I've had several of the Aaron's birds, and they're very good, though occasionally somewhat scrawny. The regular Trader Joe chickens are not too far behind, and easily the best chicken value in town.

That being said, and having spent several years in Columbus, real fresh, locally raised Amish chicken (poultry in general) is a whole other quality level. There's three culinary items that I miss from Columbus--and one restaurant.

Amish poultry (fresh, raised within an hour of town and bought at the indoor, year-round public market--how the hell does Columbus have one but not Chicago!)
Jeni's Ice Cream
Stauf's Coffee Roasters

and Kihachi--the only restaurant in the entire state that would be a big deal if it could magically be dropped into NYC, Chicago or SF. Amazing dining--and in the opinion of many people from New York and San Francisco who I took there, the best omakase dining between the coasts.

OTOH, I'm living in Chicago rather than Columbus, so the positives far outweigh the negatives.

Sam Harmon wrote:Amish poultry (fresh, raised within an hour of town and bought at the indoor, year-round public market--how the hell does Columbus have one but not Chicago!)

The largest Amish community in the WORLD is located in and around Holmes Co., Ohio and many Amish familes are moving south toward Columbus as land prices in the Wooster/Ashland, OH areas are escalating.

The Amish communities in Illinois (Arthur/Arcola, IL) is much smaller, tend to raise mostly turkeys (for the Jennio brand, I believe), and much further to market in Chicago.

jlawrence01 wrote:

Sam Harmon wrote:Amish poultry (fresh, raised within an hour of town and bought at the indoor, year-round public market--how the hell does Columbus have one but not Chicago!)

The largest Amish community in the WORLD is located in and around Holmes Co., Ohio and many Amish familes are moving south toward Columbus as land prices in the Wooster/Ashland, OH areas are escalating.

The Amish communities in Illinois (Arthur/Arcola, IL) is much smaller, tend to raise mostly turkeys (for the Jennio brand, I believe), and much further to market in Chicago.

Agreed. Amish folks have quite a presence at the Urbana, IL farmer's market (though all meat is sold frozen - I believe by law).

I did find quite excellent Amish chicken at Jerry's in Skokie on Dempster. I can't speak to the other meats, though I'd love to hear other reviews. They weren't cheap - but that being said, not outrageously priced, either - and well worth it.

Jerry's Quality Meats
3706 Dempster St
Skokie, IL 60076

(847) 677-9360

Miller's Amish chickens are regularly available at Sunset Foods.

Aside from being raised locally, is the main difference between these and, say, a Bell & Evans bird the air drying?

Sam Harmon wrote:and bought at the indoor, year-round public market--how the hell does Columbus have one but not Chicago!)

Every time I go to another city (and almost all of them have one - even ones with cold weather) and go to their year-round public market, I wonder the same....

Maybe we should start one.

Miller's Amish chickens are regularly available at Sunset Foods

Also available at Garden Fresh Market for about $1.00 less per pound.

I stopped at Jerry's for chicken on my way home from Assi Plaza the other day: their brand of Amish Chickens are Gerber's, apparently from Ohio Amish country. They are $1.99/lb, which made the medium-sized fryer I took home about $7. Although not "organic," and there's no mention of whether these chickens have access to the outside, they do talk about the chicken's diet being vegetarian and hormone-free. Can anybody offer a Whole Paycheck organic chicken price comparison?

I can't find the Aaron's prices online, but Peapod lists Empire Kosher Chicken at $3.29/lb.

Mhays wrote:Although not "organic," and there's no mention of whether these chickens have access to the outside, they do talk about the chicken's diet being vegetarian and hormone-free. Can anybody offer a Whole Paycheck organic chicken price comparison?

Whole Foods pricing for non-organic whole chickens is $1.99/pound for fryers and $2.29/pound for roasters. I believe the organic birds are around $3 per pound.

Thanks, Matt - seems like it's worth the trip, then - though I really need to get to Romanian Kosher, which is even closer.

If I'm not mistaken, Roumanian's birds are frozen, not fresh.

I'm getting very close to trying a chicken-off and tasting...

The former Boback's Market in Burr Ridge has the Miller's Amish chicken on a regular basis. Don't remember the price, though; must not have been outrageous.

MikeLM wrote:The former Boback's Market in Burr Ridge has the Miller's Amish chicken on a regular basis. Don't remember the price, though; must not have been outrageous.

Miller's Chicken is also carried at Joe Caputo's and Sons.

Miller's is also available at Olivia's in Wicker Park (boneless skinless breasts only), Treasure Island, Ultra Foods, Tony's Finer Foods, Whole Foods, Butera, Sunset Foods, and Strack and Van Til.

It's really pretty decent chicken, but it still needs/benefits from a brine or a salt rub.

Had my Amish chicken last night - the verdict - tastes like chicken.

I'd thought about taking LAZ's advice and kashering it, and it probably would have benefited from this - yet it's still far and away better than Purdue or other grocery-store chicken, which taste like dishwater. Even the chickens at Marketplace at Oakton, which used to be pretty good, have succombed to dishwater-ness.

It also had a nice firm texture, which could either be the chicken or the fact that I was "on" in the kitchen last night.