Why I will never buy chicken breasts again

I was interviewing a potential client about his heath goals. He gave me the following example: "I know I should choose the chicken breasts but I chose the thighs. I know that was a bad decision." Lovingly, I say "wrong."  Wait. What? Chicken thighs are better than chicken breasts? Nope. Wrong, again.

Instead, I propose that you purchase an entire chicken. They come in a variety of sizes. Big enough to feed a ravenous family or small enough to feed one or two people with just a little for leftovers. 

Why? 

Typically, when you buy an entire chicken you get three valuable, sometimes four, elements. 

1. The whole bird represents a variety of meat - white and dark. It includes the skin, too. The skin may not be appropriate for everyone but if you don't eat a lot of processed food, the fat in the chicken skin isn't much to worry about it. It's actually the only way I enjoy eating a chicken breast. (I find them way too boring otherwise.) Variety is important. And I actually like to eat food that tastes good. Chicken legs included.

2. Look for a chicken that also includes the organs - heart, liver, kidneys. Some people believe this is an acquired taste. I enjoy making a pate out of these with mushrooms and brandy. Or you could grind and mix with a turkey meatloaf and no one would be the wiser. These organs are so very healthy for you. Full of vitamins and minerals. Truly unparalleled to many other foods. 

3. Now you have cooked and devoured this wonderful bird. Don't throw away the bones. Instead put them in water and proceed to make bone broth. Here's easy instruction! Bone broth is particularly helpful for gut health. Most of us who have eaten more than our fair share of processed foods over our lifetime will benefit from gut support. (Don't worry: a future post about leaky gut is in the works.) I even give bone broth to my dog. He loves it. You can drink bone broth like a tea or make soups with it or cook with it. And trust me, the comparison of home-made broth to store-bought versions is like apples to oranges. You just can't compare them. 

The fourth element is two-fold. It combines choosing food with as little processing as possible and as little carbon footprint as possible. Frankly, a whole chicken that has been made easy for you to cook has less manufacturing behind it than the package of 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a styrofoam package. And, chances are good that you can find a whole chicken from a local farmer and therefore, transit costs and associated carbon footprint just from emissions alone are lower. 

I recognize that the idea of cooking a whole bird may be intimidating. We typically save this fanfare for Thanksgiving only. Just imagine the same process (stuffing and sides not necessary), but on a smaller scale. I encourage you to find a farm market to purchase a chicken. Ask the farmer how to prepare it. In my house, my husband is the better chicken cooker. He simply massages some olive oil into the bird and adds a mix of dried herbs and salt. (My brother-in-law concocted an amazing rub and gave it as a gift to us, but you could make your own so it's always ready to use.) Put it in the oven at 350 F degrees until it's done. It is that easy. Try it. Share your experience in the comments or a fav recipe or family tradition. This will be a super easy dish to add to your repertoire! 

Want to learn more about chickens? This blog post was inspired by NPR's This American Life. I was listening to reruns. The life of a chicken farmer isn't easy. The life of a chicken isn't easy. Opt for sustainability. Want to learn more about sustainable practices? Check out these resources: Polyface farms, Omnivore's Dilemma.