black chickenIn today's article we will take a look at a breed of chicken that you also may wish to include in your chicken coup plan if you want a serious meat producer. This bird is the largest breed of chicken that originated in the United States, the "Jersey Giant."

The Jersey Giant was developed in the 1870's by Thomas and John Black in the great state of New Jersey. Back then there was a strong demand for heavy fowl. They wanted meat! These big buggers really fit the bill. They were cross bred from four large Asiatic breeds, Black Java's, Black Langshan's, Black Orpington's, and Dark Brahmas to meet the demand for large fowls. In fact, they were bred with the intention of replacing the turkey as the primary poultry source. Now that's a big chicken!

They are rugged birds with large strong frames. Unfortunately it takes their first six months to build this frame, before they start putting on any real meat. As today's meat producers want birds that grow rapidly, the Jersey Giant is not used much in the chicken meat industry. However it would make an excellent meaty bird for your chicken coop plan. They are fabulous roasted!

The Jersey Giant reaches large sizes as its name states. Cocks are generally 13 pounds (yikes!), hens are even 10 pounds, cockerels are 11 pounds, and pullets are 8 pounds. They are known as the largest breed in the American Class. When plucked, their skin color is yellow.

Their eggs are brown or dark brown and quite large. They lay more eggs than most other large breeds. These domestic fowl are rugged and angular in shape with a single comb.

The Jersey Giant comes in three varieties, black, white and now their is a blue variety also being developed. The white variety was the second to come and is a sport of the black variety. The black variety has black shanks with a willow tinge and the white variety has dark willow shanks. The blue variety is considered by many to be the most beautiful.

Jersey Giants are extremely friendly, as they are good with pets, they like people, and the cocks are rarely mean.

So if your chicken coop plans include big, meaty birds, check out the Jersey Giant!

OK! It's time for today's Stupid Chicken Joke!

Why is it easy for chicks to talk?

i am not going to start another lecture on healthy diet, what should you eat and what not to eat, blah, blah, blah. On the web, you can find enough articles about that. Staying healthy and fit does not involve the idea that you should only eat vegetables and fruits. I know how tough it is, not to respond to the alluring calls of pizzas, burgers or other spicy, cheesy foods. And for what? Because you want to keep your waistline trimmed, forever. And this can never happen if you keep your taste buds happy. Hence, you ditch the animal protein from your diet. Really? You think so?

black chickenShedding pounds does not include that you eat less, but eat the foods or dishes of less calorie. If you are following a diet plan that cuts all that you love to eat, does not sound well. Mark my words, you cannot follow that meal plan for a long time. Here are some low-calorie chicken recipes that will help you to stay on the tracks of a healthy diet, as well as pampering your taste buds.

Baked Chicken Drumsticks:

(4 servings)

Ingredients -

Chicken drumsticks 4.
Onion paste one teaspoon.
Ginger-garlic paste one teaspoon.
Crushed ground black pepper.
Oregano.
Salt to taste.
Vegetable oil.

Directions -

First, marinade the chicken drumsticks with lemon juice, onion paste, ginger-garlic paste, and salt to taste. Now set aside it in the room temperature for 30 minutes.
Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees C.
Now grease a baking pan with oil and arrange the drumsticks on the pan. Brush each of them with a little bit oil. And finally, sprinkle crushed black pepper and oregano on them.
Bake for 30 minutes. Turn over the sides, and bake for another 20 minutes.
Now enjoy the juicy chicken leg pieces sprinkled with exotic herbs.
Chicken cooked with onion, bell pepper, and mushrooms:

(3 servings)

Ingredients -

Boneless chicken pieces 14 (I prefer the thigh pieces. They are delicious and take less time to get cooked.)
Mushrooms (either canned or fresh from the market)
One large onion (finely chopped)
5 Cloves of garlic (minced)
Ginger paste half teaspoon
Lemon juice one teaspoon
Red, green, and yellow bell peppers (cut into small pieces)
Crushed ground black pepper
1 and a half tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste
Coriander leaves

Directions -

1) Marinade the chicken pieces with lemon juice and salt. Set it aside for about 30 minutes.
2) Cut the mushrooms into small or medium pieces, as you wish. I prefer my mushrooms to be in medium thin slices.
3) After 30 minutes, heat the oil in a pan. Add the ginger and garlic, sauté until they turn brown.
4) Now add green chilies, onions and bell peppers to it. Sauté for 6-7 minutes. Let them sweat a little bit.
5) After that, add the mushroom pieces to the pan and add salt and black pepper to it. Cook for another 4 minutes.
6) After 3-4 minutes, add the chicken pieces, and mix all of them well. Place the lid over the pan and cook it for another 10 minutes.
7) After 10 minutes, turn off the flame, open the lid and enjoy the mouth-watering aroma of cooked chicken and mushrooms together.

And now, it is time to serve it. You can garnish the dish with fresh chopped coriander leaves or parsley.

Lemon Chicken:

(3-4 servings)

Ingredients -

A whole chicken breast
Lemon juice (half of a large lemon)
One chopped onion
5-6 cloves of garlic, minced
Ginger paste proportioned to garlic
Green chilly chopped or paste
Half teaspoon of turmeric powder
Half teaspoon of red chili powder
Black pepper powder
Salt to taste
Half tablespoon of vegetable oil

Directions -

1) In a mixing bowl, Take all the ingredients except the chicken, and form a mixture.
2) Rub this mixture all over the chicken breast very well. And marinade for 1-2 hours. You can also leave it overnight if you want.
3) Now pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees C. And grill the chicken breast for 20 minutes. Flip the side and grill for another 30 minutes.
Before you place the chicken breast into the oven, don't forget to brush some vegetable oil over the chicken.

If you want to sauté the chicken,

1) Cut the chicken breast into small pieces (approx. 15-20 pieces).
2) Marinade the chicken pieces. The process is the same as the grilled one.
3) In a pan, heat half tablespoon of vegetable oil, and sauté the chicken pieces until they turn brown.

If you are so health conscious, and cannot even want to intake 200-300 calories, then go through this Boiled Chicken recipe.

(3-4 servings)

Ingredients -

A whole chicken breast
One large onion cut into large chunks
6-8 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
2-3 inch ginger, chopped
One carrot cut into large chunks
Two celery stalks cut into chunks
Salt to taste
Black pepper powder
Vegetable oil

Directions -

1) In a large pan, pour water and add the onions, garlic, ginger, carrots, and celery to it. Sprinkle salt, black pepper powder, and oil to it. Put it on the heat for 1 minute.
2) After 1 minute, when a few water bubbles come out, add the chicken breast to the water. Cover the lid of the pan, and boil the chicken for about 40-50 minutes. You can add more water if it needs.
3) How to know that the chicken is ready? If you see that the meat is falling off the bone, surely the chicken is ready to eat.
4) black chickenNow, remove the chicken breast out of the broth, discard the bones, and shred into pieces.