What Types Of Chicken Can You Find In The Market, And Which One Is Best For Cooking?

When browsing through the meat aisle at the grocery store, the only classifications for poultry you may care about are whether it's a breast, wing, or thigh. However, there are other ways to differentiate between chickens that may help you pick the best one for each dish. From producing eggs to working as eco-friendly pest control, there are plenty of reasons for farmers to keep chickens around. Market chickens, however, are bred solely for consumption. They're raised differently from other chickens, such as egg-layers, with the goal of getting them to a certain weight that will allow them to be sold on the market.

With market chickens, there's a focus on giving the animals a hearty, healthy diet. As a result, they tend to grow at a faster rate than other kinds of poultry. There are several kinds of market chickens — including broiler, fryer, and roaster chickens — and how they're classified all comes down to the poultry's weight and age once it's able to be sold. When shopping at the grocery store, the label of the bird most likely won't say what kind of market chicken it is, but based on the weight, you can select the right one for your needs — though broilers are generally the most versatile.

Although the term "broiler chicken" is frequently used to refer to standard market chickens, not all market chickens are, in fact, broiler chickens. Most poultry raised for consumption purposes are broilers, which is why it's become a general term. However, true broiler chickens have specific traits. To be considered a broiler, the animal must be processed at around 6 to 10 weeks at a weight of approximately 2 ½ pounds. While this may seem relatively young, poultry at this age yields tender flesh that can be used for practically any chicken dish.

Thanks to their smaller size, the whole bird can be cooked evenly and relatively quickly at high temperatures, whether that be via broiling, grilling, or another high-heat method. Broilers make great roasted whole chickens, but, depending on the size of a crowd, they're not always the best choice for entertaining a large group. At only 2 ½ pounds, broiler chickens will feed around three or four people, making them more suitable for intimate gatherings.

If you don't plan on using up the chicken all in one go, broilers can easily be cut up for meal prepping purposes. You can roast the bird ahead of time and divide it up to eat throughout the week, or cut up the whole chicken and freeze various parts for later usage. With broiler chickens being a younger, more tender meat, the breasts, drumsticks, and other cuts can be used in pretty much any recipe.

With the chickens being between seven and 10 weeks when they're processed, it's quite common to see fryer chickens also being referred to as boilers — or some combination of both. However, the defining difference here lies in the weight of fryer chickens. At approximately 2 ½ to 4 ½ pounds, the birds are heftier and don't always have the same versatility as broiler chickens do — but they still come pretty close. Since they are young, fryer chickens yield tender meat that can be used for a wide range of foods.

For fryer chickens that weigh in on the larger end, they may not cook as evenly when broiled or grilled as their smaller counterparts would. However, the tender meat and hefty weight make for a spectacular classic roast chicken that can feed around four or six people. Fryer chickens can also be prepared using other high-heat cooking methods, and cutting them up into smaller pieces can expand the options you have for preparing the poultry. As the name implies, the chicken can be either deep-fried, stir-fried, or even pan-seared for a tender-crisp finish. You can also opt for poaching or braising the chicken to emphasize its moistness.

When it comes to the different ways to cook a chicken, roasters aren't nearly as versatile as the other market chickens. The birds weigh between 5 and 7 pounds and are processed at around three to five months of age. Although they're certainly not considered to be old hens, the roasters aren't nearly as tender or mild as the broilers or fryers. They're slightly tougher but have a fatty layer that tenderizes the meat when cooked slowly.

Additionally, roasters tend to be made up of more dark meat than the younger market chickens, making them a slightly more flavorful option. While any market chicken can be roasted, as the name suggests, roasters are the best bird for the job. The extra fatty layer perfectly crisps up the skin of the bird while ensuring that its flesh doesn't turn tough.

With the birds being on the larger size, it's best to roast the chicken at a lower temperature. Slow-roasting chicken at around 300 degrees Fahrenheit ensures that it cooks evenly, the fat is rendered properly, and the flesh is the epitome of juicy. Given its firmer texture, you can still cut up the bird to use for various cooking methods, but it may not always be the best choice for fast, high-heat methods like broiling or grilling. Instead, baking, poaching, or adding it to soups and stews works best with roasters.

People tend to favor the younger, more tender chicks, but older birds bring a lot to the table too. Processed from 10 months to 1 ½ years of age, stewing hens are on the firmer side. The meat is pretty dry and tough, so take a hint from its name and prepare it with moist, slow-cooking methods. The hens aren't typically eaten whole, but you can cut them up to add to this simple Cajun chicken stew. Once its connective tissue breaks down, the meat turns softer and can even produce silky chicken stock.

Roosters are hens' male counterparts and are processed from 10 months old. Like hens, the stringy birds soften up with proper attention. You can use the rooster in a delicious crockpot coq au vin or any recipe that involves cooking the bird slowly in liquid. To tenderize it, braise the chicken with ingredients like wine, beer, or milk. Old age makes roosters gamey, so pair the chickens with bright ingredients like mint and citrus.

If you prefer a fatty, yet large chicken, go with capons. The birds are processed anywhere from 16 weeks to eight months and weigh around 4 to 12 pounds. Despite the older age, the male chickens remain tender due to being castrated at a young age. Unlike roosters, capons grow to be fleshy. It also helps that their steady diet of milk and porridge fattens them up. The meat develops a rich flavor, without the toughness, making them an ideal bird for roasting.