Picked up a Murray's "natural" chicken today...

[TreasonousBastard]

and while I have little interest in looking up the exact coop it was raised in, (yeah, apparently you can) the extra flavor was worth the extra buck a pound. Roasted it in a countertop oven without much prep and it came out pretty much perfect.

And it was only around 3 pounds-- everyone else wants to sell me oven stuffers of 5 pounds or more, mostly dry, bland, breast meat. For years they've grown turkeys with breasts so huge they can hardly walk, and now that's the way it is with chickens. Blecch!

Making a nice stock from the bones now, and the rest of the meat will make soup and sandwiches for another couple of days.

[cbayer]

1. I have the great fortune to be living near a market that only

sells very fresh, very natural meats. They are consistently excellent and I agree with you that they are worth paying more for.

Enjoy your chicken!