servings in cornish hen

EmpireBusiness

How do you determine the serving or amount of calories you consume with a cornish hen or small whole chicken? I've seen sites that round it to 1-2 servings per lb, lol but obviously that's not very precise. Do you weigh out the picked off meat or just guess on the high side and let it roll?

Barbellarella_

How do you determine the serving or amount of calories you consume with a cornish hen or small whole chicken? I've seen sites that round it to 1-2 servings per lb, lol but obviously that's not very precise. Do you weigh out the picked off meat or just guess on the high side and let it roll?

I would pull the meat off and weigh the grams on the white/dark meat.. But I'm meticulous like that.

EmpireBusiness

How do you determine the serving or amount of calories you consume with a cornish hen or small whole chicken? I've seen sites that round it to 1-2 servings per lb, lol but obviously that's not very precise. Do you weigh out the picked off meat or just guess on the high side and let it roll?

I would pull the meat off and weigh the grams on the white/dark meat.. But I'm meticulous like that.

Damn, you're hardcore. I'll attempt it if sanity will allow.

prism1968

I bought a whole duck at the Farmer's Market last week and was wondering the same thing about that... I'm going to roast it and then measure the meat, I guess.

EmpireBusiness

There's something blasphemous about picking apart cooked food and weighing it before eating it.
It seems... lonely. I wonder if Hannibal does that...

williams969

I'm a meticulous weigh-er of my foods, but in the case of "intact" foods like cornish hens, If you're eating the whole one yourself, I'd weight it cooked, intact. Then eat and enjoy, then weigh the carcass when done and subtract that from the total (there's a database entry for just roasted chicken meat--white and dark is calculated together in that entry).

Hmm, for some reason, "my" way seemed less disturbing in my head. But reading it? Shudder...Maybe just eat it and guesstimate the best you can.

EmpireBusiness

I'm a meticulous weigh-er of my foods, but in the case of "intact" foods like cornish hens, If you're eating the whole one yourself, I'd weight it cooked, intact. Then eat and enjoy, then weigh the carcass when done and subtract that from the total (there's a database entry for just roasted chicken meat--white and dark is calculated together in that entry).

Hmm, for some reason, "my" way seemed less disturbing in my head. But reading it? Shudder...Maybe just eat it and guesstimate the best you can.

Your way also assumes you consume all fluids which inevitably will steam off

williams969

No, I'll take one great big, dramatic inhale over said delicious bird, then I'll just lick the air to make sure I got it all. Yummy. Or just look up the weighted bird meat item in the database (or Google), and enter the weight of the bird I'm eating (or half, if sharing).

prism1968

Yeah, the picking apart thing is kinda sad
I've been waiting forever for roast duck, I'm just gonna have to wing it on that

EmpireBusiness

I'm ready to measure it, once I finish eating this delicious skin...

williams969

I'm ready to measure it, once I finish eating this delicious skin...

:noway: Dear me, you've not weighed the skin? But why would you not measure and journal the most deliriously decadent part? Do you not want to memorialize every sense, every taste, every experience of it all, including its weight? I thought you were better. I would have even understood if you choose the skin as the medium with which to memorialize this event. I'm afraid I'm a bit sad. Novice mistake, I'm sure, so I'll forgive this minor transgression. We all had to have our first. You'll do better with the next.:drinker: :devil:

EmpireBusiness

After removing *tear* the excess fat underneath the skin, I pulled off every delicious morsel and weighed it.
My 2 lb hen produced 12 oz of cooked meat which is 4 servings.

williams969

I could have told you that at the beginning (I knew "roughly" what it would be--I eat a lot of poultry). But where's the fun it that? Enjoy your bird!

EmpireBusiness

I could have told you that at the beginning (I knew "roughly" what it would be--I eat a lot of poultry). But where's the fun it that? Enjoy your bird!

Lies.

"I could have told you the winning lotto numbers, but where's the fun in that?"

williams969

I could have told you that at the beginning (I knew "roughly" what it would be--I eat a lot of poultry). But where's the fun it that? Enjoy your bird!

Lies.

"I could have told you the winning lotto numbers, but where's the fun in that?"

Who's to say I don't have those, too? Ha:

Raw Chicken meat to carcass/skin ratio ~70/30 ==>2lb hen yields ~22oz. of raw meat ==>cooked reduces to approx. half (plus some waste/left behind) =~11 oz.

But, as it was a small hen, more meat, smaller bones, my estimate was 13-14oz (I guessed you would not cook it dry).

EmpireBusiness

I could have told you that at the beginning (I knew "roughly" what it would be--I eat a lot of poultry). But where's the fun it that? Enjoy your bird!

Lies.

"I could have told you the winning lotto numbers, but where's the fun in that?"

Who's to say I don't have those, too? Ha:

Raw Chicken meat to carcass/skin ratio ~70/30 ==>2lb hen yields ~22oz. of raw meat ==>cooked reduces to approx. half (plus some waste/left behind) =~11 oz.

But, as it was a small hen, more meat, smaller bones, my estimate was 13-14oz (I guessed you would not cook it dry).

You just call my chicken dry? Them fighting words!!!

jwcanfield

Game hens are 39-40% bone. So a typical (you can weight before cooking to double-check) game hen, at 20 oz, is 12 oz. raw meat. MFP has this information and I think it's pretty accurate: Generic - Cornish Game Hen (Skin Not Eaten), 1 hen (20 oz raw). Part of the fun of a game hen is the presentation - either whole or in half. So, unless you're eating every day this is what I'd use.