With modern methods of cold storage and incubator hatching, there is no longer much need of considering season in connection with chicken. It is always found in market. Young chickens weighing about a pound and a half are often called broilers. In selecting chicken, it is necessary to know the signs of age. The chicken is known by its smooth feet and skin, and abundance of pin feathers, and the soft cartilage at the end of the breastbone. Long hairs and hard, scaly feet are signs of an older bird. A good turkey is plump with smooth, dark legs, and also shows soft cartilage at the end of the breastbone. Young geese, like young chickens, have an abundance of pin feathers. The United States Department of Agriculture recom- mends that poultry be shipped without the removal of the entrails. In order to ship for long distances, poultry, after killing, must be kept in a temperature of about 32° F. While below 30° F. the flesh becomes "frosted", at 35° F. it deteriorates too rapidly for good results. It is cus- tomary to thaw frozen poultry before it is sold. This gives opportunity for deterioration to take place, and it THE DIGESTIBILITY OF MEAT 201 would be much better if customers would demand such poultry still frozen. THE DIGESTIBILITY OP MEAT The fibers in the meat of chicken and turkey are shorter than in beef and mutton. This makes them tender. The white meat of chicken is especially tender on account of the tender fibers and the small amount of connective tissue. Not much is really known, however, in regard to the comparative digestibility of different kinds of meat. Many books quote experiments which have determined the length of time meat remains in the stomach. Undoubt- edly this time is affected by the toughness, the method of cooking, the amount of fat present, and the degree to which it has been ground up by the teeth, as well as by the kind of meat eaten. It is well proved that much fat means that the meat stays a longer time in the stomach. Tables have been made from these results, in regard to ease and lack of discomfort in digestion, which agree pretty well with popular opinions. In general, the rarer the meat and the less fat present, the more quickly it passes from the stomach. But as little is known regarding intes- tinal digestion, this is only part of the story. It has been shown, however, that differences in digestibility are not at all marked if determined by the test of the total amount which is digested and absorbed. Then meat ranks with milk and eggs, being from ninety-seven to ninety-eight per cent digested and absorbed. As protein in general is not more than ninety-five per cent digested and absorbed, meat must be ranked as a food that is well utilized and fairly rapidly digested. Opinions differ as to whether there is any essential difference in the amount and kinds of extractives present 202 FOOD STUDY in " light " and " dark ", or in " red " meat. That there are slight differences is indicated by the distinctive flavors of the different kinds, but that these are sufficient to warrant the allowing of some and the exclusion of others from the diet under different circumstances, seems hardly war- ranted. REFERENCES U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. Farmers' Bulletin No. 182. "Poultry as Food." QUESTIONS 1. What kinds of game are found in your local market? When?

AI-modernized reading of the original text

With modern methods of cold storage and incubator hatching, there is no longer much need of considering season in connection with chicken. It is always found in market. Young chickens weighing about a pound and a half are often called broilers. In selecting chicken, it is necessary to know the signs of age. The chicken is known by its smooth feet and skin, and abundance of pin feathers, and the soft cartilage at the end of the breastbone. Long hairs and hard, scaly feet are signs of an older bird. A good turkey is plump with smooth, dark legs, and also shows soft cartilage at the end of the breastbone. Young geese, like young chickens, have an abundance of pin feathers. The United States Department of Agriculture recommends that poultry be shipped without the removal of the entrails. In order to ship for long distances, poultry, after killing, must be kept in a temperature of about 32° F. While below 30° F. the flesh becomes "frosted", at 35° F. it deteriorates too rapidly for good results. It is customary to thaw frozen poultry before it is sold. This gives opportunity for deterioration to take place, and it THE DIGESTIBILITY OF MEAT 201 would be much better if customers would demand such poultry still frozen. THE DIGESTIBILITY OP MEAT The fibers in the meat of chicken and turkey are shorter than in beef and mutton. This makes them tender. The white meat of chicken is especially tender on account of the tender fibers and the small amount of connective tissue. Not much is really known, however, in regard to the comparative digestibility of different kinds of meat. Many books quote experiments which have determined the length of time meat remains in the stomach. Undoubtedly this time is affected by the toughness, the method of cooking, the amount of fat present, and the degree to which it has been ground up by the teeth, as well as by the kind of meat eaten. It is well proved that much fat means that the meat stays a longer time in the stomach. Tables have been made from these results, in regard to ease and lack of discomfort in digestion, which agree pretty well with popular opinions. In general, the rarer the meat and the less fat present, the more quickly it passes from the stomach. But as little is known regarding intestinal digestion, this is only part of the story. It has been shown, however, that differences in digestibility are not at all marked if determined by the test of the total amount which is digested and absorbed. Then meat ranks with milk and eggs, being from ninety-seven to ninety-eight per cent digested and absorbed. As protein in general is not more than ninety-five per cent digested and absorbed, meat must be ranked as a food that is well utilized and fairly rapidly digested. Opinions differ as to whether there is any essential difference in the amount and kinds of extractives present in " light " and " dark ", or in " red " meat. That there are slight differences is indicated by the distinctive flavors of the different kinds, but that these are sufficient to warrant the allowing of some and the exclusion of others from the diet under different circumstances, seems hardly warranted. U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. Farmers' Bulletin No. 182. "Poultry as Food." 1. What kinds of game are found in your local market? When?

Food study