How to choose safe chicken meat: expert advice

Chicken meat is an excellent dietary product that can be used to prepare many tasty and healthy dishes, and children love it. You can cook cutlets, meatballs, and chops for them. But buying a good, natural product that doesn't harm the body is not always possible. Because unscrupulous producers often raise birds with the help of antibiotics and hormones.

Food quality and safety expert Olena Sydorenko told the "Rules of Survival" talk show (Inter) what to look for when choosing chicken meat to make it healthy.

1. Chicken should not be slippery and sticky

"Try pressing your finger on the carcass: if the chicken immediately regains its volume, it's fresh. And if the dent remains for a long time, then the meat is no longer fresh. Another point is that if the carcass is tough, it is likely that it has been pumped with water, and you are buying water, not meat," the expert says.

2. Chicken skin should be intact

The expert advises checking the integrity of the skin – under the legs and wings.

3. The meat should be pink in color

"Chicken should not be eaten if the meat is not pink, let alone with dark spots," Sydorenko said.

4. How to determine the age of the chicken?

"It's easy to do – at the tip of the breastbone. In an old bird, it is ossified and practically does not bend, while in a young bird it is elastic and flexible. Also, pay attention to the color, if the chicken is yellow, it is most likely too old, and its meat will be tough and tasteless," the expert said.

5. Smell

Fresh chicken meat is practically odorless.

"Don't buy meat in a marinade with spices, because they interrupt the smell of decay. That is why stores often marinate and sell stale meat," the expert added.

6. Packaging

Sydorenko recommends paying attention to the integrity of the packaging and also advises against buying frozen products, as their quality cannot be determined accurately.

8. How to store it properly?

"It is better to cook the meat immediately rather than store it in the fridge. But if you have bought chicken, store it in the freezer and defrost it on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator," the expert summarized.