In summer, we accumulate a lot of moisture in our bodies due to the long consumption of cold drinks and spending time in air-conditioned rooms.
As a result, we show symptoms such as listlessness, poor appetite, and poor sleep in our daily lives.
In order to cope with the discomfort caused by dampness, we can improve our physical condition by nourishing the spleen and stomach, so as to help the internal dampness in the body to be expelled as soon as possible.
Many people choose to boil a pot of chicken soup for their family in the hot summer months, supplemented with corn, yams and other ingredients that will nourish the spleen and stomach.
It can not only strengthen the spleen and stomach, but also nourish the body, and nourish qi and blood, which has undoubtedly become the first choice for people to drink soup in summer.
However, many people find that sometimes the chicken they buy has a large piece of "butter" in the belly, and some people say that this "butter" is just the fat in the chicken belly, and it is not a big deal.
Some people also think that this piece of butter will be unhealthy to the human body when eaten, so they will choose to throw it away when they dispose of it.
So is this piece of butter edible or not? And how does it form in a chicken's belly? Today let's talk about the secret about this piece of butter in the belly of the chicken.
1. What exactly is butter in a chicken's belly?
Perhaps many people have encountered this situation, sometimes whether they buy roosters or hens, free-range chickens or ordinary carnivorous chickens, it is always inevitable to find that there is more or less a piece of butter in the belly of the chicken.
So the question is, what exactly is this piece of butter in the belly of the chicken?
In fact, this is similar to the pork we usually see, the pig's belly will have a lot of white oil cubes, and this part of the butter of the chicken is the same as the white oil cubes in the pig's belly.
The reason why we can't see these oil lumps when we buy some pig offal is because the merchants remove the oil lumps when they handle them, after all, they are really not beautiful if they are not treated.
And chickens are the same, when they eat fat, they will produce fat, and these yellow oil cubes are actually the fat accumulated by chickens.
And the reason why it is yellow is closely related to the food that chickens eat every day.
Chickens are generally inseparable from corn and other crops, and the carotene in corn will continue to precipitate in the chicken's body after long-term use, and then form yellow fat blocks.
2. Can you eat the butter in the chicken's belly?
In fact, when we are boiling chicken soup, the butter oil flowers floating on the surface of the soup are the ingredients of butter in the chicken belly.
Sometimes we will judge whether the old hen we buy is fat or not based on the butter flowers on the surface of the chicken soup and whether it is nutritious.
In fact, it is to see if the chicken has "oil" and whether it is nutritious.
However, there are also many people who feel that since it is chicken fat, eating too much must be bad for the body, so many people will choose to throw it away directly, which is actually a waste.
Strictly speaking, the butter in the chicken's stomach is actually a gland of the chicken, which is an important organ that provides energy for the chicken, and secretes cholesterol, fat and other substances.
It is also called chicken fat because it contains a lot of fat, or butter according to the color.
In fact, these butters are not only edible, but also have a lot of effects.
1. Supplement protein
First of all, this butter is rich in protein, so chicken butter is a good tonic for the elderly and children.
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Therefore, when cooking chicken soup for your family every day, you can selectively keep a part of the chicken butter.
However, if it is to supplement nutrition for the elderly and children, it is necessary to pay attention to the choice of domestic chickens.
And pay attention to be sure to make up in moderation, after all, it's not good to make up too much.
2. Reduce blood cholesterol
Although chicken butter is also a fat to a certain extent, chicken butter itself contains a lot of unsaturated fatty acids, and fatty acids are the main types of fat that make up chicken butter.
However, although unsaturated fatty acids are also fats, they can reduce cholesterol in the human blood after they are absorbed into the body.
Therefore, for people with high cholesterol, eating a small amount of chicken butter can play a role in reducing cardiovascular disease.
3. Reduce the probability of cancer
Chicken butter contains a very good antioxidant called taurine.
Taurine has the effect of eliminating free radicals in the human body, and the elimination of free radicals can greatly reduce the probability of cancer.
Therefore, for many people who understand chicken butter, they will be accustomed to refining chicken butter into chicken fat for daily storage and consumption in the same way as refining lard.
After all, chicken butter is also next to the organs, so it is not suitable for direct stewing and eating.
Generally, in addition to boiling soup, many people will choose to boil it into chicken fat for daily stir-fry or noodles, because chicken butter is purer in comparison.
Stir-frying vegetables with chicken butter not only adds to the flavor of the dish, but also increases the nutritional value of the dish.
Therefore, the butter in the chicken belly is helpful to the human body when eaten in moderation.
In daily life, try not to throw it all away, and leave it to be refined into chicken fat and stored instead of lard for stir-frying, mixing noodles, etc., which is still a good choice.
3. Only local chickens have chicken butter in their stomachs?
There is an opinion circulating on the Internet that chicken butter is only produced in the belly of local chickens, and that fast-growing broiler chickens on farms do not have this characteristic.
However, this statement is actually biased.
The formation of chicken butter is actually closely related to the eating habits and growth cycle of chickens.
Essentially, chicken butter is actually a manifestation of chicken body fat.
Therefore, when the growth of the chicken enters a stable period, the fat begins to accumulate gradually in the chicken's body, and the chicken butter is gradually formed.
As for the difference between local chicken and broiler chicken in terms of chicken butter, there is indeed a certain basis.
Boiler chickens are often affected by a variety of factors such as growth hormone, grow at a faster rate, and are quickly sent to the market once they reach a predetermined growth cycle.
Due to the short growth cycle, the fat accumulation in these carnivorous chickens may not be sufficient, making it difficult to form significant chicken butter.
In contrast, the growth cycle of local chickens is longer, the food source is relatively natural, and the accumulation of body fat is more sufficient, so it is easier to form chicken butter.
Therefore, we cannot simply take the presence or absence of chicken butter as the only criterion to distinguish native chickens from broilers.
On farms, we cannot say that the chickens they raise are completely free of chicken butter.
Actually, chicken butter also exists, but comparatively, it appears less frequently.
Usually, local chickens are fed with whole grains as the main feed.
And for those free-range chickens, they also have the opportunity to forage in the mountains and wilderness, such as grass, insects and other natural food.
Because it does not add any hormones and other growth promoters, the growth rate of native chickens is relatively slow and the body size is smaller, but this also makes the probability of chicken butter in its body relatively high.
However, we must also be wary of the phenomenon of abnormal chicken butter that appears in the chicken.
In order to package chicken products into nutritious, high-end products, some merchants may use specific feed additives, such as butter peptide products, to encourage chickens to produce more chicken butter.
Therefore, when slaughtering chickens, if the chicken butter in the belly of the chicken is found to be unusually thick, even wrapping the whole chicken or stuffing the whole belly.
Then this chicken butter is most likely produced due to the addition of growth promoters or hormones.
As for the nutritional value of chicken butter, we will leave it aside, but its potential negative effects are indeed an issue that cannot be ignored.
We can't ignore the risks it can bring, because once consumed, the adverse effects can be devastating.
Therefore, it is obviously unreliable to try to determine whether a chicken is a native chicken based on whether there is chicken butter in the belly of the chicken.
When we want to identify local chickens, we can actually start with the size of the chickens.
Authentic local chickens usually weigh between 3 and 5 catties, and they are more petite than farmed chickens.
The hens, in particular, are even smaller and more delicate.
Therefore, when purchasing, we can tend to choose smaller chickens.
In addition, the shape of chicken feet is also an important basis for judgment.
When chickens walk on the ground for a long time, the soles of their feet will form a layer of cocoons due to friction.
Moreover, because the native chicken often gouges the soil to feed, the tips of its nails will appear more rounded due to wear.
On the contrary, due to the different living environment and eating habits, the claws of feed chickens tend to be smoother and the nails are relatively sharp.
These subtle differences can help us to identify local chickens more accurately.
Fourth, how to choose a nourishing chicken?
In the pursuit of providing nourishment and nutrition for their families, many people tend to buy old hens from local chickens.
This is because these chickens often have chicken butter, which is a symbol of their unique taste and nutrition.
However, for urban dwellers, due to the differences in environment and lifestyle, it is often difficult for them to really come into contact with the old hens that are born and raised in the countryside.
In this context, black chicken soup has become the first choice for urban families.
Black-bone chicken, as a nourishing product respected by the people, is believed to be able to replenish the qi of the five elements in traditional Chinese medicine theory, and is especially beneficial to people with weak constitution and malnutrition.
It is worth mentioning that black-bone chickens have a much longer growth period than other breeds, which means that they are less subject to hormonal maturation and are therefore healthier.
What's more, black-bone chicken is rich in collagen, high-quality protein, iron and other nutrients, while its cholesterol and fat content is relatively low.
This makes black-bone chicken a nourishing product for all ages, whether it is in stews or other cooking methods, it can bring great benefits to the body.
summary
Therefore, in daily life, if we buy chicken with chicken butter, it means that we are really buying treasures.
As long as it is in normal condition, it is chicken butter that grows naturally from chickens, so don't throw it away, which is very beneficial to the body.
If you really can't buy it or don't know how to choose chicken with chicken butter, black-bone chicken is also a good choice.
Resources:
Guangming.com 2022-09-09 "Black-bone chicken, old hen, which is more nourishing? Eat like this, nourish the body, moisten the lungs, the taste is too fresh! 》
Tips for daily life 2021-11-18 "When killing chickens, there is a large piece of "butter" in the chicken's belly, should you throw it away or eat it? Knowledge"
Bean Lady Kitchen 2023-08-04 "Qi and blood are enough to eliminate all diseases, often drink seven kinds of chicken soup in summer, nourish qi and blood and strengthen immunity, and smoothly enter autumn"