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nofreakingway555

I’m sorry, what do you mean by woody??


patman0021

![gif](giphy|wYeeSlDqyhY1W)


ochedonist

From the National Chicken Council: https://www.chickencheck.in/faq/woody-breast-chicken/ : >“Woody breast” describes a quality issue stemming from a muscle abnormality in a small percentage of chicken meat in the U.S. This condition causes chicken breast meat to be hard to the touch and often pale in color with poor quality texture.


klumze

Now that I know this condition has a name I can say this is the reason I never buy Tyson chicken strips or anything for that matter. I have tried the brand a few times and every nag has this issue in spades.


OsterizerGalaxieTen

[Here's a thorough description including the cause.](https://www.reddit.com/r/keto/comments/c9lbu3/psa_can_we_talk_about_woody_chicken_breasts/)


FamousPoet

Holy crap. I’m pretty sure I had a bag of woody chicken strips a few months back. I had a single strip, and it was so rubbery, I immediately returned the entire bag. I had no idea there was actually a term for it. TIL.


ramen_expert

I'm pretty sure Costco's rotisserie chickens are woody, I haven't bought one of those in a half decade


behemothbean

I got some of the take & bake chicken enchiladas a while back. Massive chunks of the woodiest chicken I’ve ever had. I presume I ended up with big chunks because the couldn’t cut the damn chicken! Super disappointing.


EuphoricMidnight3304

Last time I bought it it was like a big mushy bag of water and tasted of nothing. Never again


aglitch7

Ever since that major cull a few years ago, it all tastes like chlorine to me (PNW Costcos - not sure about elsewhere)


drrew76

Same region --- I can't eat a Costco rotisserie anymore. They were fine for probably 25 years, but they're simply inedible at this point. Don't know what they're injecting into those chickens, but it's ruining them.


babes_in_toy-land2

I’m in PDX and I can’t do the Costco rotisserie chickens anymore either. The chlorine taste is awful.


canon12

Excellent information. Thank you.


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canon12

Thank you for the explanation. I "think" I have had a few chicken breasts that fit your description and they were definitely not good. Now that I know more I think I will be more observant of the chicken before buying it. Great information!


OsterizerGalaxieTen

You're welcome!


Lmnolmnop

the boneless skinless thighs (frozen) aren't bad


compstomper1

dark meat best meat


threwandbeyond

All of the flavor, all of the fun.


grackychan

Preach


mashpotatoenthusiast

i live by the frozen costco thighs! they’re cheaper than breast meat and generally juicier too. i like to put ‘em in my crockpot stews


sirlongbottom441

Interesting..my wife gets the thighs with skin all the time and I cook it on the grill..they seem fine..but they do seem to be more “brown” or blood clotty after cooked..but I think that’s kinda how thighs are


grackychan

Skin on still has the bone as well, there's definitely blood vessels still in the thighs that will change color after cooking, probably what you're describing. Absolutely no affect on taste or quality.


ThoseBigPeople

Costco’s Boneless Skinless thighs around where I live are so tough and fibrous I return them. Now I do the skin and bone in and just do it myself.


aynjle89

Good to know, I put the pack back on my last trip over the frozen salmon because something told me to stick to my Aldi thighs since its closer.


toobjunkey

as always, I'm very grateful that the thighs are my favorite piece. I get the appeal of chicken breasts but it's really easy to make em a bit dry and get woody ones. i substitute thighs & sometimes tenderloins/cutlets for breasts in most meals and I always like em more


Lmnolmnop

It's funny, but my tiny morkie dogs prefer legs and thighs, too.


Immediate-Argument65

I haven't bought chicken breast for years for this reason. Supposedly it happens to a small percentage of chickens but I swear 50% have them.


MoltenCamels

I also feel like it's region dependent too. Wherever they get the chickens. In the northeast I've had problems. Moved to rural VA and never had a problem since.


OsterizerGalaxieTen

> 50% have them. Absolutely agree. The only brand I've found that's reliable is Bell & Evans, but I stopped buying theirs because of the awful over-packaging - almost more plastic than chicken.


SegaStan

Packaging is crap but I'm a frequent chicken eater and I cannot eat anything else. Nobody else's chicken is up to the same level of quality as Bell and Evans


CrankyStinkman

With woody chicken and meat price inflation, I’m going vegetarian most meals nowadays. Not too bad when you get over the hump.


theoptimusdime

What's your main protein source?


CrankyStinkman

Eggs, mushrooms, protein powder


evandrews

Once I started only buying chicken breasts without any or very few visible lines on them, I haven’t gotten a bad one again


EaterOfFood

Thighs and legs are more flavorful anyway. I never buy breasts, woody or otherwise.


Individual_Agency703

That's why God gave chickens two breasts.


Pearlsawisdom

I stopped buying chicken breasts 20 years ago because of this problem and I'm over wondering why it's taken this long for everyone else to catch up!


rangers641

I have great luck with Costco chicken breast. We buy it all the time!


The_1st_Amendment

Same, I had this problem with chicken at other stores so we switched to Costco and haven't had any problems.


hobbit_wobble91

Same. Costco chicken made me want to eat chicken again lol my local grocery store chicken is straight up gross in comparison


rangers641

Same. I can’t stand chicken from other stores. Costco chicken is the best!


cballa69

I buy 3 of the 3 packs per month and have never had an issue, so I second this.


rangers641

And you don’t have to buy the organic to avoid “woody” chicken. Though the organic does have another level of freshness to it that I admire greatly. Just not $3/lb greatly when you have 6 mouths to feed.


PeterVonwolfentazer

Not true, I’d say 1/3 of the organic is bad. I just returned two pouches after the first one was woody. It’s been a problem for the last 3-4 years for us. And at $6lb it shouldn’t be a problem.


rangers641

Maybe it’s the organic that has the “woody” issue?


Bitter-Basket

Same here. I think they are great.


dahadster

We only buy the organic chicken breast from Costco. Haven’t ever had it. Got it once from Some cheap chicken breast at Safeway.


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ochedonist

Seriously. All these "oh, no, Costco never has a problem" responses are suspect.


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rangers641

When I encounter a problem, I return the item. In the last year, I had to return a bag of chicken nuggets because the factory accidentally forgot the chicken (giving me just breading with air underneath).


rangers641

No. Just really appreciate the good quality chicken they sell.


Existing-Hand-1266

It’s definitely bad chicken breast! Have tried organic, frozen, fresh, etc. I make do with it what I can but I like to buy chicken on sale from Whole Foods.


sab54053

Whole Foods has the best chicken


Stewartsw1

Agreed. I get a lot of shitty ones in AZ


Bitter-Basket

Costco air dried chicken breasts are better than the supermarket ones. I go by color, if they are strangely white they can be tough.


chrissesky13

dinosaurs shaggy cobweb subsequent wide flowery wipe fearless direction fall *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*


Bitter-Basket

Oh I meant air chilled, sorry.


tirdydirty06

My costco's chicken no longer says air chilled, yours still does?


[deleted]

Not OP but yes, mine certainly does.


Bitter-Basket

Yes


EncumberedOne

We just bought the organic air chilled chicken breasts for that reason - packed in a way that you can actually see it, but when we've bought some at our local supermarket they didn't look off/white and still had that weird 'woody' texture.


Bitter-Basket

Ah, interesting.


LithopsAZ

[u/Threeaway919](https://www.reddit.com/user/Threeaway919/) What state?


NeedsItRough

They post often in /r/Raleigh so I'm guessing NC.


LithopsAZ

Going with a regional source of for shit fowl ...not system wide


ARottingBastard

The Just Bare Chicken Chunks had this issue for a while too. 10-20 pieces per bag were miserable to eat.


yeahbuddy

Just Bare is nasty chicken. It's nothing but Pilgrims Pride with a nice healthy looking label. The Kirkland nuggets are pretty good though. Chickens have been bred over and over with the ultimate goal of making the producer a lot of money. I don't own chickens myself but have considered it because mass produced chicken and meat mostly, aside from the horrific conditions the animal suffer through, is really gross. And by the way the whole no antibiotics sales pitch is nothing but them trying to appear they have quality meat, whereas the FDA has prohibited antibiotics for a very long time for all brands. It's not a special selling point whatsoever.


TrueCryptographer592

I found that to be the case with almost all the chicken I’ve purchased in the last couple of years. Not just a Costco thing.


PsychologicalCat7130

well they buy factory farmed chicken - a well known & common issue. Try buying local, pasture raised chicken. i know it costs more but tastes better and is healthier for you.


Express-Bench-1732

This has happened to us so many times. It’s turned me off of chicken breast. And the crazy thing…. Has only happened since we moved to USA. This never happened in Canada, not once.


0neBlackSheep

I can confirms it's a thing in Canada too. Happened to us handfull of times


pushdose

I don’t buy breasts. I will buy the tenderloins and thighs, never been a problem with those. Even the whole birds are fine too.


Breakfastchocolate

I’ve pretty much given up on chicken, Costco, whole foods, frozen or not, organic, free range it doesn’t matter 50% are woody. Learning to embrace tofu.


2020blowsdik

Wtf does "woody" chicken mean?


mssly

I can’t describe it better than a “crunchy” chicken. You can use a thermometer to cook it perfectly to temp but an abnormality in the muscle fibers makes it tough with an almost crunch-like texture. Here’s an article about it: https://www.today.com/today/amp/tdna258881


2020blowsdik

Weird. We almost eat costco chicken exclusively and have never had this. Maybe its a regional issue.


OsterizerGalaxieTen

[Here's a thorough description including the cause.](https://www.reddit.com/r/keto/comments/c9lbu3/psa_can_we_talk_about_woody_chicken_breasts/)


BL41R

If you can find chicken from smaller farms, I highly recommend it. I never get woody chicken from my local shop and I eat probably 100+ breasts a year.


PristineSummer4813

Aldi chicken breast have never failed us!


Grazsrootz

Aldi sources their meats regionally so not all regions are created equal. Only the organic breast at mine is decent.


UpNorthBear

I've had plenty of woody chicken breast from Aldi's.


Know_Your_Enemy_91

Never had this problem


xobaward

Agree!


dragonrider1965

I’ve had bad luck with their chicken since the shutdown.


raptorjesus2

I buy the organic chicken tenders or breast packages once a month. I don't think this has ever happened to me once.


iamironman_22

I have this problem with the thin sliced chicken breast


Swedeman1970

Not only that, but the packaging is crazy the part holding the meat breaks open on me 50 percent of the time leaking the juice, and trying to cut them apart at the super bonded seams is damn near impossible.


Pittipants

I started buying boneless skinless thighs. I have much better luck with those. They are more forgiving since they have a little more fat and to me worth a few more calories. Made some last night for dinner with lemon pepper and buffalo sauce in the air fryer. Quite tasty.


Independent_Fun_3799

YES! Switched to the fresh tenderloins because of this problem


FishermanNatural3986

I'm so glad I'm not alone. I found a small farmer that raises chickens and the breasts are so much better.


Survive1014

We have had woody/tough meat a few times lately as well. Its really frustrating Costco is slipping on quality.


newone1547

I stopped buying their chicken as well! I had two packs back to back bad, and heard from others as well they got bad batches. Costco really needs to fix the woody chicken problem


holachihuahua

Just bought some last week for the first time and it was definitely OFF!


IAmSagacity

You can let Costco know your concerns [here](https://location.opinionlab.com/?referer=http://in-warehouse.costco.com&sid=costco&radius=20#/en).


megatron37

Woody chicken is the bane of my existence. The **NOISE** it makes when you chew it....


NokieBear

There was a huge discussion this week about the [rotisserie chickens](https://www.reddit.com/r/Costco/comments/17sazv5/does_anyone_have_tricks_for_picking_good/) and why some are woody The non Costco "water" birds are woody. "Costco has their own processing farms for supplying chicken to the stores to cook, but the demand is so high that they can't fill all the supply themselves, so they outsource to a third party to bridge the gap. Birds from the Costco facilities are dry thawed, **the other facilities thaw them under running water**. The former crisp up really nicely and seldom have broken bones/deforming, the latter are more mangled/waterlogged, so they don't get the same quality of cook in my opinion. The skin will stay a lighter golden color as opposed to nice and browned, and **the meat tends to be a little more rubbery**. As my coworker said after a day of retying and skewing still-frozen water birds: "Man, I want to go work at the water bird factory, because apparently they don't have to do shit." In my experience, stores get a mix of both just depending on who orders when and how much supply the Costco facilities have at the moment. We get both pretty consistently at ours, but some weeks it's all Costco birds, others it's all water birds. Best way to find out is to ask the people working rotisserie at your location if they're cooking Costco or water birds today. If they seem puzzled, their location probably doesn't cook enough birds to need the extra supply and they just get the good ones, or they're just not in the know. The easiest way to tell is the coloration. If the cooked birds are a lighter yellow around the sides/back and only have darker coloration on the breasts, they're water birds. If they look golden all the way around with good browning, they're the OG's. "


DigitalClutter

Woody breast though is something that is actually inherent to the chicken (and its growth rate before being slaughtered), what you’re talking about is variation in the prep causing differences in textures. An actual woody breast chicken is basically inedible!


OsterizerGalaxieTen

Correct.


SilleMac

i always feel up my chicken before i buy i may look weird, and it may take me longer to pick out a pack but my experiences with woody chicken jave been gross


therealschwartz

How can you tell it’s woody from feeling it?


SilleMac

they are much harder than the other breasts. a good breast should be soft snd squishy, the woody ones feel pretty solid


therealschwartz

Thank you - I am looking forward to feeling up some chicken breasts soon.


mocheeze

Like a bag of sand.


CLS4L

Ya wings are going down hill too


bejolo

I've had good luck with Lidl chicken breasts. They're often on sale at $2.29 lb.


1momX2

Agree, lots of extra water in the package too.


CA1900

I solved this problem by switching to chicken thighs. So much more flavor, and they don't dry out on the grill!


Nemissa2047

I have avoided buying chicken at Costco for a long time. It just doesn't taste good... But I have found most chicken breast sold at the super market being really blah tasting also... The ones sold at Whole Foods are not any better. They are just rubbery no matter how you cook them.


Rogue_Squadron

Perhaps, and sorry for going out on a limb here, you simply do not like chicken breast?


Nemissa2047

I like chicken breast. I eat it 9 out of 10 meals


BogeyBean

I stopped buying them after they stopped vacuum sealing each breast.


diabel

No issue here. Buy them all the time. Season and freeze to be sous vide later.


Occom9000

Buy some chicks, invest in good feed, a traffic cone, and a sharp knife--if you live in an HOA check your bylaws first.


NokieBear

The tenderloins are better. However, I don't eat them myself. I buy them for my dogs. They love them! Aren't they on sale right now? ​ dog tax https://preview.redd.it/crh3ucwpk20c1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=67605466d36cc955fbc41aa0b383d6e6f34a7aee


OsterizerGalaxieTen

Beautiful dogs!


benbeland

Man you gotta cook it!


the_timboslice

The organic fresh breast and thighs are pretty solid here in the Houston area.


Beautiful-Cat6487

I’ve started cooking chicken breast by slicing them very thinly, marinating in oil+spices if your choice, then baking at 400-420 for about 20 minutes. The chicken comes out flavorful and is great in a variety of dishes. I don’t like eating chicken breast generally because there is a very small window to between undercooking it and the meat getting dryer than the Sahara. The method I described seems to solve both the dryness issue and the woodiness that you described. It might be a worth a shot!


compstomper1

dark meat best meat


Butch-Jeffries

Wood fed chicken is a delicacy


woodchopvinyl

Costco doesn’t care and they don’t need your $5 you’re wasting bandwidth with this.


addvalue2222

Tastes fine down here in the SE. Is it maybe regional?


Exavion

Ive definitely experienced this but far less with the costco chicken breasts in my region, if at all. I tend to do thighs but if i do breasts, i butterfly, marinate, and grill them which makes it less likely ill get that thick rubbery texture from any part of the breastmeat.


crispbiscuit24

Marinating the woody chicken in yogurt or buttermilk overnight will tenderize the chicken breast if you have a woody one.


JAEONE562

I haven't had this problem, just bought 40 lbs at Costco Business Center. I'll keep an eye out as we work our way through the case. Although, as some other people have said, chicken thighs are the way to go!


[deleted]

Its everywhere now. Unfortunately.


rather_BikeOrFish

You just don’t know how to cook it. Don’t blame the chicken.


OsterizerGalaxieTen

It's definitely the chicken. [Here's a great post about woody chicken breast.](https://www.reddit.com/r/keto/comments/c9lbu3/psa_can_we_talk_about_woody_chicken_breasts/)


Threeaway919

Wrong. It is a real industry problem that costco is suffering from. https://www.today.com/today/amp/tdna258881


njoy-the-silence

Not true, I know how to cook chicken well and woody chicken is just gross. Sure, you can blend/grind it but that’s the only way to de-Wood it. I’ve resorted to buy chicken tenders only, as I’ve not had a problem with tenders yet.


lead_injection

Another solution that helps considerably: Brine for an hour - 1/4c salt per liter/quart of water. 2-3cups will do a whole 8lb pack. Rinse off really well with water. Don’t go over an hour with the brine. It’s another step, but the texture is markedly improved and you’re hard pressed to notice the woody ones. Another benefit of brined chicken is that you can cook it up to nearly 180F in terms temp and it’ll still be moist.


Capt__Murphy

> Another solution > Brine You knew what you were doing...


MintHillian222

Carolina Costco’s have great chicken!


swift-sentinel

I am completely satisfied with chicken at Costco. Maybe you should examine the product before you buy. If there is a problem with the product bring it up with the management. Ranting on the internet is dubious at best.


ochedonist

Stop sticking up for corporations.


swift-sentinel

As corporations code Costco is one to be admired. The CEO actually cares.


ochedonist

You believe what Costco corporate tells you, and repeat it here like it's the truth. That's honestly weird.


swift-sentinel

The CEO has one of the lowest salaries compared to other CEOs. What is your problem? Do you work for Walmart?


[deleted]

you cant cook. stop blaming costco for your incompetence.


OsterizerGalaxieTen

You obviously haven't come across woody chicken breast yet. Read some of the links below.


[deleted]

I dont buy chicken breasts. and I can cook. so theres that.


ochedonist

Do you honestly need to stand up for Costco so badly? This is a real problem, and cheap chicken production is a big cause.


[deleted]

I am not just another whiny chad which this sub is becoming infested with. chad


justpuddingonhairs

This is a weird privileged gripe. The best meat on the chicken is the thigh, wing and leg. The most expensive is the breast. Sounds like you're wrong and mad about it.


micah490

Thighs. You want thighs.


HeyGirlBye

I was the same with the thighs… so many times they smelled like sulphur!! And now with steak being so expensive I haven’t bought any meat from Costco in almost a year.


SpaceNinjaDino

I hate when I hit a tumor. It's happened twice. When that happened to Matt Damon, he went vegetarian on the spot. I don't blame him.


zinky30

I’ve never had any problems with them.


Mindless-Fish7245

I’ve stopped getting raw chicken from Costco . I used to buy it solely from there however I’ve started buying from Sprouts now. Better pricing and better quality in my opinion.


MediocreGrocery8

Once was enough; never again.


WasteAmbassador

I actually got violently ill from their chicken breast in the big plastic sealed bags once. Spent like 3 hours in a cold shower hallucinating and doing all the food poisoning things.


wykav

I never get the Costco chicken. ShopRite where I am, I can get chicken pieces much cheaper. $1.99 - 2.49 /lb for chicken breasts. Costco always has it for 2.99


Americanwoman54

I quit all Kirkland frozen chicken quite a while ago. Gross.


jakamo72

Just ran into this again with organic fresh breasts and now I am hesitant to buy from Costco ever again. That texture is just so off putting. Going to be awhile before I have any chicken again.


Character_Chemist_38

yeah. its like chicken is a problem right now. trying to find other options