Help - Odd chicken texture

Look up Fibroblast chickEn. To save green house gasses https://www.nature.com/articles/s43016-022-00658-w.pdf

My friends and I ate at an exclusive place in Florida. The food has always been great but me, trying it get on track with my diet ordered grilled chicken. The first half of the piece I ate and it was, regular chicken, the second half past the chicken breast divide into the other half breast, was rubbery and grizzly almost, like raw chicken. My husband wanted to try it and I gave him a piece , he popped his eyes and immediately spit the chicken out. I continued to "try" the pieces but the entire right half was like a chewy rubber, almost raw chewy texture, like a rubber cube. I spit all of that out and called for the waitress. She aid she'd get another piece of fried chicken instead and would make sure it was cooked "completely" which terrified me as I am already ill and did not want to aquire any samonella. I almost went weak and filled with fear. The owner came cover and I told her what the waitress said, fearing it was not cooked thoroughly. I was in the dark since the sun was in my eyes directly setting and the light was not good on my table. My friend reassured me it all looked done as far as what she saw. The owner said they were having problems with their suppliers and quality of chicken trouble and assured me that all chicken had temperature gauges in them and were done. I again mentioned what the waitress said when the waitress came out she said she meant that the next FRIED chicken this time would be cooked through. I again panicked and asked if she could bring back a piece that they took back so I can look at it in the light. She got irritated and refused to go into the garbage, although it was probably right on top. I know I asked too much but I dread the waiting incubation time for salmonella. Fortunately, I think, I am on Cipro for another unrelated condition and perhaps it would ward it off. My husband insisted the chicken was done. What in the world happened to a whole half piece of chicken?

I just wonder if these chicken related issues have anything to do with "live agriculture slaughter" which is boiling chickens ALIVE! True story check it out. I can't even fathom this heinous barbaric and outrageous slaughter is used, no not in a 3rd world country, here in the USA! The chicken Tycoons cannot find a more humane way to end a lifetime of suffering to the sufferage unequaled of being hung upside down the inescapable grasp holding their feet/claws seeing what is happening to family, friends, fellow chickens being boiled alive and knowing you are next. Call your congressmen, chicken farmers and greedy heartless chicken tycoons so this torture will stop

Hi there,
I have also come across something very odd.
I buy from a local and popular meat outlet selling for local grass-fed free-range no-antibiotics no hormones-grown meat, poultry farms = Not Factory Farmed.
We’ve enjoyed numerous excellent buys from there.
Then we bought 2 chicken breasts the size of turkey breasts (1st flag?) and with simple cast iron fry and butter basting, they were exceptional in taste, texture, cooking.
But then, a second purchase of similar product, first bite is a TOUGH bite - like eating that very thin band of ‘gristle’ found on steaks, just under the delicious fat layer. Again, the taste, smell, colour, cook, and texture below this layer on the breast were all fantastic….except that outer bit.
Think one of the farms is pulling a quick one on the outlet?

I came across this a few times, and it's gross. What I've also noticed is a difference in color at the market. Raw chicken should have an orangie pinkish color, while this texture issue is coming from a raw chicken that has a pale white looking color. I see it just about every time I'm out there shopping for chicken breast, and now know what to avoid. No issues since. I just had a chicken cutlet sandwich from a deli that had the same issue. Had to throw the sandwich out because of the gross factor.

Seems this thread was useful. Until it wasn't. People just aren't grasping the issue or aren't able to read and comprehend. I get notifications of people complaining about the smell of their chicken tenders now? Time to shut off the comments.

This just happened to me with some 365 chicken breasts from Whole Foods. I thought it might be because I froze and thawed them. I guess I’m switching to organic.

I came across this thread because I was trying to figure out why my raw chicken breasts had a gelatinous texture to them.
As far as this goes, I have also had this situation with chicken breasts and it is described here perfectly with the "rubbery, crunchy, silicone" texture. Not sure if this is the reason, but what I've noticed is if the chicken breasts were not properly and totally thawed, they will tend to have this texture after being cooked.

I bought a bag of Chicken wing parts and it doesn't look like Chicken parts!!! Even the feathers doesn't look the same either.

I'm so glad I found this site. The last two pkgs of name brand, individually wrapped boneless chicken breasts that I bought taste uncooked because of a strange almost crunchy texture, even tho my instant read thermometer is at 190°. There's something going on in the chicken industry that we don't know about. I understand there's a shortage because of some sort of bird virus. Hope whatever they're using isn't harmful to humans. Yech!

I bought my first pkg of Red Bird chicken, boneless breasts. While I was trimming the little bit of fat I quickly noticed that the entire top of the breast started to pull away from the breast. It appeared to have a very large grain in the meat. After grilling and cooling it was tough to cut up and had a really thick grain that was hard to cut through. We decided NOT to eat the chicken so I threw away 2 breasts, a little over a pound that I paid $12.00 for. I am so frustrated with the cost of food vs the current quality.

I just experienced this yesterday, I sous vide a bone in chicken breast at my normal temp and time I've been using and it was like biting into a raw chicken breast. It has an odd "bite" to it, like your biting into a piece of rubber, like a silicone type rubber. the squeaky feel was definitely a spot on description. This has happened to me a few times before. I guess I will have to start buying organic chicken breast.

This is a very old discussion but I had to comment. I had this exact issue today while cooking drumsticks. I checked the internal temperature and they were all between 175-185, well over the safe temperature for chicken. The texture was very slimy, somewhat rubbery and tough. It was very odd and unpalatable. I only ate a few pieces before throwing it away. I am so paranoid about food poisoning that I was initially wondering if my thermometer was wrong and they were somehow undercooked. I'm glad to know this is a quality issue and not something more concerning.

I just had a cgrilled chicken sandwich from Dairy Queen and it felt just as you subscribed it was awful could not eat it!!! Anyone else

IM STONED TO BITS AND JUST LAUGHED AT THIS FOR A SOLID 20 mins every sentence got better and better thanks for making me laugh 🥺🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 chicken texture with a squeaky mouth feel LMAO

I've been noticing this too in New Orleans for at least 3 years. Especially Tyson's chicken. It grosses me out. Chewy & rubbery but also feels uncooked.

Trader Joe’s heirloomchickens are tough tasteless and don’t feel cooked they used to be great now no good terrible & rubbery

I too have had this issue. It's got me thinking and feeling, it's seriously not natural meat. But maybe something pumped into the chicken to plump it up or something injected into it during raising to harvest quicker. It's Nasty. I switched to organic and don't have this issue anymore. I wonder what goes into our food these days.

The texture definitely gives off biting into raw chicken vibes! The moment of panic was real biting into the sandwich I purchased, but upon further inspection it was fully cooked.

Raw chicken or dry rubber bands, I think woody chicken fits because it’s like you can feel each grain of muscle like you can see wood grain.

We had this issue with Heritage Farms at Kroger, but since buying the organic at Costco we are just fine. We’ve purchased Tyson in a pinch without issue as well.
I stopped buying chicken sandwiches at McDonald’s after two failed attempts and Popeye’s is next after bad chicken tenders.
I really think organic is the safest bet; which sucks for those shopping on a budget or for large families. Thankfully I am buying for three people.

I have also had an issue with tough, stringy, inedible chicken legs. Chicken legs are a favorite of ours on the smoker, but after the last experience we’ve shied away. We will prob have to try the organic route with those as well.

Darn spell check, NASTY chicken.

Oops, read all 161 comments and hope find a bit of information about today’s Nancy chicken.

I found this thread tonight after making a sheet pan dinner with green beans baby potatoes and chicken drumsticks. I used homemade “shake & bake” and drizzled all with olive oil. The potatoes and beans were great, the chicken not so much. It was stringy and tough. I bought them fresh today from a local farmer style market. They even had the packaging date on the wrapper - today, Jan 5th. Really, why does chicken taste like this now? I will read all 1

We have seen this happen from time to time (including at dinner tonight). There is a "crunchy" texture when you put your fork into the cooked breast, that is also evident when trying to cut the meat. Pretty frustrating....putting it back in the oven has seemed to fix it sometimes, but more often not. Wish we knew what this was about !

Before anybody dumps Costco chicken.m, I only buy their organic chicken and I have never had a problem. I buy the breasts and thighs.

To add to my previous comment, all 3 times before cutting into the raw breast they did feel different. Almost sort of....deflated in a way. Once i cut into them they have larger than normal muscle fibers and break apart easier than expected but are more difficult to cut across than expected. I hope this saves someone time from cooking them and finding out later.

Kirkland chicken breasts from Costco have been "woody" apparently as well. Had it happen twice before with months separating them and thought perhaps it was how we froze or thawed them. Happened a third time today a week or so since the last bag though I think they were in the same set of 6... Never knew it was called woody. Usually only got woody chicken from KFC and thought it was just fast food being nasty and told myself to quit. Now i need to quit Costco?? Sad. Maybe their tenders will fare better.

I will add, I haven't had an issue since moving away from Springer chicken. It woke me up for sure...I did contact Springer customer service after I had started to experience quite a few breasts in a short period of time, but the real reason I did wrote to begin with was what appeared to be a large tumor mass, which was the final straw for me. The owner does get the message and prefers to answer any and all complaints himself, which he did, and that part was appreciated. His response was startling to me. Enough so, I skip the details. They reimbursed me and sent me a ton of coupons which I just gave away after investigating more on the other issue; the woody breast disease which is brought on by genetic changes in overbred animals. Springer touts itself as the antithesis of "factory chicken" , but its exactly what they are, and marketing throughout the years had me conviced. I have since switched and changed my choices and purchasing habits since my previous comment earlier this year. I buy an occasional Bell and Evans, WF 365 branded and two local farms here in NH that do a nice job. With all that said, just woke me up to what is and what isn't when it comes to buying "all natural"

Last night (20 Oct 2021), is my first time ever with this weird texture. Im a chef, so I know how to cook and thought to myself what in the world. I bought a 4 pack of the bone-in skin on chicken breast and 1 out of the 4 had this weird texture. I have a rotisserie oven and used the thermometer to make sure it was right temp. I read someone say they have no problems when they sous vide

This has happened to me a few times both cooking chicken breast at home and also out at restaurants. I'm a fan of the sandwiches in the "chicken sandwich war" with Chic Filet and Popeyes being my personal favorites. NOTHING ruins a lunch like anticipating that perfect chicken breast only to bite into a texture that is almost indescribable; at first you are certain that it's raw. Then you realize something different is happening and it's not something you can finish eating. It's disgusting. It's been hit or miss with me when cooking at home. It happens probably 1 out of every 10 breast I cook, no matter how I cook it.

Yup, this is something I've experienced recently - it's horrible. The texture is gross, even though fully cooked, it feels like it's raw, rubbery, gummy, very odd texture very unappetizing & unappealing.

I'm glad I'm not crazy!!

I'm confused - reading the comments. I had a chicken sandwich from Wendy's today and the middle was squishy. It was NOT raw but felt raw. I said it felt like it should burst like a rubber balloon in the center.

People here are commenting that there is woody breast but that description seems very different - like stiff and hard.

What I experienced (and it's happened a couple of times) is a raw feeling texture, rubbery, and like it should squirt!

What is it?! Thanks!

Yeah, been scouring the web for a bit and came to the same bit of information: woody breast. After breaking down 3 Springer chickens for regular dinner meals in the last few weeks--- and each time when it came to the breasts, the distinctive and unpleasent "rubbery crunch"

The thighs are fine, which I do love, but the lady isn't always a fan of those. So Springer is 3 for 3...next up: Bell and Evans...I don't remember having such a noticeable condition in that brand, but will see.

This is extremely common in Springer chicken. I have noticed it in both the individual wrapped pieces that come in the zip bags and the plastic trays. Usually if you see a large piece in a tray you know it's going to be bad. On the other hand if you get an individually wrapped piece that's small and/or not pink it's going to be disgustingly slimey and tough.

Look up "Woody Brest". I think that is the issue we are all experiencing.

Absolutely horrible here in AZ. We had to cut chicken completely out of our diet. :(

I thought I was in the clear with this batch. I’ve been buying tenderloins only because of “woody breasts” but it’s so expensive. Pulled these out to find the underside like this. Barf.

First time poster- all because of gross rubbery chicken! 😝 Ugh! This has happened to my more than once- I thought at first I had overcooked, or even cut it the wrong way (with the grain vs. against). Just SO gross! It totally makes you never want to eat chicken again.

SO glad I looked this up. Same thing happened to our family tonight. We threw away what would have been a perfectly good dinner of chicken breasts with honey mustard sauce and broccoli. The recipe is a trusty foolproof one for us, but no one could stomach the crunchy/raw texture. We had to make omelettes. Instantly started googling. Went deep into the comments and saw the name for this phenomenon: Woody Breast. CBS news story from 2016 link at the end of my post, but this is clearly still happening. We purchased Smart Chicken breasts from Harris Teeter and have been for years, but we’ll be pausing add’l purchases of chicken breasts for the foreseeable future.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/woody-breast-could-bite-the-chicken-business/

As all the commenters - I too am super confused and googling why is my chicken breast stiff like a corps??? BRAND organic simple truth and now knowing I’m not cray and they’re others seeking out a reason hoping my chicken has a hardbody- I guess I might’ve found bc its a vegetarian and free runs their homeLands... so yes its normal. NAHHHHH So now I’m sitting here hangry af looking at a juicy hard woody with Extreme disappointment. Learn something new everyday. Salad it is and glad there is a guarantee call number to express concern. Sugar Hill, GA home of A chicken wood

Sitting here looking up weird textured chicken breasts because I’m eating one rn. Seems like a common problem.
I buy them from a butcher and only recently have they started to dish out rubbery ones. I guess it’s the future

Everyone needs to call the USDA and voice your concern. I live in Maryland and we're having the same problem here and I hate that crunchy taste no. I know this is an older thread but it's still happening and now I can't find any stores that don't have chicken with the same problem. I'll be the first to call the USDA today thanks everyone get on your phones

Ugh - this is happening to me right now (which is what brought me to this thread). I thought it had to do with not thoroughly thawing, but as everyone else said, it seemed done in every respect except the consistency.

Disappointed to have to find another dinner, but glad I’m not alone.

Guys! It happened to me too last night for the first time in my life. I'm in Australia. Brand was Steggles chicken breast. Odd raw texture even though I was sure it was cooked. Looked fine but cutting through it felt wrong, and I quickly spat it out because it legitimately tasted like raw chicken rubber. I normally buy Lillydale and haven't noticed the issue with them.

Wow... I can’t believe this is happening to others AND around the world. I’m in Minnesota and recently just started cooking chicken (baking it) and I go above and beyond to make sure it turns out great. The last time I made chicken I splurged and got organic and when it was done the texture was as most are saying “rubbery” but I’d also like to describe it as fatty? Well after that I invested in a meat thermometer off Amazon that had great reviews, and just now cooked some chicken and immediately checked the temp and it was reading 190 degrees fahrenheit in MULTIPLE spots. This chicken was a boneless skinless chicken breast. So I let it rest and cut into it and felt confident. It looked great so I ate a couple of pieces and than BAM one piece felt raw and not cooked and rubbery and fatty and wet? I spit it out very quickly and started to check the chicken more. I couldn’t find anything wrong with it so I started to Google and that’s how I found this thread! The chicken felt the same as the last chicken I bought which was probably 2 weeks ago.

I have noticed the odd texture for the last decade. I buy amish farms brand only now never have a problem. My research and experience has concluded that the possible reason for the off texture is the saline brine injected in most frozen and brand name chicken.

I know this thread is a tad old. But I have found that I avoid this “crunchy” texture altogether, when I sous vide my chicken.

I honestly thought I was cooking it wrong this whole time! But after reading this thread I know I wasn’t... still, it’s weird that I’ve never had the problem since I started sous vide.

If you don’t want to buy the machine, you can use a pot, ziplock bag, water, and thermometer and babysit the chicken.

I know this may sound like it’s a bit hot, but I cook my chicken at 165 degrees for one hour, 2 hours if it’s frozen. I pan fry it on a hot pan for a few seconds for a sere, and it comes out great every single time.

Give it a try!

I am feeling much better about myself, not so much for our food situation. Lately, even before the pandemic but not to the same extent, I have had issues with chicken. My description has been feels raw- some how under cooked but also rubbery the way it gets when it has been over cooked. I have had issues with the taste of other meat but buying organic seems to have helped with those. The Purdue Organic Chicken has been the gross stuff most of the time.

I recently bought chicken breasts from Perdue. Cooked thoroughly and smelled and looked just fine. Some breasts were wonderful. Others had a very odd, off putting texture. Almost as if it was raw! I knew it was cooked, but the way it felt when chewing was as if it wasn't. We spit out those pieces. This has never happened to me before. Very odd.

Hi, I’m in the UK and I have had this twice now. I genuinely thought I hadn’t cooked it properly. It had such a horrible texture, like almost crunchy but was cooked all the way through! Glad I’m not the only one! Thought I was going to give us food poisoning

This is really concerning I'm in Colorado usa and I've bought chicken breasts from both walmart and safeway and cooked them to 165 internal temp (most times I go above it to make sure) either in the oven or on the grill and every pack I've bought for the past few weeks have had at least one breast that has that raw like texture. It feels like an injection of rubber into the meat or something and it completely ruins my appetite for the evening. Are any other types of chicken having this issue like chicken thighs cause if not I'll switch to chicken thighs but if chicken breasts continue down this path it might push me off of chicken forever

I'm from Brazil and same situation. Chicken sucks SO BAD now. It's clearly a worldwide problem. Just registered here to say it, was googling why the * my chicken is crunchy on the inside once out of every 3 times I buy them. They are not frozen, they are fresh. WHAT GIVES! >.<

it’s a relief to hear that this strange phenomenon with chicken isn’t just happening to me! i’ve noticed this once or twice in the last few years, but more so since we’ve been in quarantine (past 6 months.) it’s definitely cooked through, but texture is as if it’s raw. so unappetizing. i always buy organic boneless/skinless from a local co-op so i don’t think it’s only a mass-production problem. at first the thin cut breasts were better but have even had a couple of those with the weird texture. started buying from somewhere else but then had a bad batch from there too (still organic.) it’s so strange because in a package of two breasts, one can be fine and the other inedible! last straw was ordering in from a local restaurant with critically-acclaimed roast chicken last week...same issue on a bone-in breast! at least then i was finally convinced it has nothing to do with me or how i’m preparing the meat. :( dark meat (thighs, drumsticks, wings) always seem to be ok...it’s the breasts that are the problem. so disappointing; has really turned me off US chicken altogether and so sad as i used to really love white meat and would cook it at least once or twice a week!

I’ve been purchasing frozen 10# boxes of 5 or 6 oz. chicken breasts - normally Tyson brand. They almost look like they have been sliced and when I bake them, they turn into a flat piece of chicken that’s rubbery when you eat them. I guess I will stop buying chicken breasts if this is what the industry is going to produce. Definitely not the chicken we used to get.

Thank God I'm not crazy! This has been happening for months! We buy our chicken from an Amish Market in the area, so I figured we'd be safe, nope. Same weird texture (like chewing a piece of rubber) and uncooked appearance (my poor husband - my bad, I was blaming the chef). I will try as some have suggested, smaller breasts and tenderloins. Hopefully chicken farms are seeing these complaints and are considering addressing them!

Tonight we cooked chicken breasts on the grill, I had marinated them in soy sauce and thought they would be good. some were very thin and a couple were thick breasts. omg. they were inedible. when I sawed into the thin one it didn't even look cooked. when I chewed it it was like fake food and didn't taste like chicken. so I spit it out in sink and moved to the thicker pieces. that was worse. My husband said nothing was wrong but I know what a completely cooked chicken breast tastes like and what if feels like when I chew. this Is not chicken. this must be rooster or rat meat. I am off frozen chicken. I will be buying fresh and if I get the same reaction I don't know what to think. Different grocery store for sure. no more wal mart.

I’m living in Japan and came to food52 searching for some answers as well. It’s only been recently in the last few years I’ve noticed this.

Home cooked (1 out of 5) and even twice at KFC (2 out of 3)... haven’t been back since.

It really does put you off chicken.

Same problem year, been noticing a weird texture issue with chicken for years. It's like it's stringy and rubbery at once. I have had better success using 'Just Bare' brand chicken breasts or just resort to cooking more whole chickens.

I’m now part of this club, unfortunately. Cooked what I thought would be a lovely pan-fried honey garlic chicken breast dinner - but to my disappointment the chicken “bounces back” when you bite into it. I’ve been slowly going off chicken and this might be the final straw.
I might try our local market (this chicken was purchased at no frills) and try to find a scrawny little delicious chicken. I heard a show recently on chicken and how they used to be much smaller - and so rich and delicious that you’d only need a small amount to feel satisfied. It’s a drag to have a meal turn out like this after buying all ingredients and spending the time. I hate to waste food!

I was searching for the same problem and now see all these comments. What is so frustrating is making a nice chicken dish (marsala, francese) for company and not knowing who will get the uneatable piece! I am so turned off by all meat and poultry that I am reduced to pasta and fish. The texture really is disgusting.

So this happened to me with frozen chicken breast that were cooked on the grill. I cut it and it was a little hard to cut into but the when I started chewing it had a consistency or should I say texture of it being raw but when I looked at it it was cooked and looked fine. I've been having difficulty lately eating chicken and I this may have been the end for me. Totally grossed me out. I threw the whole thing away and my husband thought I was crazy.

I had the same problem I thought maybe because I didn't pound it out. I ended up throwing it out.

I have been having this issue. I now only buy the tenders and remove the tough tendon

I have had this problem for months and it seems totally random. It is definitely not the way the chicken is prepared and cooked because I prepare multiple pieces at the same time and only some of them have the odd texture. I do better with Bell and Evans. Apparently it is a muscle disorder that is related to genetic breeding. This applies even if your chicken is organic. Please see the following link.
https://www.ciwf.com/blog/2017/02/chicken-has-changed-for-the-worse-and-the-proof-is-in-the-stripes

I have been going crazy trying to figure this out for months now as well. I was happy to come across this thread. What I find is that the chicken has a milky white thick "skin" that is very tough and hard to cut through, and then has the same weird crunch that a lot of you have said. I was thinking it's got to be something either in what the chickens are being fed or what companies are doing to them. I have found that if I can peel that tough layer off, the chicken will cook normally and not have the disgusting texture. I've been so grossed out by it that I'm ready to stop eating chicken altogether. It's interesting to me that it's so hard to find any information on it. If anyone has seen the documentary "What the Health" you'll find out lots of stuff companies do to meat that they don't want you to know about. It was enough to make me stop eating many meats, but chicken was still one that has been a staple, until this started happening.

I too have just taken to google to try and make sense of this weird phenomenon of eating perfectly cooked chicken in which the texture makes its seem raw. I bought 2 chicken breasts from our local higher welfare butcher in Toronto and when I asked if the meat was free range I was told it was Mennonite chicken. I’m not too sure what this means as I’m new to Canada from New Zealand but assumed it was a variation of ethically raised. The chicken breasts were unusually huge (850g for 2 breasts) and I’ve made two different meals out of them. Both meals had this texture problem and were very unenjoyable to eat. To the point where I feel inclined never to eat chicken again. My partner noticed it as well. Crazy that this is a known issue but relieved that it’s not just in my head. I’m surprised that this is happening in higher welfare chicken also.. just had a skim through the article written about it and it’s very concerning. Hope they sort it out soon and if not I think I’ll consider going vegetarian.

I have the same experiences in both Supermarket purchased chicken and from a few favorite restaurants. It is like a rubbery tough texture that kind of snaps as you finally bite through it. This usually accompanies a nasty taste like how stagnant dish pan water smells. It’s filthy. That being said I have only had this happen maybe 1 - 2% of the time of eating this meat I once loved. What does our FDA do with our tax dollars? Isn’t the food and drugs we ingest supposed to be edible and safe for us? It’s called lobbying folks, line the pockets of the politicians as they look the other way. I must say though I’ve never had bad chicken from KFC! How do they do it?! We need to complain to our representatives about this filth, you can’t even become a vegetarian because of all the pesticides, genetic engineering and radiation that’s used. And you better think again if you think organic is really any better. And yes a lot of our foods (meats and veggies included) are imported from god knows where. Maybe we all need to go back to our local farmers if there are still any independent and still in business. What a world we our creating for ourselves! While the politicians keep focusing our attentions and dividing us with the same old topics or issues that have been going on in my lifetime for at least the last 40 years they allow corporations to do whatever they want. Let’s wake up (all of us), it’s not about political differences, human rights, racial matters or even climate change! This is all a class issue across the board, it’s about the super wealthy vs everyone else. Our Government is supposed to look out for and protect all of us! Contact your local representatives and tell them what you think and stop letting them use their typical weapons of mass distraction against you. Pay attention to what is really going on!

I believe it is because Several years ago chickens were smaller 3 pounds or less. In a rush for poultry producers to get more money per pound they started growing bigger chickens up to 6lb plus. This may make that woody texture. When I buy smaller ckn breast I haven't had the issue.

I have had this multiple times in random packages of chicken from
Costco, Lidl, & Zaycon. All the breaths are huge. From Zaycon we would get 40lbs of chicken delivered farm to table. It was less than 40 breasts with average breast size over a lb. I have found that soaking in milk for an hour before cooking or so helps with this funky texture.

I've been noticing this for a couple of months now. We get our chicken from Gelson's, an upscale market here in the Los Angeles area. When we can find smaller breasts at the store, they seem fine, but the larger breasts are rubbery and inedible. We used to eat chicken several times a week, but now I'm looking for other recipes altogether. Has anyone found sources for good chicken? And is there any way to counteract the rubberiness?

I’ve replied to this question before, but as I get emails with every new response, I’m starting to see there are two problems people are finding.

1. Like the original poster, the chicken breast looks mostly normal, but when cooked the texture is as if it is still raw. There is an odd resistance when you cut into it, not with threads of fibrous tissue, but pretty uniform throughout the breast.

2. There are fibrous threads running through the chicken breast, though I haven’t seen much that tells me what biting into one of these is like. I believe this one is what some people are referring to as “woody breast” or something like that.

They SEEM to be two separate issues as the first seems to surprise people with no warning as the breast appeared normal but is as if it’s raw when bit into, and the second you can tell by looking at it and/or cutting into it and it has fibrous tissue.

Just tried to prepare two skinless chicken breast from Publix and it took a steak knife to cut thru it. There are fiberous lines running through the breast and it was tough to cut. I googled this to find out if I can still serve to my family. Thanks to everyone for letting me know.

"Woody Breast" is what the industry is naming it. At this time it is unknown exactly what is causing it but the culprit may be due to breeding practices. Here is an article that covers this topic: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/woody-breast-could-bite-the-chicken-business/

I’ve landed here googling the same issue. Was thinking maybe it was me possibly becoming adverse to chicken because of eating it daily for the past couple of years (Same brand for two years: Springer Mountain Farms). My oven is a convection with a built-in thermometer option. I use it along with an OXO instant read thermometer to make sure the chicken is done. The random raw textures is still when over cooking @179 degrees. This brand of Chicken is used in many major restaurants in the US. Wonder if restaurants are seeing this as well? Or do we get a special kind if chicken from the supermarket?!?!

We buy all our meat at Fresh Market, a local speciality grocer. A few here in Charlotte, NC and around the country. ALL the meat WAS good. This chicken THING may have started a couple of years ago even with them. I took back 5 lbs and they gave me a refund. Of course as you may have experienced, not all pieces are affected. I now save my receipts, mark it in freezer if I choose to store it there. I am prepared to return all next time again if it happens. It doesn't solve ruining your meal and possibly not eating chicken again but I hope if enough people complain they can take it seriously at the production end.

Aside from Perdue and Trader Joe's, has anyone been able to identify other bad sources? Has anyone identified good sources? We had this happy many times with chicken, turkey breast, and pork chops/loin. My wife will no longer eat any of them no matter where I get them now.... I can't blame her, it's disgusting.

I started to notice this about 2 years ago with my Perdue chicken breasts . . .wrote them several letters and they just sent me coupons . . . So I sent them back their coupons and told them they had a BIG problem on their hands that coupons were not going to solve. We have mostly stopped eating chicken as a result . . . It’s gross. Last night I made pork chops . . . We had to throw them away . . . Same thing. I am shocked that there is not more talk about this issue. Soon there will be no good meat left to eat and we will all be eating protein bars. :(

I've had that several times last year alone. I have stoped eating chicken breasts completely because of it. It's almost as if it's a tire rubber texture in my mouth. It's always the same. It'll look cooked and be most, but has a slight variant look to it where you can actually see that it's a funky texture. Even cooking it for an extra hour does nothing for the texture.

YES!! It happened months ago and just happened last week again. Exact description too. I returned about 5 lbs of chicken to a reputable place where we get all our meat. They were good about refunding me me not sure they really understood the issue. Manager asked me to call right away if it happens again, so they can trace the provider. It is also keeping me away from chicken right now!

I've been saying this for the last 18 months but nobody has noticed it except for me. I have been completely avoiding chicken for the last 6 months, then ended up at mcdonald's last week and ordered a chicken legend on auto-pilot. It was like biting into raw chicken, I took it in to complain and they gave me a refund, but it's hard to explain when it looks and feels cooked (albeit a bit spongey). Cooked chicken should be springy, that's how you know it's cooked, I suspect you get the woody effect if you cook it longer to firm it up, but obviously mcdonalds cook everything on a timer so you get the "raw" experience instead.

Oh my goodness I thought I was crazy!!! I seriously gag when I bite into a piece and my husband thinks I’m crazy! I guess it doesn’t bother him but we get ours from Aldi and they are HUGE so I am thinking we will pay a little more for them from somewhere else because I can’t do it anymore!!! I even had that same experience in a restaurant in our small town and asked if they got a different cut or anything and they said no... I love chicken, I need to find something that works though. Can’t do raw feeling chicken 🤮

I work for a farm animal welfare NGO (we work with companies to improve their policies) and we've been seeing this issue come up a lot, as it's not only a quality issue, but a welfare issue as well. These muscular issues are a result of selective breeding for really fast growth and high breast meat yielding chickens (which make up 98% of chicken breeds today raised by companies), and actually is not a result from hormones (as it's actually illegal to administer hormones to chickens and pigs in the US). As other commentators have correctly observed, woody breast, is essentially a muscular disorder that begins to manifest early on in the chickens life and gets progressively worse at they reach their slaughter, weight, which is as few as 4-5 weeks later. On a pathological level it results in vein inflammation, muscle degradation, muscle death (necrosis), and lesions in the muscle. Not only does it result in what you all have experienced in cooking chicken, but is also a painful, chronic issue in the chickens. Here's a short white paper we put together on it in case of interest: https://www.ciwf.com/media/7429726/declining-nutritional-value-of-factory-farmed-chicken.pdf

It's the first time I have experienced this, a raw, "al-denté", cartilage/meat hybrid sponge-like material not comparable to anything I can think of besides a baked apple mouth-feel, that isn't pleasant and completely unpalatable, I'll be looking for the smaller breasts from now on.

OK here goes, It was explained to me like this from a respected butcher. I will butcher this but it is an answer. The chickens are being grown for market too fast. It is more noticeable in the really large breasts. But all could be culprits. These days farmers are able to get chickens to market in 6 weeks. They do that for several reasons. What is happening is it's all about the breasts. I'll wait for the guys to stop giggling ( me included ). The breasts are where the money is.( stop giggling ) The farmers are either pumping them full of hormones or super rich foods to get the breasts to grow very large very fast. Remember organic does not always mean chemical free. I carry several government chemical licenses. The result of these practices are breast meat that has grown to fast for the natural ligaments,muscles,tendons, and all the other natural growing stuff that needs to take place for meat to develop properly. That is the short non scientific answer. I did some experimenting and was pleased. I found some free range chickens in some good little health food store and bought the smallest breasts I could find. I did this for about a month or so and no matter how I cooked them they were not crunchy or woody. They were like chicken used to be. I could not afford to do that any longer so I went back to shopping at the box stores and I always buy the smallest breasts I can find and it is hit and miss but I get the nasty chicken a lot less now with my new practice. If all they have is Frackenchicken then I look for a whole small chicken and I have been lucky to date.

I bought breasts at Trader Joes. They are Woody. June 19, 2019. Very disappointing.

I experienced the strange texture for the first time with Purdue boneless, skinless chicken breasts tonight. First off, they are HUGE, like a turkey breast. I laughingly called it a Frankenchicken during prep. We couldn't eat it; those fibers are too weird and crunch in the most unappetizing way. I took the other, smaller breast, cut into a chunks and quickly sauteed it for our dog. It was so odd: as the pieces cooked, they shrank up, and then exuded a viscous liquid that bubbled. The chicken wouldn't brown, but eventually the liquid evaporated and left a brown scum/skin in the bottom of the pan. We are no longer laughing about Frankenchicken, because that's what it is. It's very disturbing what has become of our food.

I noticed this trend of unappetizing weirdness where some of the chicken breads us normal but prices of it are off

I have noticed this at numerous places including at home

Very frustrating

I thought I was the only one experiencing this issue. First noticed the stringiness when buying chicken sandwiches from fast food restaurants. Then I started tasting it in frozen chicken entrees - some pieces good, some pieces not. I've been so turned off by the taste I've actually stopped buying them thinking it was the specific brand. Luckily I've not had this issue with my home cooked chicken - not yet!

Omg I am having this same issue! Foster farms chicken breasts from Costco! Tonight I cooked them and they looked wonderful. As I was cutting them I felt resistance while cutting. As I began to eat I could feel this Gross rubbery texture. My kids had a awful look on their faces and my daughter finally says this chicken is horrible! While I’m normally hurt when they insult my food, I couldn’t help but agree!! I told them not to eat it and gave it to the dog. My daughter then said mom sorry to say this but your chicken has been like this for a while! I’ve noticed it one other time. If I cook in crock pot it’s fine but if I bake it, it gets rubbery!

Yes!!! I've noticed an issue as well and it's always been difficult to describe it. I think it is Woody Chicken breast as the other poster pointed out. I'm happy to learn this because putting a name to it and understanding that it may have a tell-tale sign (the white striping), may help me avoid it when selecting chicken.
In my experience I notice a tough fibrous texture where you can feel every tissue fiber break under your knife or teeth while chewing. I wonder if what I describe is similar to your experiences.

Have been having the same problem. Hit or miss these days and so as not to ruin a whole meal (not to mention all the time and expense involved), I have just been cooking the meat to death, which, of course, makes it dry. But I'd take dry over this new crazy chicken texture. It has to have something to do with corporate profits, but, eventually, more and more people will become aware of this weird situation and start to back off a bit. Maybe not, some people I've asked think I'm crazy, others agree whole-heartedly. Hope they fix it.

It really feels like they’ve thrown In some othe type of meat, like passed off as chicken but really not; sometimes I wish I knew a lab where they test food, anyone here know of one

Bought skinless breast and the texture when cut into was smooth and taste more like processed than real chicken, i could not eat the taste was weird

I too have noticed this over the last year. Chicken is the only meat I eat, but do no longer because of this same inconsistent and tasteless result of chicken production. I am totally organic and purchase chicken from farms and also Whole Foods. I also have had chicken at restaurants and have witnessed this same unpleasant taste. Not knowing the reason, i search the internet and read an article from the Wall Street Journal. In summary, in the chicken manufacturers desire to meeting the growing demand of "white" breast meat, the chickens have been getting larger and larger through feeding techniques. This apparently (according to the article) is not dangerous to humans, but because of the now excessive muscle fiber in the breast meat, the taste and texture has changed. Not sure how the market will respond to this unsavory tasting chicken, I know what I have done.

I have been coming across the same problem for a while now and I find it gross and disgusting. I switched buying my meet at 8 AM at market now and have come across the same problem with chicken what is going on??

I am so glad I found this thread as I had been noticing this is chicken breasts. And yes, it tends to be the larger ones sold at the butcher counter as singles (by the piece, boned, skinless). I have tried various cooking methods and nothing tenderizes them. The only option I see is to grind them/ chop them in food processor and try them as patties or chicken meatballs with other ingredients. They are even too tough to cut up and stir fry (tried that....not good).

Cut that meat against the grain yo

So relieved to know I'm not going mad. This weird chicken texture is very sad to me as chicken is my favorite go-to meal. What started out as sporadic, is now quite pervasive. Thin breasts, thick breasts, frozen, fresh, chain-store, butcher bought, even take out has a raw, horrible consistency. Not all pieces though, and even parts of one piece may be affected but not the whole piece. Really strange and sad. You know what we have to do.......complain, because the squeaky wheel gets the oil and corporations wouldn't want to lose a dime.

Yes!! Same thing happened to me when I made chicken parm last week..I thought it might be the pounding or the pan, but same thing you describe....cooked but textremely is raw feeling in the mouth...thought I was crazy.

I have the same problem, the breasts are not edible, so crunchy. I don't know what to do. I buy organic chicken breasts and taste horrible. The cheep variety is nice and smooth but then you do not know what they feed them. I wish I could find a brand of organic chicken breasts that are not crunchy.

According to this article, it is not you
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/woody-breast-could-bite-the-chicken-business/
After cooking the same way for 20 years, I have also noticed this rubbery, off, texture in chicken breasts over the last couple of years. Even when others in the same package are fine, there are one or two that aren't.

Thanks Everyone for the replies, especially the link provided. About 15 minutes ago I went to cut the "gargantuan" (LOL, someone elses's word used here) breast to grill up for chicken salad and after rinsing it noticed the stringiness, and I could literally pick and pull off srtingy pcs super easy, that type of thing totally creeps me out I had chills all over immediately, eww! I won't ever buy a large chicken breast again, disgusting texture. Going to make sure I know of the source, they are small, and make sure they have not been injected/brined, thanks everyone.

I'm so glad I found this thread. I'm in the UK and have come across this problem about four times now in the last four or five months. The first was in a batch of frozen chicken fillets from a supermarket, but the others have been from my local butcher who are otherwise very good. It's as described above, you cook the chicken thoroughly, but the texture is almost rubbery as if it is raw and it turns my stomach every time.

Guys, the explanation was identified by SMSF shortly after the original inquiry was made:

The answer lies in the previously hyperlinked article from the Wall Street Journal:

https://www.wsj.com/articles/bigger-chickens-bring-a-tough-new-problem-woody-breast-1459207291

The problem is called "woody breast" and recognized by the industry. It is directly related to commercial chicken producers breeding fowl to produce larger amounts of the white meat preferred by the modern consumer.

In fact, the breast of some of these chickens weigh more than an entire chicken did 20-30 years ago.

This is causing abnormalities in the breast meat that cannot be detected until the meat is cooked. This happens now in about 5-10% of typical mass-market commercial chicken breasts.

As I pointed out in my reply, it appears I have not encountered this problem simply because of my personal preference in smaller chicken breasts (I don't eat a lot of meat, don't have an interest in huge chicken breast portions).

There are only a handful of breed lines sourced for producing commercial chicken here in the USA, so the frequency of "woody breast" is not so surprising, assuming the condition is genetically determined.

The easiest course of action to minimize this problem would be to simply avoid buying gargantuan chicken breasts at the store.

Best of luck.

I hope you check this and respond :)

yes I am haveing the same issue, one few years ago then again recently. It is just in boneless breasts that we have had the issue I called the grocery store manager and he said he has had more than a few complaints on in past and the complaints are restarting again. I did not get the name and brand of the chicken but we will. The chicken was cut for cutlets and prepared as breaded the color and temp cook was spot on juicy and tasteful but on of the 3 breasts in the package that yielded 3 filet's was rubbery taste like chewing rubber-bands, and hard to cut. This is odd yes but consistent with previous chicken breasts cooked prior and why we stopped buying boneless breasts. I will follow up on this but it is still happening and it is disgusting. Its not the cooking its the product for sure.

something is wrong with most of the chicken breast now a days. I have been having this problem for about 5/6 years now ,from store bought and butcher shop chicken breast,Still can't figure it out HELP PLEASE!

I had the same problem with large, bone-in, skin on breasts that were roasted at 400. They were Bell & Evans. I thought that was a better brand and I was buying good chicken. But I couldn't even eat part of it it - the chicken while it seemed to be fully cooked had a crunchy texture as if it were somewhat raw. I used a thermometer on one of the pieces and it read 167, although I am not positive it was the piece I ended up eating because I only measured one piece. I served it to some friends for dinner and I was horrified and it really ruined the meal for me; I hope not them too. They said theirs was fine but I don't know if they were just being polite :(. I am never buying big breasts again! Thank you for this post as I was really perplexed. Glad I am not the only person this has happened to.

Like Janet Jessica I have also experienced this very same problem. Not always, but occasionally when grilling boneless-skinless breast of chicken the texture comes out crunchy. What a turn off, I almost can't eat the chicken although the flavor doesn't seem to be affected, this texture is awful. Mostly, the breasts that I purchase are large weighing one pound plus that I often cut in half and pound, but still get the texture problem. I will try to find smaller breasts to see if that works!

Omg yes! I actually googled this and your same query came up on this site. We really eat a lot of chicken but this crunchy chicken breast issue ( which happens about 25% of the time) is turning me off to even buying breasts anymore. My husband even e perform ex this with a McDonalds grilled chicken sandwich. I wish I knew the answer...... You're the first person I've encountered who's experienced this!

Sorry I can't help you because I haven't bought chicken in a supermarket for more years than I can remember. I'm guessing that, like cv said, your product has been pre-brined. I also do not care for the texture of brined poultry.

Marinading chicken (or any protein) in an acid for too long can make it mushy. I made that mistake with a dish in which the chicken was supposed to marinade for an hour in a mixture based on fresh lemon juice. I figured if an hour was good, all day would be better. Big mistake!

Yes! I'm not alone! I don't have any explanation, but I've had this unpleasant problem lately too - any cooking method, can kind of tell from looking at it and handling it raw that it's likely to happen. I don't know why, but the wsj article seems in the right direction. Maybe a milder version of the defect is sold rather than pulled from the line or reprocessed?

That squeaky mouth feel sounds like brining. Not a fan myself. Some chickens (e.g., kosher birds, but also some others) are injected with a salt solution, particularly white meat, which is essentially brining. Maybe that's the issue.

I have found soaking the chicken in buttermilk for about a half hour really makes a difference in texture and flavor. Then, dredge it in seasoned flour and shake off the excess. It's not plain roasted but it sure is tasty and the chicken is delicious.

What type of chicken are you using? A stewing chicken can be a little tougher, need more slow cooking to tenderize the meat. Roasters can be more tender than stewing hens. If you are cooking free-range chicken, the meat will be a little tougher/chewier.

Side note: we Viets like our chicken on the chewier side and we'll actually pay a little more for that quality.

There is a new-ish problem with some chicken called "woody breast" that seems to fit your description. Read about it here:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/bigger-chickens-bring-a-tough-new-problem-woody-breast-1459207291

As for the way you're cooking your meat, that's difficult to comment on since you don't actually mention how you are cooking it. You should cook chicken to 160 degrees internal temperature on a meat thermometer. Assuming you are doing so, your commentary would indicate that your problem is with the ingredient itself.

Look at your chicken very closely. Assuming you are purchasing prepackaged chicken, look at the ingredient list on the package.

These days, many commercial chicken producers are brining their meat which alters the texture substantially.

I find the texture of brined poultry (chicken and turkey) to be utterly repellent, but some people here seem to enjoy it. Brining also increases moisture retention which essentially allows poultry producers to increase package weight with water.

You should consider changing sources, either switch brands or find a store that has a butcher case staffed by people.

Good luck.