What is this on the drumsticks of my chicken?

July 8, 2018 8:41 AM

I just got home from Whole Foods with a whole chicken. When I went to prep it I noticed these scaley looking things on the ends of the drumsticks. Was my chicken turning into a snake? And, more importantly, can we eat this?
posted by bowmaniac to Food & Drink (9 answers total)

This is where the feet start, the foot has this scaley skin all over. Would not eat it personally but chicken feet are eaten in some regions of the world.
posted by 15L06 at 8:46 AM on July 8, 2018

Here a photo, they look quite like human hands.
posted by 15L06 at 8:50 AM on July 8, 2018

Don't the drumstick connect to chicken feet? Which kinda look like that?
posted by JamesBay at 8:56 AM on July 8, 2018

Was my chicken turning into a snake?

Other way around. Your chicken used to be a dinosaur.

You can see in a pic like this that at their ankles chickens transition from fleshy (formerly, here) feather-bearing legs to scaly feet.

In conclusion it is normal for birds to be gross.
posted by phunniemee at 9:03 AM on July 8, 2018

Sorry, to be more clearer by "this" I meant the whole chicken not the little ends part. Clearly I hadn't thought about what is below the drumstick. I thought maybe Greyscale was setting in or something. But sounds like basically the answer is that this chicken was just trimmed a little farther down the leg than other chickens I've bought so the foot part is more noticeable? Or its ankles were a little higher?

The point being, in a few hours we're going to enjoy awesome slow-cooked chicken and veggies and none of us are going to fall victim to Garin's curse.

Thanks AskMe!
posted by bowmaniac at 9:08 AM on July 8, 2018

But sounds like basically the answer is that this chicken was just trimmed a little farther down the leg than other chickens I've bought so the foot part is more noticeable?

Yep, this is correct. I've actually never seen a chicken for sale that had a little bit of the scaled part attached! They're usually cut to entirely remove the foot (or less commonly in the US, sold with the entire foot still on).
posted by insectosaurus at 9:41 AM on July 8, 2018

It seems as if the yellow color is a membrane, or something similar, that can be peeled off after blanching, and that if this is done, the feet look pretty much like the rest of the chicken.
posted by Maxwell_Smart at 10:16 AM on July 8, 2018

The drumsticks are fine. If you make chicken stock, add these bits. If you cook much, I recommend making chicken broth with leftovers of skin, bone, and chicken bits. Easy and tasty.
posted by theora55 at 4:48 PM on July 8, 2018

That's what chickens look like. Eat it.
posted by fiercecupcake at 8:47 AM on July 10, 2018