Breeding determines the body structure, including the tissue structure and the body proportions. Older and heavier animals have a higher carcass dressing percentage, a better ratio of meat to bone, a higher proportion of edible parts. Moreover, the ratio of essential to non-essential amino acids and that of unsaturated to saturated fatty acids is more favorable. The taste also improves, although only up to  about the twelfth week of life. 

   The three moist cooking methods - boiling, poaching, and steaming - are, admittedly, not the main ones used for cooking poultry, but they are nonetheless irreplaceable. Boiling is generally used only for the preparation of stocks and broths,where a strong concentration is required. When tender, young poultry meat is to be eaten, the gentler cooking methods of poaching and steaming are more appropriate.
   In poaching, the meat cooks slowly in liquid at the hottest possible temperature below boiling point, generally between 167°F and 194°F. It is important to start with cold liquid and to bring it just to the boiling point so that the scum rises to the surface and can be skimmed off. The amount and quality of the liquid also affect the taste of the meat, as during cooking a continual exchange takes place between them. When poaching poultry in water, the pot should be large enough for the bird to be completely covered by the liquid, but no larger, in order to keep the amount of liquid to a minimum. When the meat is poached in a stock, the volume of liquid can be higher, and therefore the pot can be larger if necessary.
   In steaming, the meat is cooked in a perforated container over boiling water in a covered pot. This is a particularly gentle method. Steaming causes the least loss of nutrients and preserves the maximum characteristic taste.

   Poultry meat can be broken into three categories: red meat, white meat and giblets, each of which is treated differently when cooked. The ‘red’ meat is the working muscles of the bird, the legs and wings, which produce a tough, fibrous, dark meat better suited to long, slow cooking (although nothing like the cooking times required for tough red meat from beef or lamb). Having said that, leg meat with sinew and gristle removed is tender enough to stir-fry, sauté, barbecue or bake to shred for sandwiches. The red meat is considered to have more flavour than the white meat; the source of many arguments over the drumstick of a roasted bird. The ‘white’ meat is the breast of the bird. In chicken and turkey, it is white and delicate; it must be cooked through, but overcooking will render it dry and tough. The ‘white’ meat of game birds isn’t really considered white meat at all and can be treated like a beef steak, in that it is best served rare to medium rare. (Asking for the breast of game to be cooked well done in a restaurant is frowned upon as much as a well-done steak.) Giblets are the heart, liver and gizzards of poultry. Often sautéed, grilled, fried or used to make gravy, they can also be steamed or simmered and then ground into a stuffing. When chicken and turkey (whether whole or as pieces) are cooked perfectly, the juices will run clear rather than cloudy-white or pink. As chicken and turkey are soft proteins, they prefer gentle rather than fierce cooking methods. This allows the proteins to set rather than having them contract too fast and force out valuable juices. Skin off versus skin on? The skin tends to be the fattiest part of poultry so does little for the waistline, which is why it is often recommended to buy skinless chicken breasts. On the other hand, the skin is poultry’s built-in basting mechanism. So, although it takes a little more self-control, I recommend that you buy chicken breast and cook it with the skin on, letting the fat from the skin render, basting the lean white meat beneath, then remove the skin before eating the succulent meat. (This method doesn’t work with poaching and steaming.)