How 'healthy' Are Coles Roast Chickens?

LJLCC on 23/03/2018 - 12:53

Hi all.

I'm looking to see if anyone knows much about what goes into these chickens. I'm asking because i'm looking to do large volume meal preps (say a week at a time) and want to find quickest/easiest way to do this. Starting a new gym routine that will require healthy eating with more protein etc. The vegetable and carbs side of the meal prep is pretty straight forward - such as boil broccoli and a side of sweet potato.

However for the protein I figured rather than spend a good amount of the weekend cooking up meats, why not grab a coles roast chicken or two. But I stopped to think about it for a second and anything this cheap surely can't be great for you. The meat itself will probably be fine as a source of protein, but what about the sugars/oils/salts/brine that is used to make them (as well as any chemicals or hormones that these chickens are injected with to get them to size).

Anyone know if these this will be an issue with a bulking program?

Thanks!

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Comments

        • buckster on 25/03/2018 - 13:05

          @Punknerd: The Mekong river is probably one of the most polluted rivers in the world, and Basa has a fairly poor nutrient composition vs other fish.

        • JimB on 26/03/2018 - 14:50

          @Punknerd:

          Or $1 difference per 200gram serving.

    • DiscoJango on 24/03/2018 - 22:28

      not sure how people can actively return and buy basa fillets, they are the worst of the worst. a can of tuna is over 9000 times better.

      • Stewardo on 24/03/2018 - 23:57

        I don’t know how they sleep at night, terrible fish, never return actively for this fish, and Vietnamese, and from the Mekong oh no, how horrible!!

        • Diji1 on 26/03/2018 - 23:20

          I don’t know how they sleep at night

          For one they probably don't get pointlessly neurotic about food with no evidence.

      • yabree17 on 25/03/2018 - 16:24

        Even my cat recently rejected basa fish!!

  • bonezAU on 23/03/2018 - 14:22
    +2

    Here's a link showing the ingredients and nutritional panel for a Woolworths BBQ chook, I would imagine Coles chooks are somewhat similar.

    https://www.woolworths.com.au/shop/productdetails/433190/woo…

    If you don't eat too much of the skin or stuffing, I suspect the sodium content would be reduced a fair bit.

    • dcep on 23/03/2018 - 15:39

      the skin taste good though

      else i'll just boil breast meat

  • Slinky0111 on 23/03/2018 - 14:56

    pretty sure the Coles chickens aren't seasoned anymore. just the stuffing

  • PJC on 23/03/2018 - 15:32
    +14

    They are absolutely all dead.

    • Kangal on 25/03/2018 - 20:20

      And they cause runny diarrhoea [Mum, 2002-2018]

  • PissLUR on 23/03/2018 - 18:52
    +2

    I prefer woolies' peri2 or lemon and herb chickens. They are the best. However, it is very difficult to buy.

    Anyway, woolworths'roast chicken tastes better than coles.

    • kiitos on 24/03/2018 - 15:49

      Yes, and the wooolies ones are larger too.

    • sli on 25/03/2018 - 00:53

      In what way are they more difficult to buy? Are they heavier?

    • MathNerd on 25/03/2018 - 12:15

      Saying "peri-peri" as peri2 (I'm guessing you mean peri squared), that gets the MathNerd tick of approval.

  • qwijibo on 23/03/2018 - 20:19

    Not a direct answer, but when I was looking for something similar, I ended up using a sous vide machine to cook chicken breasts instead - the result is a consistently tender and juicy breast.

    Here's what I do:
    1. get skinless chicken breasts (free range, organic, halal, whatever floats your boat)
    2. season - salt & pepper or garlic, chilli, praprika, etc
    3. cut each breast in half and put each half in a sandwich bag and seal it using the immersion method
    4. chuck the bags in the freezer

    The downside is, it takes about 2-3 hours to cook from frozen in the sous vide, so I'll generally cook 2 or 3 at a time, every couple of nights to use in salads the next day. If not frozen, they'll cook in about an hour.

  • Hithere on 24/03/2018 - 08:39
    +7

    Q) How 'healthy' Are Coles Roast Chickens?

    A) Not healthy at all, they are dead.

    • MrBear on 24/03/2018 - 14:36
      +2

      17 hours too late I'm afraid…

  • Sho on 24/03/2018 - 09:32
    +1

    Wouldn't touch them with a barge pole: http://healthland.time.com/2011/03/28/are-hot-dogs-better-fo…

    • freemoneyhunter on 25/03/2018 - 14:36

      Thank you, neither are healthy to consume I agree.

    • Diji1 on 26/03/2018 - 23:24
      +1

      Looks like the typical clickbait garbage that time is famous for.

  • Hirolol on 24/03/2018 - 10:50

    Should be fine.
    Has anyone said to remove the skin and not eat the fatty bits?
    Should be sweet then.

    • Diji1 on 26/03/2018 - 23:26

      Fat is not unhealthy and please tell me you aren't still on the fat makes you fat idea.

      Since most Australian's problem is overeating removing fat is a terrible idea for their health.

      • iDroid on 27/03/2018 - 12:31

        I like to point at nature where the vast majority of carnivores are slim, fit and "healthy looking", whereas a significant number of herbivores are fat in appearance and their bodies contain a lot of fat (which is healthy for them).

        Cows don't eat fat.

        Cows are fat.

  • rad1 on 24/03/2018 - 11:52
    +3

    Why not go for the free range ones. Bit more expensive but hopefully chicken had a happier life. Taste much better IMO.

    • hadz on 26/03/2018 - 16:16

      I eat takeaway whole chickens alot and everytime I buy the free range one from woolies in the green packaging it always tastes off. Might be to do with no one buying them as much so they only make them once in a while, meaning they sit in storage for longer.

  • belongsinforums on 24/03/2018 - 16:26
    +1

    I gained 10 kg eating these, tuna, beans and protein shakes. Limit cardio and lift heavy. The chickens are just steggles chickens. Ignore the fearmongering

  • AddNinja on 24/03/2018 - 19:20
    -1

    The two Coles supermarkets around me just do an awful job on roasting chicken, regardless of their healthiness. They are watery, hot, yet somehow underdone, tasteless and fatty. When a chicken is roasted properly, you can eat just about all the meat on the chicken. You’d be lucky to be able to choke down 2/3 of it on a Coles chicken. Disgusting, would not recommend.

    • omgitzrick on 25/03/2018 - 14:40

      My Coles is the same. They’re awful.

  • MessyG on 24/03/2018 - 19:24
    +1

    Do you have a pressure cooker? You can buy chicken breasts and poach them in a pressure cooker. Takes about 7 minutes for two breasts, 15 minutes for four. Then you can shred the chicken and refrigerate or freeze.

  • FW190 on 24/03/2018 - 19:51

    from what I have seen, staff at Colesworth usually sprinkle some seasoning onto the chickens just before they were placed into the oven, so if you are worried about sugar/salt, just don't eat the skin/stuffing, and soak up any excess fat/oil with some paper towel.

    Not sure about bulking, but I have been working to loose weight and I would eat like 1/4 of these chickens plus heaps of salads a few nights a week, in the last 14 months, I have lost 30kg, but obviously these chickens ain't the only reason for it.

  • itsdougie on 24/03/2018 - 20:13
    +1

    KFC 9 pieces for $9.95 Tuesday will help you bulk

    • airal3rt on 24/03/2018 - 20:59
      +1

      Help you bulk those arterial plaque deposits you mean. Mhmmmm, delicious trans-fats…

  • funkydan2 on 24/03/2018 - 20:58
    +1

    I know the OP's question was about health, but this is ozbargain, so cost is of interest too. This podcast from NPR (America) goes into why whole roast chicken from the Supermarket is 'cheaper' than the raw ones.

    • retiredfeline on 25/03/2018 - 11:58
      +1

      No TL;DL? I searched and articles say they roast chickens approaching use before dates? Is that what the podcast says?

      • funkydan2 on 27/03/2018 - 09:52

        Not according to the podcast. Their research is that roast chickens are small, and thus more per kg than raw whole chicken.

  • Major Mess on 24/03/2018 - 21:27
    +2

    Not very, considering the fact that they have been decapitated and cooked, which leaves them pretty much dead I would say.

  • DiscoJango on 24/03/2018 - 22:28

    i had a coles chicken for dinner tonight. thought i would mix things up a bit and poured some nandos sauce on it, put in the oven for a bit. came out alright!

  • lainey13 on 24/03/2018 - 22:57
    +1

    They are so dry ! Roast or poach your own. Really really easy. Only hard if you don't have an oven.

  • Georgevic on 25/03/2018 - 00:39

    Eating must be very boring for you, it sounds like you're deathly afraid of seasoning and flavour.

  • Powershopz on 25/03/2018 - 09:41

    Do Vietnamese style coconut poached chicken breast or oven baked chicken thighs with a good spice rub.

    When you're eating the same thing everyday it helps a lot. There are a ton of forum posts on body building sites with recipes.

  • greater mimic on 25/03/2018 - 11:26
    +1

    Don't know if you've had Coles chicken before, but if you put it in the fridge you can really see how much fat is on it as it goes all hard. There's a heap. You are better off buying breast pieces from a butcher and cooking it up yourself. Just add cook garlic and onion in a frying pan, chuck in the chicken cut up, and throw on spices.

    Alternatively you could get your protein through eating plant based foods and avoid meat. That way you won't eat unhealthy animal fats etc. If you're looking to build muscle you only need to eat 1 gram protein per 1kg body weight, so it's not like you need a lot. Legumes like chickpeas are a great protein source

    • freemoneyhunter on 25/03/2018 - 14:41
      -4

      Yes well said, animal meat is unnecessary and detrimental to health. More protein in beans and theory of vegetable proteins being incomplete is wrong, all the testing was done on rats and did not transfer to human studies, people are eating a rat diet.

      • Whomastadon on 25/03/2018 - 19:11

        Eating red meat is the healthiest thing you can do. It's how we evolved.

        Chicken meat, although high in protein, has no nutritional value.

        Vegetarian diets lack specific nutrients, eg: iron / vitamin b 12.

        Fat is good for you.

        Sugar and carbs are bad.

        • greater mimic on 26/03/2018 - 10:45
          +1

          I'm not going to comment on the rest of your post, but animal fats are definitely not good for you, and carbs are definitely not bad for you if you don't eat an excess amount.

        • Whomastadon on 26/03/2018 - 20:17

          @jkerrigan:

          Animal fats are good for you. It's what we evolved eating.

          Some carbs aren't bad for you per say. But they are most definitely not the healthiest option,

        • greater mimic on 26/03/2018 - 22:02

          @Whomastadon: it's pretty common knowledge that saturated fats are bad for you. I guess we have differing opinions.

          I agree that white carbs aren't good for you because they're devoid of most nutrients, but wholemeal rye bread, brown rice and quinoa etc. provide a lot of energy and are rich in nutrients.

          Maybe we should just agree to disagree.

        • Diji1 on 26/03/2018 - 23:31

          Chicken meat, although high in protein, has no nutritional value.

          This, someone knows stuff.

        • freemoneyhunter on 27/03/2018 - 16:33
          -1

          You don't know what you are talking about, World Health Organisation has red meat classified in the 2A group, ie probably carcinogenic. You need to wake up to yourself, you have the entire diet upside down. Fat is not good for you, it is the worse thing along with meat. Carbs are good for you as long as they are non processed from whole foods. If you continue on with your high meat and fat diet, you will die young, the people who tell you to do this know is rubbish, they are lying to people who should change their diet but don't want to and giving them an excuse not to follow a healthy diet which has been known now for decades.

          Vegetarians suffer no vitamin deficiencies, you might be surprised to know that people who eat meat are more likely to have B12 deficiency, not vegetarians. Only difference is grass fed cattle and free range animals as they come into contact with the B12 producing bacteria which is soil bound.

        • samfisher5986 on 29/03/2018 - 12:08

          I've heard and agree with everything you've said but I've never heard of this "chicken has no nutritional value"

          can you provide a source?

        • Whomastadon on 29/03/2018 - 12:37

          @freemoneyhunter:

          Everything is carcinogenic nowadays.

          Humans evolved eating meat and fats. It's what our body thrives on.

          You can't argue with science and evolution. Unless you are religious. Which is essentially what veganism is.

      • RADICALIST on 25/03/2018 - 19:58

        Go away with your vegan propaganda

      • Diji1 on 26/03/2018 - 23:35
        +1

        animal meat is unnecessary and detrimental to health

        Hahaha.

        Vegans really are delusional.

    • Diji1 on 26/03/2018 - 23:31

      Animal fats are not unhealthy.

      For Christs sake.

      • greater mimic on 27/03/2018 - 00:40

        I just wanted to provide an alternative that's more environmentally, economically and ethically sustainable. Personal health is only one aspect to consider. Though I realise now it's gone a bit off topic.

        • Whomastadon on 27/03/2018 - 14:13

          People should only focus on what's more healthy for their body, which is red meat.

          The other factors are negligible when it comes to personal health.

        • greater mimic on 27/03/2018 - 15:34

          @Whomastadon: That's a very naive and selfish way to go through life.

        • freemoneyhunter on 27/03/2018 - 16:35

          @jkerrigan: He won't be around for long

        • greater mimic on 27/03/2018 - 16:57

          @freemoneyhunter: I appreciate the support freemoneyhunter, I really do, but you don't need to be making these kind of comments. You will receive a lot of backlash from people who disagree with you, as you can see has already happened.

        • Whomastadon on 27/03/2018 - 21:52

          @freemoneyhunter:

          Science disagrees with you unfortunately.

  • nikey2k27 on 25/03/2018 - 12:10

    if you remove the skin they are very heath.

  • gregsurname on 25/03/2018 - 19:19

    Ozbargain, your one stop shop for bad nutritional advice.

  • star-ggg on 25/03/2018 - 21:40

    If you're worried about the salt content just spread the meals out over the week and don't add salt to the sides for that meal.

  • The Gent on 25/03/2018 - 22:16

    Just…look at the RDIs on the packaging?

    They are full of salt (hence, why tasty)

  • idonotknowwhy on 26/03/2018 - 00:14

    How 'healthy' Are Coles Roast Chickens?

    Not very, they've been roasted (they're dead!)

  • ozzpete on 26/03/2018 - 00:28
    +1

    Disclaimer: I am NOT a veterinarian.
    However I would say since they have been at high temperatures of about 175degrees for extended periods… I'd say they aren't too healthy:/ Possibly a little dehydrated, from the heat and lack of drinking water

  • BRYCELICIOUS on 26/03/2018 - 09:48

    Do you have a BBQ OP? I used to buy 5kg of Chicken Breast from the butcher $7.99/kg and then season and cook them all at once on the BBQ plate. Takes longer to dice the chicken afterwards it seems lol.

  • bemybubble on 26/03/2018 - 09:57

    Mate i'm meal prepping with chicken all the time. I usually just buy in bulk from Aldi and do a combination of:

    Fajita Chicken using Fajita seasoning from aldi

    Mustard Chicken using mustard seeds, dijon mustard and a little honey. pop it in the oven for a bit and the long you leave it the better it is (i.e. the chicken begins to break down so you can shred the chicken)

    soy chicken - Soy sauce and a little brown sugar or honey in a pan or oven.

    I was going to start using roast chicken but to be honest I keep forgetting :/

  • Larkdord on 26/03/2018 - 13:54

    OP, I started a meal routine recently and in the way with trail and error figured out the easiest Chicken roast.

    Just marinate chicken breasts with Onion powder, garlic powder and a bit of salt and pepper and let it sit for an hour or so (overnight is even better) spray some coconut oil just before you put it in the oven for 30-40 mins. Tastes excellent compared to some of the other healthy chicken recipes..

  • kenunderscore on 26/03/2018 - 14:17
    +1

    You should be mindful that a roast 'ready to eat' chicken consists of the Breast, Thigh, Wings, Skin etc. which all have a different macronutrient profile. For the purpose of meal prepping, you want to be as precise as possible (depending on how strict you are with your diet) with your macros. When I began my meal prep I considered the same thing, but then worked this out:

    Coles/Woolies Roast Chicken: $7.90 @ 0.8 - 1.2kg (this includes bones/cartilage and stuffing weight)
    https://www.woolworths.com.au/shop/productdetails/433190/woo…

    Coles/Woolies/Butcher Raw Chicken Breast: $9 @ kg (predominately protein with minimal fat)

    It ends up working out to be more cost effective and nutrient effective to buy raw chicken breast. However this doesn't factor the need to season and cook it yourself. Although, I consider cooking a hobby so don't mind this, and if you want to be even lazier, its very easy to oven whole chicken breasts then break them up into serving portions.

    Take this information and decide what works better for you and for your financial/gym goals.

  • theHMASfriendship on 27/03/2018 - 09:11

    1 chook per day gotta eat big to get big #yeahbuddy #lightweight

  • tonyjzx on 02/04/2018 - 17:20

    Colesworth $8 chickens are great fresh out of the oven. Its worth waiting for.

    If they been sitting around 30 mins then… yeah… pass.

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