Gender politics of eating a roast chicken!!

[ColdOopNorth]

Apologies in advance if this is the wrong place to ask and it seems rather trivial but.... I come from a traditional Northern family and I am in my 50's. I have always , from early childhood, believed that it is 'normal' when carving a roast bird to give the men the legs and the women get the breast! This was 'the rule' growing up, my husband took this as normal too and I never ever questioned why until my non-British friends came for lunch and thought it was the most weird, bizarre thing ever and are still talking about it weeks after. Is this a thing for anyone else and any idea why? I suspect it is to do with men being allowed to pick up the leg and gnaw on it whilst us 'ladies' are far too refined - just goes to show how deeply ingrained some of these stereotypes are eh

Breasts are more womanly, innit. And dainty.
My cat gets most of the breast when I roast a chicken.

Actually I thought this was going to be about sexing chickens.

It certainly isn't a British thing. Its a you thing.

Actually we used to do this growing up then when we got older my big sister had the other leg me and my mom had the breasts

I have never heard of this it is very bizarre indeed. What do you do with the wings?

Ummmm... No offence, but it's weird. The legs are dark meat and the breast is light. Different flavours and textures.

So it's the opposite in our house as I prefer dark and husband prefers light!!

How bizarre I've never heard of this. We shred and share as we both like the drumstucks I'm a fan of penis portions, though I know it's Mn suicide before you flame and I don't care. My dh is 13 1/2 stone I need smaller portions or I'll weigh that which at 4 inches shorter than him isn't ideal health wise. Maybe the leg meat is richer in protein so this habit has grown from there - clutching at straws.

I've never heard of this either, growing up we seemed to prefer different bits which worked out well! The best bit is the meat kinda under the leg leading onto the underside.

I'm not far off your age, Northern and have never known this to be a thing other than reading about the experiences of others. Everyone has always been given some light and some darker meat unless they've asked for only one type.

I know from an older relative with a long career in catering that chicken would have been a luxury not so long ago and had a more pronounced flavour too. I imagine the division you are familiar with was more to do with giving the better meat to the men. Possibly this was to do with working physically demanding jobs.

Cheaper production coupled with health concerns have lead to chicken being ubiquitous and the breast meat being viewed as the prime part of the bird for its lower fat content. Palates have changed too and bland meat is what appeals to many these days.

I'm late 40's and northern. I don't remember that from my childhood but, now I've thought about it, I don't remember eating roast chicken at all as a child which is a bit odd. My Mum used to buy chicken legs just for the dog

I thought the hackneyed old joke about roast chicken was 'are you a breast man or a leg man?' which would imply men could choose either?

I'm from Yorkshire and I'm sure I've heard of this.

I think people who call this sort of stuff bizarre and odd are very rude, thanks wow for some information

Growing up, we kept a tally and had a fair chicken rota - I.e, if you had a leg last time, you got breast this time, no matter who you were in the family. Guests would always be given first choice though.

I know lots of people who only ever gave the legs to the men and breasts to the women/children. I used to look longingly at the legs when having dinner at a friend's house but was never allowed.

My in-laws look aghast every time they serve up chicken and DH and I promptly swap plates. He prefers white meat, and I prefer dark but it gets commented and tutted on every single time.

(For those on the Christmas dinner thread, yes, these are the same in-laws who have never heard of fish for breakfast)

Legs are more calorific and fatty, it’s just another variation on penis portions really.

I've not heard of this, though my nan always gave the men more meat when doing a roast.

I don't like dark meat so it would be the same in my house simply bc my partner likes legs and I don't.

Oh, and from the same relative, the wings are the cook's perk as they wouldn't usually be served to paying customers, but are tasty and you wouldn't throw them away.

White meat for women here. Delicate, less fat, no bones so easier.

Shock at the table when american DiL asked for leg meat as it has more flavour.

Now DH has breast as he doesn't like bones or flavour. Mic Tür for everyone else,

From the south and I grew up with this. I put it down to my DF getting stuck with what my DM wouldn't eat!!

I was always aware that the breast was considered the premium cut, so may have been seen as ‘good manners’ to offer this to ‘ladies first’, as well as it being carved boneless.

But brought up in the midlands with Yorks grandparents, I never encountered this.

We tussle over the thighs.

In other families / cultures the wing rules.

There is a poem by a ME poet, a woman whose name begins with a Ch I think, about the ceremonial dividing if the chicken along hierarchical family lines. The Dad gets first choice / best bits.

I agree with this - it might be outdated but the basis for this is chivalry! I was always aware that the breast was considered the premium cut, so may have been seen as ‘good manners’ to offer this to ‘ladies first’, as well as it being carved boneless.

So men get the most tender part of the meat and women thet the dry chest? Never heard of this no sense.

I'm from Liverpool, DH is Gloucester born and bred.

We still do this. Both brought up with it as 'the norm'.

The difference now is we also choose to do it differently, sometimes!

And the dog gets the wings!

and women thet the dry chest? If that's the case you are cooking it wrong. Try cooking it upside down, or pushing herbed butter under the skin.

It’s funny how something that probably started out as a personal preference becomes an ingrained stereotype to keep everyone in their place.

Have you ever challenged it? I think it’s really important to, and very effective to do it with polite puzzlement. “But why?” is a very useful starting point for dismantling everyday sexism.

When my in-laws come for Christmas they only eat breast, and when my family come there aren’t enough legs on the turkey. We used to feed the breast to the cat.

It’s funny how something that probably started out as a personal preference becomes an ingrained stereotype to keep everyone in their plac It was more about feeding the man who worked down a pit, on dockyards in my famly; farming and factories in DHs.

Those 'penis portions' used to be based on need. It is habit and outdated custom that maintains them.

@timeisnotaline I would contend that chivalry evolved as a narrative with the dual purposes of constraining and legitimising patriarchal violence.

In its courtly form, it dresses up maurading and murder as knight’s code, and in elevating some women as unattainable creates a hierarchy of female sexuality that is owned and controlled by men.

Doing something for so called chivalrous reasons, is usually unexamined sexism. Often the same chivalry extended to upper middle class women is used to oppress other less privileged classes where these things really matter. Chivalry is a form of misdirection.