Chicken gizzards are a part of the chicken’s digestive system. Specifically, they are the muscular stomach or ventriculus of a chicken.
The gizzard is located between the esophagus and small intestine in a chicken’s digestive tract. Its main function is to grind up food through muscular contractions and with the help of small stones and grit the chicken swallows. This allows the chicken to break down food thoroughly for digestion since chickens do not have teeth.
An Overview of a Chicken’s Digestive System
To understand where the gizzard fits in let’s look at the basic components of a chicken’s digestive tract
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Beak – Chickens use their beak to peck and ingest food, No teeth here!
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Esophagus – Food travels down the esophagus by peristalsis. Some digestive enzymes are added.
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Crop – The crop is a pouch where food can be stored before moving to the next stages.
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Proventriculus – This is the glandular stomach where gastric juices are secreted to begin breaking down food.
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Gizzard – The gizzard grinds up food through muscular action and grit.
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Small Intestine – Digested food moves to the small intestine where nutrients are absorbed.
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Large Intestine – Any remaining waste moves to the large intestine and then the cloaca for excretion.
The Structure and Function of the Gizzard
The gizzard has very strong muscular walls made up of smooth muscles. These muscles contract rhythmically to grind up food, aided by small stones and grit the chicken swallows.
The gizzard lining secretes a protective membrane called koilin to shield the muscle from damage. This lining needs to be continually worn down and regenerated as the gizzard works.
Grit and small pebbles act like teeth or a millsone to pulverize food as the muscles churn. Chickens deliberately swallow these gizzard stones to help break down food. The combined mechanical grinding makes it easier for digestive enzymes to further break down the food.
- Powerful muscles to create physical contractions and grinding
- Gizzard stones to act as grinding teeth
- Protective koilin lining to shield the muscle tissue
All this allows a toothless chicken to thoroughly mash up food for digestion!
Why Do Chickens Have a Gizzard?
Chickens evolved a gizzard as a way to grind up food without needing teeth. This useful adaptation allows them to have a varied diet of grains, seeds, vegetation, and insects.
Some key advantages of the gizzard include:
- Allows food breakdown without teeth
- More efficient than chewing; can work on food even when not eating
- Can grind tough materials like grains and seeds
- Stones retain their grinding ability, unlike teeth
- Koilin lining is continuously regenerated
For chickens, the gizzard offers an effective way to grind a lot of food using stomach muscles and stones. It’s an important evolutionary adaptation.
What Other Animals Have Gizzards?
While chickens may be the most famous user of gizzards, a number of other animals also evolved this useful organ, including:
- Other birds like turkeys, ducks, emus, and pigeons
- Reptiles such as crocodiles and alligators
- Certain fish like trout and mullet
- Some earthworms
- Crustaceans such as crabs and lobsters
So next time you eat calamari or crab cakes, you’re actually eating the ground-up stomach of a sea creature!
Gizzards appear most often in animals that evolved to eat tough or hard-to-digest foods. The gizzard allows them to extract nutrients efficiently. Chickens certainly benefit from having this extra grinding stomach.
Are Chicken Gizzards Edible?
Since the gizzard is muscle tissue, it is perfectly edible for humans after proper cleaning. Chicken gizzards are considered a delicacy in certain cultures.
Some popular ways to cook gizzards include:
- Simmered in stews or soups
- Fried or battered gizzards
- Grilled gizzards
- In giblet gravy or stock
- Added to sausage or paté
Gizzards should be cooked slowly using moist heat to help tenderize the meat. Their rich flavor stands up well to spices and seasonings.
So while it may seem odd to eat part of a chicken’s stomach, properly prepared gizzards can be delicious! They are packed with nutrients and protein.
Next Steps in Cooking Gizzards
Now that you know gizzards are the muscular stomach of chickens, you may want to try cooking them yourself. Here are some tips:
- Clean gizzards thoroughly before cooking
- Simmer for 1-2 hours in stews or soups
- Use spices like garlic, onions, peppers, paprika
- Fry or bread gizzards and cook at 350°F
- Combine gizzards in dishes like gumbo or fried rice
- Store raw gizzards in the fridge for 2 days max
With some adventurous experimenting, gizzards can be a tasty and nutritious addition to many meals. They are naturally high in protein and iron.
So embrace the gizzard! This unusual body part has a lot to offer for the culinarily curious. Fry up some gizzards and giblet gravy next time you cook a whole chicken. Your stomach will thank you!
What are Chicken Gizzards and What do They Do?
Reading Time: 4 minutes
Some of the most popular questions for new poultry keepers are: what is a chicken gizzard, what is a chicken crop, and where are they located? Chicken, poultry, and wild birds do not have teeth. How is food is broken down and absorbed into the chicken’s body?
To keep poultry, one needs to understand how the digestive system works. As we know, the beak is used to pick up and tear apart feed, vegetation, bugs, and smaller rodents and snakes. A small amount of saliva and digestive enzymes mix with the feed as it leaves the mouth and enters the esophagus on the way to the crop.
From the crop, the food moves to the glandular stomach, also known as the true stomach. It then exits the true stomach and reaches the gizzard. [optin-monster-shortcode id=”kvvnkopxfxloyffia2bc”]
Now that you know the layout of the digestive system let’s talk about how each section functions.
The esophagus is the tube that moves the food from the mouth to the first section of the digestive system, the crop. Those new to poultry keeping often get the esophagus confused with the trachea; however, these serve different purposes.
There is one purpose for the crop, and that purpose is to store food for roughly 12 hours. Think about it like this: chicken and other poultry consume food rather quickly, almost in a panic. Being one of the lowest creatures in the food chain makes them prey to larger carnivorous animals. The concept of “eat and run” takes on true meaning for chickens as it can potentially save their lives.
Throughout the day the consumed food slowly leaves the crop making its way toward the gizzard, where food is then broken, down allowing for nutrients to absorb into the body.
Where is the Crop Located?
The chicken crop is located at the bottom of the esophagus and attached to the glandular stomach. The crop can easily be seen when it is full; look for a small bulge on the right side of the breast.
Virtual Chicken: The Gizzard
FAQ
Is gizzards chicken balls?
No, chicken gizzards are not “chicken balls”. Gizzards are a muscular part of a chicken’s digestive system, specifically a part of the stomach, that grinds food. They are edible and are often found in the giblet pack when you purchase a whole chicken.
Is a chicken gizzard the same as a liver?
Gizzards are one of a loosely defined group of miscellaneous chicken parts known as the giblets (which also includes the heart and liver). These are the parts you find in the little bag usually stuffed into the bird’s cavity—but the gizzards can be purchased separately.
What is the human version of a gizzard?
There is no human gizzard, humans have completely developed stomachs in the digestive system. 2.
Are chicken gizzards chicken kidneys?
Giblets typically include the heart, liver, and gizzard, but sometimes the kidneys can also be present. These organs are considered flavorful and can be used in various dishes, such as gravies, stuffing, or sauces.