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Comment by mc32 | Hacker News Reader

Are these the same as the special occasion black chicken soup they serve in East Asia?[1]

If so, they're not unusual and people think they are gamier and tastier than regular chickens. In any event, they carry a price premium.

[1]http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/17/dining/17blac.html?_r=0

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No, these are closer to regular chickens, but all black. The ones used in those soups are called Silkies and are a more distinct breed of chickens. (Fluffy plumage, smaller, and apparently smarter.)

It says it right there in the first sentence. It's a Silkie chicken: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silkie

We had silkies growing up. I don't remember their meat being black, maybe we didn't eat those for some reason? (They're smaller than a standard chicken.)

I wish we had them when I was a kid; they look pretty funky.

The Wikipedia article makes it sound as if they all have black meat (not just the black ones.) I guess that would be a good reason to not eat them (convincing children they taste good might not be worth the effort if you have regular chicken anyway).

The skin, meat, bones, and major organs are generally "black." Silkies are common at Asian markets here -- heck, I bought one this past weekend (for soup!) for $7.99, and there were literally hundreds available.

We tried to keep some because they have a good disposition and because they're different, but we also had some Reds and the Reds just tortured them. It was ridiculous. The meat is blue/black.

A lot of farmers keep silkies because they make excellent surrogate mothers. You probably wouldn't eat them very often if you were using them as such.

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