Five Acre Farms Products

What does local food mean?

General Posted by Adam Friedman

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The way we look at it, local is about more than just distance. Local means knowing where our food comes from and what practices and processes were used along the way. It means paying farmers fairly to support their responsible farming and business practices. Local means growing the region’s economy and actively participating in the community. It means restoring the connection between farmer and consumer. We call this being Positively Local.

Want to participate in the local food movement? See which groceries carry Five Acre Foods products near you.

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How buttermilk makes this Nashville Hot Chicken sing

General Posted by Adam Friedman

If you didn’t know already, buttermilk is a crucial ingredient in southern fried chicken. It’s the acids in buttermilk which tenderize the chicken by breaking down the proteins in the meat prior to cooking. We were reminded of this delicious fact when we tried this Nashville Hot Chicken recipe on Southern Kitchen. The recipe is simple to follow and the results are Deeeeeelicious!

Nashville Hot Chicken

Serves: 4
Hands On Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 7 hours and 0 minutes

Ingredients

Seasoned Flour
8 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup garlic powder
3 tablespoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon Old Bay Seasoning
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder

Hot Chicken
4 cups buttermilk (Five Acre Farms Buttermilk)
1/2 cup hot sauce
1 (3 1/2-pound) chicken, cut into 8 pieces
Vegetable shortening or peanut oil, for frying
5 tablespoons cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

To make the flour: In a large bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients until well combined. Pour the flour mixture into a heavy duty brown paper bag and reserve for frying.

To make the chicken: In a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and hot sauce. Add the chicken and submerge in the buttermilk mixture. Transfer to the refrigerator and marinate for 4 hours.

When ready to fry, remove the chicken from the buttermilk mixture, allowing any excess to drain off. Place the chicken in the bag with the flour. Clasp the bag at the top and vigorously shake to completely coat chicken with flour. Remove chicken from the bag, tap off excess flour, and transfer to a baking sheet lined with a wire rack. Let rest at room temperature for 15 minutes.

As the chicken is resting, fill a large cast iron skillet one-third of the way up the sides with melted shortening or peanut oil. Heat the oil to 340 degrees.

When the oil is hot, add the legs and the thighs first, placing them around the sides of the skillet. Cook for 3 minutes before adding the breasts and wings. Use a wire splatter screen to prevent excess grease from adhering to your kitchen surfaces. Cook until the chicken is golden brown and crisp on both sides and the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees, 14 to 16 minutes. Transfer the cooked chicken to a clean baking sheet lined with a clean wire rack. Reserve 1 cup of the frying oil.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the cayenne, brown sugar, paprika, chili powder and garlic powder. Carefully whisk in the reserved frying oil until a loose paste has formed. With a pastry brush, coat the surface of the fried chicken chicken with the sauce and serve hot.

WHAT IS FIVE ACRE FARMS?

General Posted by Dan Horan

WHAT IS FIVE ACRE FARMS?

FIVE ACRE FARMS brings the best-tasting local food to grocery stores, restaurants and food shops. We find outstanding farmers using sustainable practices, pay them fairly and tell their stories. Our business helps to create new jobs and promote the local economy, expand access to local food, safeguard the environment, preserve farmland, protect groundwater and foster proper animal treatment. We call this being Positively Local®.

Our Products

Sourced and produced within 275 miles, our products are sold in retail locations and top restaurants throughout New York City and the Tri-State Region. We sell Milk, Half & Half, Heavy Cream, Buttermilk, Kefir, Greek and Regular Yogurts, Cage Free Eggs, Apple Juice and seasonal Apple Cider. Each package specifies the farm where that batch of the product was made.

To Be Positively Local, we:

KEEP FARMERS FARMING
We pay our farmers fairly—and directly —a price that’s above the market rate and reflects what it costs them to make high-quality food, hire and treat people properly, take care of their animals and protect the environment.

IMPROVE ACCESS TO LOCAL
We bring the best local food to grocery stores and price our products so as many people as possible can buy fresh, quality local products.

CONNECT YOU AND YOUR FARMER
At FIVE ACRE FARMS, we tag all of our products, so you know exactly where your food comes from and can be sure that the farmers who made it adhere to sustainable practices. We vet them so you don’t have to.

PROMOTE LOCAL ECONOMIES
We create jobs across the region by partnering with local farmers and processors and doing business with local vendors.

IMPROVE THE ENVIRONMENT
Our farmers have higher standards when it comes to our founding principles of protecting groundwater, replenishing soils and conserving energy.

PRESERVE FARMLAND
Through our work with farmers, we are supporting more than 5,000 acres of farmland in New York, Massachusetts. Connecticut, and Vermont.

What’s With The Name?

It’s been more than 20 years since Dan first had the idea that became FIVE ACRE FARMS. At the time, he was running WALDINGFIELD FARM, the organic produce farm he founded in Washington, Connecticut in 1990. Back then, Dan envisioned a company that would own or franchise a number of five-acre farms along the East Coast, working closely with farmers to market the food they produced. (Why Five? You can produce a huge amount of food and operate a viable business on just five acres of land.) Dan’s original business plan became part of his application to business school, but that was not the end of it. Over the years, while getting an MBA and then working in the grocery business and restaurant management in New York City, Dan continued to refine his concept. He ultimately concluded that FIVE ACRE FARMS could make local food available to more American consumers, and in doing so support a greater number of responsible farmers, by partnering with, rather than owning, farms.