And that’s why I’m smarting, for here before me is a feature all about the supple, youthful joys of spring chickens; when I am clearly a tough elderly rooster with greying feathers and a dodgy crow. And that sticks in my craw somewhat.

Still, with whole chooks knocking out at between $5.50 to $9 a kilo, that’s about $10 to feed a family of four, plus sides and other ingredients, so it is good to know a suite of spring chicken recipes for your cheaper eating pleasure.

So, here’s what I’m doing with my spring chicken – other than pointing out to it that I’m the one that’s still walking about, scratching the dirt, while it’s all trussed up in a bag.

Start with my guide to how to poach a chicken perfectly, every time without drying it out.

Thai-style shredded chicken salad

Take the whiter meat off the poached chicken and shred it into a salad with sliced wombok, roasted peanuts, long green shallots, and lots of fresh mint and coriander, with a dressing of fish sauce, lime juice, finely sliced coriander stems and a little sugar. Slices of deseeded long green chilli add pep and texture. Simple.

A range of dishes with similarly sour, sweet, bright notes include san choy bow, chicken quesadillas or soft chicken tacos. White meat, cubed, also makes the best chicken mayo sandwiches; but soft white bread only please!

Find a similar recipe here: Poached chicken with warm spiced couscous salad

Sliced poached chicken salad

Cutting or tearing your poached chicken has a big impact on the final dish. I think the smooth, cool face of poached chicken slices works best in salads featuring heat or creaminess. Take my salad of flat rice noodles, cooked and cooled, with steamed broccoli and Chinese greens. Garnish with more cooling ingredients like fresh bean sprouts, coriander and long green shallots. Dress with a Sichuan-style sauce. To make it, infuse 1⁄4 cup warmed canola oil with 1⁄2 tsp chilli flakes, 1⁄4 cup black vinegar, 3 tsp sugar and 2 tsp sesame oil. Toast 2 tsp Sichuan peppercorns, then grind them with the infused oil.

The great Maggie Beer also has a great chicken salad, where she poaches chicken breast in apple or pear cider to toss through baby gem leaves with blanched asparagus and green beans. This is all dressed with a homemade pine nut mayonnaise.

Spring chicken pie

The brown meat from the rest of the bird is perfect for folding into a pasta primavera, adding to spring broths or ramens, or a roast leek risotto. Especially if the meat is barely poached; not overcooked and splintery. The pinnacle though, I think, is a golden-topped spring chicken pie. All these dishes can get added richness from a stock made with the carcass, trimmings and poaching liquid.

Instead of the usual mushrooms, leeks or corn in the pie, lean into spring veg like asparagus, broccoli, green beans, peas, spinach, zucchini and spring onions. Cutting the veg roughly into slightly different sizes gives you a range of different textures. That’s an Italian trick the late chef Rose Gray, who trained Jamie Oliver and the like, swore by.

Find a similar recipe here: Upside-down creamy chicken pie