The breed has always been known for its table qualities and was widely used by early breeders to produce not only other breeds but also the first meat cross strains. The most popular early cross was with the Cornish or Indian Game to produce an early maturing table fowl. The breed on its own produces a large and full flavored bird with a large breast and for its size is very lightly boned. In its early days it reached massive sizes but all the birds in Australia I have seen or bred have not reached the top weights in the Standard. This does not mean they are small, as the last cockerel cull was a size 22 clean.
Early hatching can alleviate some size problems as can space.
As an egg layer the are moderately good for a meat breed and lay pretty consistently in the first few years but will go broody if allowed, making good mothers. The eggs are a good size and are white to cream in colour. Being what is termed a heavy breed the Dorking is a friendly and tractable breed, easily tamed and popular with the children that visit even though they are a large breed of fowl. For a large breed they can fly well and this has surprised a few people so be forewarned. It can be best to raise them separately from other more aggressive breeds as this docile nature allows them to be bullied and to let them reach full size they need the feed.