Chicken Butchering Day...

[LimousinGirl]

Thought I'd post a few pictures of today, we butchered about 60 chickens.

Andrew cuts the necks-and was at the wrong place at the wrong time :) we thought about swinging one around and "popping" the neck off like the old days, but it didn't work...

Caleb was the dipper-dips them in hot water to make getting the feathers off easier

using the plucker to get the feathers off.

getting the "insides" out

Anyway, thats a FEW of the pictures...probablly shouldn't post the really sick ones!

[edit: switched the pictures to the right order]

 

[Wewild]

If you will tie a line across some trees or such and tie their legs to the line before you cut their necks, you might not get so much blood on you.

I have seen the neck wringing and it works, I have seen the hatch method and it works. I have done them both. When you got volume you got to get smart.

We had to finish it by hand for cooking.

 

[bigbull338]

looks like yall a busy day of butchering.that was work processing 60 broilers.

 

[LimousinGirl]

Yeah, it WAS a lot of work...and supposed to do about the same amount tomorrow!

Wewild, they usually don't get the blood all over their face, maybe just if they get real close when cutting, and all of the sudden...it comes out.

 

[Carlos D.]

we take our chickens to the hutterite colony --they hang the chickens on a wire and then stick them in the head, to kill them no jumping around and they say it's easier to pluck them

carl

 

[andybob]

With small numbers of chickens I use the 'stretch and twist' method of dislocating the neck, then place them in a cone with the head sticking out of the bottom, this way you can bleed them with minimal 'splatter' and the cone keeps them from flapping.

 

[LimousinGirl]

With small numbers of chickens I use the 'stretch and twist' method of dislocating the neck, then place them in a cone with the head sticking out of the bottom, this way you can bleed them with minimal 'splatter' and the cone keeps them from flapping.

Maybe we do it sort of the same as that, we put them in a cone, cut the vein in their neck, and let them drain. Then after the feather plucking, they pull the neck off instead of cutting it.

 

[KenB]

Thought I'd post a few pictures of today, we butchered about 60 chickens.

using the plucker to get the feathers off.

Where do you get the plucker?
Hand plucking them is the thing I dislike most of all.

 

[hillsdown]

Thought I'd post a few pictures of today, we butchered about 60 chickens.

Andrew cuts the necks-and was at the wrong place at the wrong time :) we thought about swinging one around and "popping" the neck off like the old days, but it didn't work...

getting the "insides" out

Caleb was the dipper-dips them in hot water to make getting the feathers off easier

using the plucker to get the feathers off.

Anyway, thats a FEW of the pictures...probablly shouldn't post the really sick ones!

YUK, that is why I buy mine ready for the roaster.
Glad to see you all do it together as a family.I still remember the first time I saw this up close at my Aunts farm.I was a city slicker then.

 

[LimousinGirl]

But don't you know all the stuff they do to the store-bought ones? :) At least these you know where you food is coming from, these don't have all that stuff in them!

 

[hillsdown]

We don't buy from the store either. There is nothing better than free range chicken.

 

[Tod Dague]

Anyone ever tried skinning a chicken?

 

[LimousinGirl]

We don't buy from the store either. There is nothing better than free range chicken.

I guess you thought we didn't package them and stuff, just leave them like they look up there...we actually do, up there is not the "finished product", when finished they look like a store bought chicken, all wrapped in butcher paper. I guess they are as you say, ready for the roaster!

 

[LimousinGirl]

Thought I'd post a few pictures of today, we butchered about 60 chickens.

using the plucker to get the feathers off.

Where do you get the plucker?
Hand plucking them is the thing I dislike most of all.

I'm sorry, I didn't see this earlier. It was a company in New York State, but I'm not real sure of the name of it. If you really want to know, we could look for it. Hand plucking must be hard, I have not done it though-a plucker is really nice.

 

[Jogeephus]

If more people knew what chicken was supposed to taste like it would really hurt our cattle sales. Nothing like some real meat on the bones rather than fat off the juvenille birds they are raising now.

 

[flaboy]

Anyone ever tried skinning a chicken?

Yeah, I skinned some during my last butcher party. Pretty easy compared to plucking. If I had an automated plucker like in these pictures I probably wouldn't have skinned any. I cook quite a bit of skinless chicken just because it has less fat in it.

 

[KenB]

Anyone ever tried skinning a chicken?

Yeah, I skinned some during my last butcher party. Pretty easy compared to plucking. If I had an automated plucker like in these pictures I probably wouldn't have skinned any. I cook quite a bit of skinless chicken just because it has less fat in it.

How do you go about skinning them?

 

[flaboy]

Anyone ever tried skinning a chicken?

Yeah, I skinned some during my last butcher party. Pretty easy compared to plucking. If I had an automated plucker like in these pictures I probably wouldn't have skinned any. I cook quite a bit of skinless chicken just because it has less fat in it.

How do you go about skinning them?

Much easier than I first thought. After having skinned many furry animals I just used the same process.

I cut a ring around the legs where the yellow starts and then slide the knife up between the skin and meat. I get enough so I can grab it with my hand and just pull it off like a sock. I then do the same to the breast area. Works pretty good and is quick. Of course you loose the wonderful fat :-)

Same way I skin a rattle snake except I have a had time finding his legs. Actually I use scissors on rattlers.

 

[KenB]

Anyone ever tried skinning a chicken?

Yeah, I skinned some during my last butcher party. Pretty easy compared to plucking. If I had an automated plucker like in these pictures I probably wouldn't have skinned any. I cook quite a bit of skinless chicken just because it has less fat in it.

How do you go about skinning them?

Much easier than I first thought. After having skinned many furry animals I just used the same process.

I cut a ring around the legs where the yellow starts and then slide the knife up between the skin and meat. I get enough so I can grab it with my hand and just pull it off like a sock. I then do the same to the breast area. Works pretty good and is quick. Of course you loose the wonderful fat :-)

Same way I skin a rattle snake except I have a had time finding his legs. Actually I use scissors on rattlers.

Thanks flaboy,
I am going to try it next time I butcher a chicken.

 

[circlet]

LimoGirl,

You just reminded me of probably the only chore I hated growing up, but thinking about it for a minute, I'd go out and do it right now if it meant Grandpa and Grandma were around!

Some folks have mentioned their means of "execution" already, so figured I'd throw in my 2 cents. When we took the heads off, Grandpa used to stick their head under a bucket, someone would step on the bucket and then he'd just pull. It didn't stretch the neck as much as you'd think. I've never run across anyone else who used to do it that way. They would flop or run around if he dropped them of course, normally after about the second headless chicken had been thrown at me and chased me halfway across the barnyard (much to grandpa's delight!) I'd take Rocky (our collie dog) and try to slip down to the creek.

My poor mom could've used that plucker though, that was primarily her job...I've never heard of such a machine, I'll have to tell her about it. It will probably inspire her to dress 40 or 50 again next summer!! :lol: