I never knew raising meat chickens would be so stressful

[codybird]

I saw a site somewhere and they just skinned the chicken and cut out the breasts, took off the drums, the thighs, and the wing with no wingtip without going into the chest cavity. No giblets, no skin, but no plucking either.

Might be the answer.

http://www.gatewaytovermont.com/thefarm/processing.htm

 

[vermontgal]

The only problem with the above method is no chicken carcass to make chicken soup! Seems a little wasteful.

 

[HenniePennie]

I couldn't believe the price that was posted for processing the cornish-cross.... $2.85 each??? Here in Oregon we have a wonderful processor, birds are very clean when I get them... price tho is quite another thing. They charge by the pound above 8lbs birds cost $4.00 each. So I pay around $100 just for processing with the number of birds I do each year. I do believe it is worth it though.
I remember as a young girl butchering with my dad. He chopped & I held their feet and tossed them. I hated the flopping around they did and the smell of scalding them.......it's never left me (scared for life I guess

) my mom had the job of plucking them. Like I said I will pay for processing.
This year I will be selling some chickens just have to figure what price to charge per lb.

 

[codybird]

Vermont gal,

You should be able to save the carcass and organ meat if you wanted them. You just finish skinning and clean out the carcass.
Still no plucking.

I think they did it that way because they didn't like the giblets.

 

[ChikeeMomma]

I can remember my Grandpa processing his birds. He did give them a hot water bath to pluck the feathers. He would then put them in ice water and to get any pin feathers out, he would take a blow torch and quickly sear them off. He never cooked the skin in doing this.

 

[codybird]

My grandmother would attack the pin feathers with a rolled up newspaper on fire.

I can still see the chickens on the clothesline flopping after she cut the heads off.

Ahh the good old days fifity years ago.

 

[cassie]

Are you sure it was pinfeathers and not hair? Hair has been pretty much bred out of the cornish X.

 

[MysticScorpio82]

Quote:
I was going to use West Gardiner Beef for the processing because they are highly recommended by many people I know. Unfortunately there was a miscommunication and I did not realize that they do not start processing chickens until June 5th. They charge $2.85 per chicken.

I am glad I already have a date with them to butcher my pigs.

Hi steveo, I actually was thinking of sending a few chickens to West Gardiner Beef (Since I live in Gardiner) but I won't get my shipment til the end of june....Do you have any idea when WG Beef stops processing chickens for the year? I have never killed anything in my life (except for some bugs) nor did I grow up in any kind of farm enviroment, so I am alittle hesitant about processing my own Chickens.

 

[steveo]

Quote:
I was going to use West Gardiner Beef for the processing because they are highly recommended by many people I know. Unfortunately there was a miscommunication and I did not realize that they do not start processing chickens until June 5th. They charge $2.85 per chicken.

I am glad I already have a date with them to butcher my pigs.

Hi steveo, I actually was thinking of sending a few chickens to West Gardiner Beef (Since I live in Gardiner) but I won't get my shipment til the end of june....Do you have any idea when WG Beef stops processing chickens for the year? I have never killed anything in my life (except for some bugs) nor did I grow up in any kind of farm enviroment, so I am alittle hesitant about processing my own Chickens.

I am not sure when they stop processing chickens but you can call them at 724-3378 and ask. I actually grew up in a city in Manchester NH and never thought I would be processing my own birds but I will probably end up processing my own birds from now on.

 

[Maryallison]

Wow, I have to say it is only $2.95 to process a chicken? I have never done this, but if you can get the chicken pretty affordable and that is all you pay to process it then it is a good deal. I am only in it for the eggs & the chicken love though!