Not meat birds but culled

[aldanfac]

Hi so I had the nerve wracking experience of culling some young roosters for the first time. I am a 21 year old girl for reference so this was very hard on all aspects. I think I did good but I cried a lot it was very hard and it was so sad to do especially because I am the sole caretaker it just hurt me but I really wanted to learn and no one was going to teach me so I did it. My questions are with the process, I think I messed up blanching but not too bad. Some of the feathers tips are kind of stuck in the meat and I popped some out but there are a good amount left, is this ok to still eat it this way? I can always remove the skin either way but I am just curious if it’s bad or not. The problem is that I didn’t blanch them long or hot enough correct? I used a fire outside and a large pot, the fire kept the water at a good 150 temp and I blanched them for 40 seconds. Here’s some photos of what they look like, it took 10 seconds to remove majority of the feathers but about 40 minutes of plucking to try to get the stubborn ones out. Second random question is it bad if the small green sac (I assume gall bladder) pops on the liver? My dad loves chicken liver so I saved them for him but one part I accidentally popped that little organ and green juice went on it. I discarded it just because I wasn’t sure enough but I would like to know for the future. Any advice and tips as well is appreciated, I want to live as sustainably as I can myself so the more advice the better. This was my first slaughter ever but I do hunt and this was not the same feelings, it’s definitely a hard reality

 

[Theorrin]

you did very well for your first try! no one gets it perfect. try and get those feathers out, try a some pliers if need be or remove the skins if you want. as for the gallbladder issue make sure you rinse it the best you can. it may make the meat taste bitter though

 

[Sussex19]

You did a great job! From one young woman to another

My questions are with the process, I think I messed up blanching but not too bad. Some of the feathers tips are kind of stuck in the meat and I popped some out but there are a good amount left, is this ok to still eat it this way?

To be honest, I don't worry about the odd feather stub left. They are not going to hurt you, it just doesn't look as nice.

 

[Molpet]

Good job for the first time
I scald 140 to 155 f water with a couple drops of dish soap. Soap helps get through the oil on the feathers . I dunk and swish around until the wing feathers pull out easily. Usually takes about a minute or less.
Like above said can pull out with pliers those stubborn feathers.
Make sure to rest on ice or refrigerator until rigor mortis has passed. Usually a day or three.
How old are they? Cooking method depends on age. Older birds need slow, moist and low temperature. Crock pot or pressure cooker works.

The green bile sack has bitter taste if it splashes on meat. Usually it can be rinsed off

 

[FunClucks]

You did a great job!!!

As you do more of them, you'll get better/faster at it, it takes practice.

I scald at 145-150F until the primary feathers (largest wing feathers) come out easily. I dunk them under the water, including the feet, and check by pulling on the feathers periodically until one comes out easily. Takes mine 1-3 minutes or more, depending on the size of the bird and the amount of water in the scalder, etc. I use a candy thermometer to make sure the temperature is correct, and a bit of dish soap in the water.

You can peel the skin off and pop the nail coverings off the bird's feed and they get squeaky clean and make great chicken stock or dog treats. Also, if you want to grow out cockerels longer, you can make a bachelor pad for them. There's Articles in the Articles section that tell how to do both of these things, or you can search on here for threads about it.

For my bachelor pad, I put chicken wire down the middle of my enclosed covered run, and grew the cockerels out on one end of it to keep them away from the hens, and therefore keep the fighting down. Worked great.

It can be hard to process your first birds. I grew out and processed 21 CX in March of this year, and it was my first time slaughtering anything. It helped that the CX all pretty much looked alike and I didn't name them. Tried to care for them as a group rather than individuals.

I had 12 cockerels I grew out for 3 months (I was trying to breed olive eggers and only got 8 hens), and when it came time to process them, I was just as happy to sell them in the hopes that a few of them would find a flock home, rather than becoming dinner straight away. They were so gorgeous and such individuals, i was not looking forward to processing them at all. But if I hadn't found a good price for them, I would have eaten them. I keep my egger flock for pets, and my other flocks for breeding/selling/eating.

You can also use a torch to burn the feathers off the skin if they don't pluck well, like a cooking torch.

 

[BarnyardChaos]

A few of my tips:
I scald at 145-150-deg-F, and swish the bird around in the water for about a minute, give or take. I grab a few wing feathers and pull them out. When they come out freely with little resistance, it's ready. If I have to tug, it's not ready and back into the pot it goes for a few more seconds. But keep it in too long and the skin cooks a bit, and then tears too easily. It takes a few times of doing it to find your 'sweet spot' of when is the right time to remove from the scalding pot. From your photos and description, it sounds like you just didn't scald long enough. Next time you'll do better, I promise.

As for the liver and gallbladder, I'm picky about that too. You only burst ONE? My goodness, you're doing great. That's a tricky bit to get it cut off without destroying either part. If one bursts and the liver is still pretty whole and shiny, I quickly rinse it off very well. If the liver is a bit damaged and the bile gets on the damaged parts, then I throw it out.

 

[aldanfac]

A few of my tips:
I scald at 145-150-deg-F, and swish the bird around in the water for about a minute, give or take. I grab a few wing feathers and pull them out. When they come out freely with little resistance, it's ready. If I have to tug, it's not ready and back into the pot it goes for a few more seconds. But keep it in too long and the skin cooks a bit, and then tears too easily. It takes a few times of doing it to find your 'sweet spot' of when is the right time to remove from the scalding pot. From your photos and description, it sounds like you just didn't scald long enough. Next time you'll do better, I promise.

As for the liver and gallbladder, I'm picky about that too. You only burst ONE? My goodness, you're doing great. That's a tricky bit to get it cut off without destroying either part. If one bursts and the liver is still pretty whole and shiny, I quickly rinse it off very well. If the liver is a bit damaged and the bile gets on the damaged parts, then I throw it out.

Thank you so much all these comments have really made me feel so much better about this process. I am familiar with processing animals so it’s not too foreign for me but it definitely is nothing like hunting, plus their organs are so much different. It’s nice to know tho that I don’t have to discard the liver next time I make that accidentally little cut, thank you so much

 

[Molpet]

Thank you so much! They were both 13 weeks old, I was honestly going to try to wait a little longer but they started crowing and becoming very aggressive to the other chickens so it was time to go. What do you recommend the best way to cook them is? I was going to quarter them up after chilling for a few days but is it better to just cook the bird whole?

At that age you can cook them almost any way you want. If you want to fry or pressure cook, I would part them out. I roast a lot whole .

 

[aldanfac]

At that age you can cook them almost any way you want. If you want to fry or pressure cook, I would part them out. I roast a lot whole .

Great thank you so much for all your tips I really appreciate it

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Honestly, depending on your eating tolerances and how you cook, you might not even need to remove the feathers. I know it sounds kinda nasty, but some little feathers aren't going to cause stomach issues after being cleaned and cooked on the bird.

Very good job. I know it's tough, I'm in a similar boat in terms of age and caretaking position, so I know how it feels to care for birds that you later eat