Thanksgiving Turkey Processing

[iron chicken]

I have a BBW named TD (thanksgiving dinner) and I have no idea what she weighs.

 

[ScottnLydia]

I have been raising Midget Whites. Baught them originally as Holland Whites of 2 different ages. The older (larger) ones turned out to be Broad Breasted Whites, whereas the allegedly 'younger' birds turned out to be the Midgets. This spring, the only hen hatched out and succesfully raised 10 babies!

Earlier this summer we processed a jake at 4 1/2 months. At about 7 1/2 pounds, he was wonderfully tender. Last week, we processed 5 toms, all hovering around 12 pounds. The lightest being 11 1/2, and the heaviest being 12 1/2. I forgot to take pictures of them before they went into the freezer, but there were 2, one bagged and one we cooked for a trial, that I did get pictures of.

~S



Guess I shoulda trussed those legs, eh?

 

[Darin115]

I sent my BBW hens to the processor on Wednesday. Got them back today. They ranged from 16 - 21 lbs .. I did not keep the giblets. We had 14 processed and I got all the livers packaged seperately in 4 different packs. I have never ate turkey livers. Hope they are good.

Darin

 

[debir1966]

ScottnLydia: how old were the ones who weighed about 12 pounds? Were they your BBW?

Darin115: How old were your birds when you had them processed?

Mine are a little over 18 weeks right now (4 months)... They do not look big enough to me yet! I was really hoping that at least one of them would be big enough to butcher on the 18th, but that is only 2 weeks away! I can't imagine them getting much bigger in 2 weeks.

I would be happy with a 12-15 pound bird to put in the oven on T-day.

 

[ScottnLydia]

I sent my BBW hens to the processor on Wednesday. Got them back today. They ranged from 16 - 21 lbs .. I did not keep the giblets. We had 14 processed and I got all the livers packaged seperately in 4 different packs. I have never ate turkey livers. Hope they are good.

Darin

I make pate' from the livers, and my wife and daughter hog it all! It's like a spread that they eat with crackers or Fritos.

Simple to make;
Boil the livers in simmering chicken stock until done (about 15 minutes), let cool in stock.
When cool, mash 'em up fine with a fork in a bowl.
Add mayonaise to get a creamy consistancy.
Add salt and garlic powder to taste. Onion powder can be used, if you like, or a combination.
If you use garlic salt, taste it before adding any other salt!

Makes a great appetizer, or so I'm told. Like I said, I only get what I lick off the spoon when tasting it!

Good luck

~S

 

[ScottnLydia]

ScottnLydia: how old were the ones who weighed about 12 pounds? Were they your BBW?

Darin115: How old were your birds when you had them processed?

Mine are a little over 18 weeks right now (4 months)... They do not look big enough to me yet! I was really hoping that at least one of them would be big enough to butcher on the 18th, but that is only 2 weeks away! I can't imagine them getting much bigger in 2 weeks.

I would be happy with a 12-15 pound bird to put in the oven on T-day.

Hi, my birds were Midget Whites and were right at 7 1/2 months. Unfortunately, we didn't know that we had BBW when we got them, we were told that they were White Hollands, so we kept them for breeders. At about 8 month old, severe health problems took their toll. The hen prolapsed and died. It was then that we realized that they were BBW, she weighed about 35 pounds or more! The tom, who had seemed to be stuck in a permanent strutting position, obviously had leg problems, and the others had picked on him so severely that we decided to put him down. Although he didn't look like it, he weighed in at 48 pounds!

Obviously, had we known that they were BBW, we would have enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner when they would have been about 4 1/2 to 5 months old. We were never able to find the fellow that sold them to us as Holland Whites, but as the old saying goes, "Buyer, beware!" I do think I'll stick to turkeys that I can identify by color from now on, too many white birds!

~S

 

[1MrsMagoo]

We are going to be processing our sole remaining BBB for Thanksgiving. He is now 7 months old: The Beltsvilles he is pictured with below are 6 and 7 months old.

We let him out to wander the property most days. He doesn't move too fast anymore, but as long as he has looks and acts healthy, we have decided to let him live...at least till the weekend before Thanksgiving. I will miss him, since he has been the calmest, friendliest of all the turkeys. However, we purchased him for food and food he will be.

We had never had anything but store bought turkey until last month when we ate an extra Beltsville tom: Best turkey we'd ever eaten.

Here is Givi (short for Thanksgiving) pictured with some of my Beltsvilles last month. This guy has the biggest legs I have EVER seen. I have no idea what he weighs these days, but the guys can hardly pick him up when they try. We'll try to get a live and dressed weight when we "do the deed" in a couple more weeks.

 

[chicken pickin]

ScottnLydia: how old were the ones who weighed about 12 pounds?  Were they your BBW?

Darin115:  How old were your birds when you had them processed?

Mine are a little over 18 weeks right now (4 months)... They do not look big enough to me yet!  I was really hoping that at least one of them would be big enough to butcher on the 18th, but that is only 2 weeks away!  I can't imagine them getting much bigger in 2 weeks. 

I would be happy with a 12-15 pound bird to put in the oven on T-day.

I know you weren't asking me but I had my BBWs processed at 20weeks old and they came back at 17lbs and 27lbs

 

[debir1966]

chicken picken - Thank you! I am so glad you posted because that is exactly the info I am looking for. BBW, age and weight! Ours will be 20 1/2 weeks when we process them, I am crossing my fingers we will get between 17-27 pounds! I would be happy with anything over 15 at this point LOL. I am going to have to beg, borrow, or steal a scale so I can get weights! I know we are at least doing the 3 largest before Thanksgiving, and depending on how big they look after processing, we may do the 2 smaller ones also.

 

[Habibs Hens]

i have a turkey for christmas who will be for the pot

have reserved a trio for next year to breed

cant wait