Can you tell if bile has contaminated your bird?

[sstrickhausen]

Hello everyone. We just slaughtered a broiler on Saturday. During the processing, I feel very confident that I did not knick the bile sack HOWEVER as I was pulling everything out it seemed like there was some green liquid that came out with the rest. I quickly rinsed the inside of the carcass and continued to process. The bird has now been "resting" in an air tight bag in the fridge for 2 days. I am going to brine it tomorrow. The question though is will I be able to tell if anything has contaminated the bird? Bad smell? etc. OR is it more like "Don't press your luck and toss the whole thing? I'd hate to waste a good bird.
TYI!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

 

[MomJones]

Hello everyone. We just slaughtered a broiler on Saturday. During the processing, I feel very confident that I did not knick the bile sack HOWEVER as I was pulling everything out it seemed like there was some green liquid that came out with the rest. I quickly rinsed the inside of the carcass and continued to process. The bird has now been "resting" in an air tight bag in the fridge for 2 days. I am going to brine it tomorrow. The question though is will I be able to tell if anything has contaminated the bird? Bad smell? etc. OR is it more like "Don't press your luck and toss the whole thing? I'd hate to waste a good bird.
TYI!

You should be fine: you didn't nick the bile ducts (there are two bile ducts--one from the liver and one from the gall bladder) but even if you had you rinsed immediately so I think you'll have a fine, juicy product. I process a lot of chickens here at our little hobby farm and it seems there are "good" sessions and "messy" sessions, like when there's an excess of fat and you can't seem to get a good hold on various chicken parts in an orderly, professional manner.

 

[sstrickhausen]

Thank you! I just quartered her last night and she is in a brine. Dinner tonight!

 

[MomJones]

Love brining. What do you put in your brines?

 

[sstrickhausen]

This time just a salt brine. We've kept it pretty simple so far! What about you?

 

[RUNuts]

agree. Rinse the green liquid off as soon as you see it and everything is fine. Don't delay.

I use whatever fresh herbs I can reach in the garden. Basil and rosemary did the best last year. This year is dry. Add peppercorns and boil brine. Worked great.