humblehillsfarm
Crazy chicken lady
Wednesday we processed 19 Cornish X. Most birds weighed between 5.5 and 6.5 pounds when dressed out. Yesterday we tried chicken livers for the first time! We kept all edible parts, including the feet.
Did you know chicken feet make some of the best stock? Chicken foot stock are full of collagen, which is essential for healthy hair, skin, fingernails, joints, bones, etc.. Some cultures consider the meat of the foot to be a delicacy for dining, but I decided just using the feet at all was an enormous step.
To use the chicken feet you must first skin them. I got up close and personal with some early Bumblefoot on a few of these birds. I got up close and personal in a lot of ways! Peeling chicken feet is extremely tedious. First you must blanch them for about 15 seconds and then dunk them in cold water. This loosens the skin and scales sufficiently to peel it off. Even the outer layer of the toenails will pop off.
As I am breaking some of the chicken down to their respective parts, I’m also saving the bones and carcass. I plan on making 10 quarts of broth and will can nine quarts. I have a few freezer containers for freezing any extra, or jars that fail to seal.
I sautéed two onions, a head of garlic, a hunk of ginger, some diced celery, and a generous handful of fresh herbs. I added three tablespoons of kosher salt, a bay leaf, and some whole pepper corns as well. I through in six feet and three carcasses. Pressure cooked at 15 psi for ten minutes. I like to use reusable Tattler lids for canning.
I went ahead and include other photos for processing day. I didn’t cry! Everything was bittersweet. I miss the presence of the meat birds, but they were becoming a lot of extra work. They certainly weren’t the same as my sweet laying flock!
Happy Halloween!
Did you know chicken feet make some of the best stock? Chicken foot stock are full of collagen, which is essential for healthy hair, skin, fingernails, joints, bones, etc.. Some cultures consider the meat of the foot to be a delicacy for dining, but I decided just using the feet at all was an enormous step.
To use the chicken feet you must first skin them. I got up close and personal with some early Bumblefoot on a few of these birds. I got up close and personal in a lot of ways! Peeling chicken feet is extremely tedious. First you must blanch them for about 15 seconds and then dunk them in cold water. This loosens the skin and scales sufficiently to peel it off. Even the outer layer of the toenails will pop off.
As I am breaking some of the chicken down to their respective parts, I’m also saving the bones and carcass. I plan on making 10 quarts of broth and will can nine quarts. I have a few freezer containers for freezing any extra, or jars that fail to seal.
I sautéed two onions, a head of garlic, a hunk of ginger, some diced celery, and a generous handful of fresh herbs. I added three tablespoons of kosher salt, a bay leaf, and some whole pepper corns as well. I through in six feet and three carcasses. Pressure cooked at 15 psi for ten minutes. I like to use reusable Tattler lids for canning.
I went ahead and include other photos for processing day. I didn’t cry! Everything was bittersweet. I miss the presence of the meat birds, but they were becoming a lot of extra work. They certainly weren’t the same as my sweet laying flock!
Happy Halloween!
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