Culling a single bird

Hi all - unfortunately it looks like we are going to be culling a bird when my husband is home for the weekend. We've just got a bad egg so to speak. She is broody, eating eggs, won't leave the coop, aggressive towards us and a big bully to the others. It's creating a bad dynamic.

Is there anyway to cull a single bird for meat? Do you have to have equipment? Just looking for the best route after the action step is complete.

The best memory I have of my material granny was a Saturday after the crops were laid by and we were all sitting in the back yard eating watermelon. Chickens ran in and out between us looking for bits of melon and of course the watermelon seeds that we spit out. A white pullet ventured to near granny and she struck like a 20 year old, grabbed the pullet by a leg, wrung the pullet's neck and tossed the still flopping body up next to the apple tree were granny dumped her dish water. Then she went back to eating watermelon. The next thing out of granny's mouth was "Recon we'll have chicken and dumplings for Sunday dinner" (the mid-day meal in this part of the world.) If a 79 year old snuff dipping grand maw, dressed in a homemade flour sack dress, and Sunbonnet can kill a chicken it can't be that hard to do, so I'm reasonably sure that you'll also be able to cull a hen. I can promise you that you won't feel a thing.
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Unfortunately a setting hen likely won't have enough meat on her bones to make one good h'orderve, so proceed with that in mind.
 
Yeah, with the two of us it was pretty quick from caught to pressure cooker.

I wonder if the pressure cooker would over ride the chemical process of rigor? Any CSI fans know how extreme heat effects rigor? You probably couldn't physically cram the whole bird in unless you have a large cooker, but you could halve or quarter it.

I also like the skin. It's been Honey's decision to skin, and since he's wielding the knife, it's his decision. With do cockerels I haven't pushed it, because they get moist cooking. But, since I do love me some roast chicken and want to raise some CX this fall, our summer project will be to build a drum plucker.
 
Yeah, with the two of us it was pretty quick from caught to pressure cooker.

I wonder if the pressure cooker would over ride the chemical process of rigor? Any CSI fans know how extreme heat effects rigor? You probably couldn't physically cram the whole bird in unless you have a large cooker, but you could halve or quarter it.

I also like the skin. It's been Honey's decision to skin, and since he's wielding the knife, it's his decision. With do cockerels I haven't pushed it, because they get moist cooking. But, since I do love me some roast chicken and want to raise some CX this fall, our summer project will be to build a drum plucker.
Gonna experiment with the resting times and between slow and pressure cooking later this summer.
Will let you know then.

But meanwhile........I've got 3 young cockerels (13 weeks) butchered Thursday resting in the fridge right now,
they'll be good to go onto the grill tomorrow evening.
Slim on the flesh, but the skin should be divine......and any bones make killer stock.
 
The best memory I have of my material granny was a Saturday after the crops were laid by and we were all sitting in the back yard eating watermelon. Chickens ran in and out between us looking for bits of melon and of course the watermelon seeds that we spit out. A white pullet ventured to near granny and she struck like a 20 year old, grabbed the pullet by a leg, wrung the pullet's neck and tossed the still flopping body up next to the apple tree were granny dumped her dish water. Then she went back to eating watermelon. The next thing out of granny's mouth was "Recon we'll have chicken and dumplings for Sunday dinner" (the mid-day meal in this part of the world.) If a 79 year old snuff dipping grand maw, dressed in a homemade flour sack dress, and Sunbonnet can kill a chicken it can't be that hard to do, so I'm reasonably sure that you'll also be able to cull a hen. I can promise you that you won't feel a thing.
lol.png


Unfortunately a setting hen likely won't have enough meat on her bones to make one good h'orderve, so proceed with that in mind.

That is just a flat out great story and memory I am sure. My grandmother told me stories about culling a chicken in that manor but I never got to witness it. I am new to raising chickens and live here in the south and my first chicken meal with one of my birds will definitely be chicken and dumplings, probably in the pressure cooker although that may not be necessary because my table birds will be young cockerels.
 
Gonna experiment with the resting times and between slow and pressure cooking later this summer.
Will let you know then.

But meanwhile........I've got 3 young cockerels (13 weeks) butchered Thursday resting in the fridge right now,
they'll be good to go onto the grill tomorrow evening.
Slim on the flesh, but the skin should be divine......and any bones make killer stock.
Ummmm.... the skin is Bon! Wunderbar, and delicious, all at the same time.
 
Gonna experiment with the resting times and between slow and pressure cooking later this summer.
Will let you know then.

But meanwhile........I've got 3 young cockerels (13 weeks) butchered Thursday resting in the fridge right now,
they'll be good to go onto the grill tomorrow evening.
Slim on the flesh, but the skin should be divine......and any bones make killer stock.

A one minute soak in a large pot of scalding water, preferably in the back yard, (150 to 160 ish degrees or so) and a keen knife to pierce the roof of the chickens' mouth and into the brain case before the soak will make the feathers come off with very little effort on hubby's part. Trust me.

A chickens' brain is roughly located North of a line drawn between the back corner of the chickens' eyelid and the bottom of the ear opening. Use a thin keen blade, preferably curved and with the cutting edge facing away from you. Trust me (again) knives are dumb instruments or tools and they are unable to differentiate between your fingers and a dead chickens' brain. Proceeded with caution.
 
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We have never pierced our chickens' brains after killing. Oh, wait - we decapitate ours - it wouldn't make any difference....
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Anyway, if your water is the right temperature, you can scald them for 30 seconds or so - however long it takes to dunk and swish them - and the feathers peel right off. Boiling is too hot. It makes the skin tear. Too cold, and the feathers don't come off as easily. Unfortunately, I can't tell you what "just the right temperature" is because my hubby is the scalding expert. He gets it where he wants it, and it works every time.
 
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We have never pierced our chickens' brains after killing. Oh, wait - we decapitate ours - it wouldn't make any difference....
hide.gif
Anyway, if your water is the right temperature, you can scald them for 30 seconds or so - however long it takes to dunk and swish them - and the feathers peel right off. Boiling is too hot. It makes the skin tear. Too cold, and the feathers don't come off as easily. Unfortunately, I can't tell you what "just the right temperature" is because my hubby is the scalding expert. He gets it where he wants it, and it works every time.
I scald at 145-150F with a bit of dish soap, swishing with tongs to saturate, until wing feathers come out instead of lifting bird....... works great, most the feathers peel right off with no skin tearing...no 'hubby' or any other help here.
Tho the 13wo cockerels I recently butchered had feathers coming in...so that takes longer.
 
I scald at 145-150F with a bit of dish soap, swishing with tongs to saturate, until wing feathers come out instead of lifting bird....... works great, most the feathers peel right off with no skin tearing...no 'hubby' or any other help here.
Tho the 13wo cockerels I recently butchered had feathers coming in...so that takes longer.
Oh yeah, that takes forever.
 

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