Guinea Follies

[brandywine]

I finally got a chance to send my three extra (and extra-obnoxious) cock guineas to freezer camp.

It's the first time I've slaughtered and processed a bird (I field dress and butcher my own deer, so I'm not a complete tyro). I won't try this again without an assistant -- it took WAY too much time to futz with the scald water.

On the second bird, I cut the trachea accidentally, and also the scald water may have been too cold. Whichever the cause, it was a MONSTER to try to pluck.

Of course, I picked Friday to do this because the weather was going to be reasonable. 'The rain will taper off after noon." So I waited until after noon to start, and sure enough, the rain tapered off -- and the howling wind picked up and the temperature dropped.

Any tips on getting a nice clean cut through the carotid without either beheading the bird or cutting off my own thumb?

 

[jvls1942]

Quote:
a little late for cutting their throats, dontcha think>

get somebody to hold the birds wings and feet. then you take the head in one hand and with a very sharp knife in the other hand
cut just through the skin on the under side of the neck. you will know how deep to cut when the blood starts to run..

if you do it alone, hold the body of the bird between your knees

 

[brandywine]

Forgot to add that I was using a bucket with a hole in the bottom, for lack of a cone.

It was harder to get the head through the small hole, but worked just as well once I'd done that.

So I was holding the head and using downward pressure.