How to gut a guinea (or any bird, really)

[Fenika]

I figured I'd do a video on how to gut a guinea. There are plenty of videos out there for poultry, but I have my own way and I wanted to show some of the details that I didn't see in other videos or in the books. Right now there's a medium quality video up. I'm working on getting a higher quality one up so you can see those little details I point out better, but my internet connection won't cooperate.

The whole thing is about 11.5 minutes. It covers removing the crop and trachea, what the thymus is, my preferred way to cut around the cloaca, and how I fish out all the organs, including kidneys and lungs. I add my thoughts as I go, and end by showing how to cut the hocks without dulling your knife (which is good, because my knife was fairly dull by that point!)



And yes, that should be ovary, not ovaries

Genitals are located right by the spine and just 'above' (cranial, or closer to the head) the kidneys. Testicles look like a little banana shaped (and colored) bean (in case you have a bird you aren't totally sure of gender based on wattle size)



Oh, also! Fry up liver after soaking it in ice water and rinsing well, within a few hours of slaughter. As I learned online: The sun should never set on an uncooked liver. I like to marinade in a little yogurt (or milk). I fry up some red peppers on butter (use more pepper than liver), then turn up to medium-high and add the liver. Don't overcook- leave it a little pink inside, or it gets tough. Liver is gram for gram the most nutritional part of your bird by far. If you've never had it cooked fresh, give it a try. Or make a little pate.

Any questions?

ETA:

 

[Fenika]

Now available in HD!

Finally!

 

[PeepsCA]

That was awesome and very educational, Thanks!!!!

(And Thanks to your Mom for doing the videoing!)

I'm slowly but surely talking myself into trying this... I'm still a little squeamish about the killing part tho, lol.

I am contemplating on fattening up 4-6 birds for a few weeks first... because I too, like a little fat on my birds (makes for moister meat and delicious broth!)

Thanks again!

 

[Fenika]

Thanks, Peeps

My mom took a guinea home with her for her troubles and plans to cook it tomorrow or the next day. She wouldn't watch the killing part, but she got better at being only a few feet away when I did the deed.

Fattening them up sounds like a good plan. Hopefully you can manage to do it yourself or get someone to help you with the killing the first time. It's not too bad and is over pretty quick.

 

[GuineaLady93]

That was great! Thanks for taking the time to do it.

 

[Fenika]

Thanks GuineaLady

I see the video is now embedded in this thread, which is neat. Hopefully the quality is a little better since it shows up larger than it does on youtube. Now if I could change the opening image to something a little nicer...

 

[ColbyNTX]

Nice video! I think it will help a bunch of people. I have never cleaned a guinea before but I can't get chicken or turkey lungs to come loose so eaisly! I use a scraper which is just a mellon scoop thet has the jagged edges. Do guinea lungs come out eaiser than chicken or turkey? Here is my scraper.

 

[Fenika]

Chicken and guinea lungs are about the same. I think the trick is to start about midway on the ribs (under the lungs, were the bird standing) and then push up. The lungs will start to pop out as you slide your finger(s) between the ribs. A scoop like that would be very handy, but I'm used to digging for them now

I'm glad you liked the video!

 

[PeepsCA]

Quote:
My Mom was here yesterday and I had her watch your video, she thought it was great too! But like your Mom she doesn't want any part of the sticking or killing, and she was already grossed out by how the wet feathers are going to smell

And even tho she has tiny hands I doubt she'll be willing to reach up inside the birds for me either, lol. Oh well, someone to hand me what I need as I need it and do the rinsing as I go is good enough I guess, lol. I've got a mental list of all the materials I'll need for the processing (killing cone/catch barrel, sticking utensil, knives, cutting boards, scalding pot set up, stainless steel bowls, icechest etc), and it looks like I pretty much already have everything I need, I just need to cowgirl up and do it, lol.

We went out and caught a decent sized cockerel and opened his beak up to check out the exact location and angle needed for effective sticking, and I'm fairly confident I can handle that part. But of course the bird went completely docile for us so Mom was putting on the pitty party for him, lol. I was ready to go ahead and try butchering a couple birds right then, but she wasn't up for it

She said she'd rather just pay my mobile butcher guy to do it for us, lol. I'd really like to have some Guineas for Xmas dinner that I've processed myself tho.

 

[Fenika]

Oh, I'm glad your mom watched! Too bad she's more squeamish than mine!

The wet feathers put off a very mild smell. Total non issue for me, who has worked in nasty poultry plants.

Don't forget a yogurt container (or similar) of soapy water to rinse your hands, and a container of ice water for the livers!

And a hose too. I made a kill cone out of a one gallon water bottle and it works great. Even the big birds fit.

I like to think of them going docile as a nice transition to the killing cone part. Plus only a few bite me when upside down! Tell that mother of yours to cowgirl up with you just like mine did.

It's funny because my mom's family all know what to do with a chicken when it's time to process but she never did it. My grandmother on my father's side told me of the day she had to kill a chicken herself (usually The Men did it for her, and she processed). My mom is very happy to buy her food and probably considers it a rise in status or something. And then her daughter (me) gets it in her head to raise meat guineas and drags her into it, lol!