We started butchering our birds this weekend and this was our first time raising the cornish x. We cooked one up that was about 5 pounds and it was a very tasty bird. I just put 3 more in the freezer and have one more in the refrigerator for later in the week. After this weekend we should have another 11 in the freezer so we should have plenty of chicken until we do our next batch.
I'm glad to hear that! I keep looking at the eight I have in the baby pen and think...I'm never doing this again. My other chickens are so cute...and these are just little gluttons. I know this means more meat (or fat) for us but right now I'm not liking them very much.
Well, deb, I for one am glad to hear that. We just got a batch of 25 Cornish X Rocks today and they are just the cutest little things. Our kids said, "How can we eat these adorable chicks?" I told them we won't be eating any of the adorable chicks. We'll wait until they are all grown up and by then they'll be ready, and willing, to eat them up. I'm glad to see you agree!
Congratulations! Glad you were pleased with your efforts. We finished processing the last of our 30 Cornish on Saturday, let them sit in ice water overnight, and vaccuum sealed them into bags on Sunday. We're already planning for our next batch that we'll probably start in two weeks. Was this your first time processing your own birds?
Quote:I figure it will be less stressful after I build myself a plucker but for now I will scald a little longer and pluck the last 11 by hand.
Quote:Yes this was my first time processing my own birds and I learned that hand plucking is no fun lol.
I actually enjoy hand plucking... it's like the calm before the storm for me. Storm = gutting. Our first chicken we ate was a bit stringy, especially in the dark meat. I don't think we let it sit long enuf (24hrs) before cooking. The last 4 we processed over the weekend are brining so should be super moist and tender.
