Killing, Plucking, Eviscerating, & Cutting Up Your Chicken - Graphic!

[Sunny Side Up]

Now you've made me curious as to what I would find in my roosters' gizzards. I haven't ever opened them up to look inside, I usually toss them & the other organs to the laying hens circling the cutting table like land sharks. I bet I would find Legos in my birds' gizzards, they're everywhere else in the house & yard.

 

[shelby528]

Ok, so now that I looked at this..I am proud to say WOW...AMAZING JOB!!

 

[robbdebbie]

I really appreciate you posting this information with pictures. I hope to jump into meaties soon!

 

[Emzyyy]

I don't mind people butchering chickens so much anymore but does it hurt them to just bleed out instead of cutting their head off completly so they can't feel anything?

 

[rizq]

I don't think so. It is not how I do it, but hearning from other people it sounds like they just sit there calmly. I don't think they would be calm if it hurt

ETA: If I could not do it without hurting them, I wouldn't be able to do it.

 

[The Molly]

I hope you don't mind one more "Thank You!" and a few questions.

I have process birds before, but I'm definately making edits. As soon as i can figure out how to do the sticky note thing one of the other mentioned in their post, I'm doing it! Heck, I'll just email myself the link.

Few questions for clarification:
Detergent in the Hot water? How much?
Approx how long do you have the bird in the hot water? I have problem with the necks & part of the breast getting boiled.
Do you put the feet into the Hot water, also (to get the skin to remove so nicely)?
Why the cold water? Kinda makes sense if I think of it like canning but want to be sure.

 

[Swamp Roo]

Nice!

I noticed you used three different knives. The first poly handled knife looks like a very narrow 6" boning knife, the second another narrow 6" boning knife, but I could not tell, the third an 8" boning knife, and I could not tell what you where using to split the breast (a sturdy drop point or hunter?). Is that correct? Can you explain the knife choices, or is it a classic case of "it was on top"? I'm going to be making some knives soon, since I'm often unwilling to pay for the quality I prefer. I would like to have your thoughts. And just because I'm always curious what other people do, what is your preferred method for edge maintenance?

Swamp

 

[duck-wing dude]

Thank you so much for the excellent advice and photos. It took care of all the questions I had.

 

[Leah and peeps]

Great demminstations! This was a lot of help.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
Here is my understanding of the answers to your questions:

Detergent: very little, a few drops
How long: til the large wing feathers pull out easily. Somewhere around 30 seconds. Be sure you swish well while in there. You're leaving them way too long if the meat is cooking, of course. At 140 degrees not even the skin should cook. Yes, feet too, if you are going to cook/eat them.
Cold water is part of keeping the process as sanitary as possible, cools the meat, retards spoilage.