Newbie Question Regarding Processing Older Birds!!

smithzoo100

Chirping
10 Years
Dec 27, 2009
138
2
99
Oroville, CA
I decided to raise some broilers last year after checking to make sure that I had someone to process them for me. A hunter friend of our's was going to take care of that in exchange for turkey hunting rights on our property. He bow hunts so our turkeys have been pretty safe since we've known him
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. Well, he ended up working out of town, then bought a house, now I have a bunch of roasters (I guess that is what they should be called) and have to figure out what to do with them. Lined up another friend, but he just got talked out of it by his neighbor who has convinced him, my DH, and our roommate that the roos will be IMPOSSIBLE to pluck and just breasting them is the way to go!! My DH and roommate will have nothing to do with the processing so it would be up to me. I am capable of learning many things, and it looks like this just might have to be one of them. I think it would be disrespectful to dispatch them and waste them, but they are a Murray McMurray broiler mix and haven't been raised as pets per se so I can't really see them getting homes on craigslist. They were free range when they were younger, but most are now in a big dog kennel. A couple others that were being picked on are in another large pen, one BIG orange jerk is caged, and another is loose in the yard with the "other" pullet (who is really a pullet!). I have Bantam hens to protect so the loose boy cannot stay, but I may try to find him a home or learn to follow through on my plan on my own...I am undecided.

Okay, so that is the back story of why I have 20 something (I know how many I have, I just don't want to see it in writing) 7 month old roosters that the neighbors aren't going to miss. It makes no sense to me that it would be "impossible" to pluck these birds, but maybe skinning them would be easier and a better plan since they are older? That'd be LOTS of chicken and dumplings, etc, but that would be preferable to me to breasting them since that seems like a huge waste. I realize that by having them this long, it is a loosing proposition dollars wise, but at least I know that they were treated well. I also want to be sure that they are killed quickly and with respect so will not try to find someone on craigslist like others have suggested before this. I guess that leaves me. If they were your birds, what would you do with them? I read the monster thread on how to dispatch them, I am having a bigger struggle with the rest of the processing. I understand it would have been preferable to process these birds as cockerels, but I also know that older birds get processed on a regular basis on family farms. Any help at all would be appreciated, even if it is just which threads to read to learn. Thanks in advance....
 
Smithzoo,

Don't listen to the boys, they just don't want to deal with plucking! I'm just doing my 7 month old dual purpose roos right now and it's not that hard. For me the worst part is the killing- after that it's just like preparing dinner. Scald them before plucking- water should be 140 to 160 degrees- I found with the size of my roos that I have to use a 5 gallon bucket- hold them by the feet (this is a dead chicken, of course!) and submerge for 30 to 60 seconds while swishing them around. Then immediately put in ice cold water to cool skin so it doesn't rip and cool down meat. The feathers should come out much easier. Good luck!
 
Your friend's neighbor is an idiot, and wasteful to boot. Crazybarnlady is right. I just processed 3 roos today, about 6 months old. They're actually easier to pluck than young birds, because there are almost no pinfeathers. (this doesn't apply to birds just finishing a molt) I eat older roos all the time. I usually cook them in the crock pot.

I use an enamel water-bath canner to scald in. If you're unfamiliar, that's those huge dark-blue-w/white-speckles pots that you see near canning supplies in stores that carry cookware. I use a thermometer to make sure the temps around 150F. It took about 5 minutes per bird for the feathers to loosen, when I did these today. (there's also a chance my thermometer is not quite right) I've done 3 others this last week, same thing with them. You have to hold onto the feet and keep swishing them, so they don't get too hot in any one spot. I test readiness by pulling one big wing feather on each side, and one big tail feather. When those finally slide out easily, the bird's ready to pluck. I don't dip them in cold water, though, I find that makes them harder to pluck, and as long as the water wasn't too hot (so the skin doesn't start to cook) the skin tearing isn't a problem. In fact, if they start to get hard to pluck while I'm working on them, I run hot tap water on them to loosen them back up again.

You're right, breasting them would be a huge waste. I use the meat in all kinds of stuff, in addition to the old standby fave, chicken and dumplings. I usually make burritos, tacos, enchiladas, tamales, chicken salad, BBQ sandwiches, pot pie, stir fry, anything that calls for cooked chicken meat.

You can also fillet the breasts (and sometimes the thighs, try one and see) and cut those into strips to fry, the crock pot the rest. Or fillet the breasts and thighs to pressure-can boneless meat, and again, crock pot the rest. If you find the breasts and thighs too tough when fried, you can sprinkle them with tenderizer, pound with a meat hammer, (the side with the pointy bits) before dipping in flour to fry.

There are a lot of threads about the actual slaughter, and check these out, they were a big help to me:

polyface poultry kill cones w/ grady

polyface poultry evisceration w/ joel salatin

Your older birds will take longer to clean than the young broilers in the video. That's because,
1) The pelvic bones have solidified and it's a lot harder to get you hand inside.
2) The inside connective tissue is more developed, and the internal organs are much harder to pull out. You have to really yank to get the stuff out.

Unlike Joel, I keep the gizzards, just slice through the edge with the muscle ridge, sort of like slicing a bagel. Dump the gravel and pulverized food out, and peel out the tough yellow membrane. Rinse, and it's done.

Good luck, they'll be very tasty.
 
I agree, they will pluck just fine. We process DP roos that age, and MUCH older 'spent' hens - no plucking problems.

However, you may find this idea helpful...
I often skin them. Especialy if I have only 2 or 3 to do and don't want to drag out all the scalding gear. Or....if it's near freezing weather and I don't want to work with wet hands. Since I typically use birds that age for slow cooking, canning, etc, we really don't miss the skin. But now...some people can't live without the skin on their butchered chicken.
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edit: typo
 
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To me, plucking a rooster that age is the only way to go. You absolutely have to scald them or it is hard to pluck them, but I tried skinning a roosters that age and it was very difficult. It was like there was tough connective tissue holding the skin on. I have not had that trouble skinning pullets that age, but no more skinning roosters over 22 weeks age for me.

You will have to cook the roosters long and slow, but I think the meat has a great flavor. I also use the carcasses. I take the neck, back, wings, feet, heart, and gizzard of the birds and use them to make broth. For me, three carcasses makes 8 pints of broth, which I pressure can. Then I pick the meat off the back, wings, and neck and use that for chicken tacos, chicken salad, something like that. But it has to be cooked long and slow. No rolling boil, just a slow simmer when making the broth.

Kim_NC, have you had this problem with older roosters? The one I tried skinning at 22 weeks was OK, but the one at 27 weeks was real difficult to do. Plucking would have been tremendously easier.
 

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