redinator
Songster
I'm writing this so I don't have these thoughts roaming around in my head and constantly mulling it over. Most times as I'm writing, I tend to answer some of my own questions, but feedback from others that have done this before is always welcomed.
I have read articles and threads on the subject, but having everything in this post will make it easier for me to keep my notes/thoughts organized. I want to make sure I have everything I need so I'm gathering supplies now. For reference, the closest I've come to processing a bird is removing the bag of innards from a store bought turkey during the holidays.
In roughly a month I'll be culling approximately 10 RIR cockerels (I hope to rehome some before then). I did not start raising chickens for meat birds, but I knew this was coming since I prefer to hatch from eggs. Thankfully, this will only be a once a year project. I have a friend that will be helping with this task since it's my first time around. I'd hate to get squeamish and cause the birds any undue suffering. The cockerels will be between 12 and 16 weeks when they're culled, depending on my friend's schedule.
First off, some questions:
Should I cull all the birds first, then process the lot? Or cull and process each bird individually? I'm thinking the first would be optimal so the waiting birds aren't getting unnecessarily stressed. Once they're culled and skinned I can move indoors to process them and not have to worry so much about flies and such. It also seems more sanitary to do it this way. I answered my own question here.
Are there any bits I should NOT feed my birds? Aside from the meat I don't plan to eat any of the organs.
Should I cook the 'scraps' before feeding them to the birds, or just freeze and feed as needed? I'd like to keep anything we don't plan to eat for the birds as a bit of a boost during winter or when they're molting.
Any uses for feathers (nest lining)? I plan to skin them rather than plucking since pluckers are so expensive, so the feathers will likely get tossed. I answered my own question here.
I'm thinking about getting a large crawfish pot https://a.co/d/5siEqPa and just season and boil the lot. How large of one would I need to handle 4-5 at a time? All 10? Once they're boiled I can pack and store them in freezer safe containers and use as needed.
In case I don't go with the crawfish boiler:
How do I store/prepare cockerel meat? I hear it's tougher than store bought chicken so it should only be used for things like soups/stews. I have a meat grinder, slicer and a dehydrator (would they make good jerky?), and obviously a stove and oven (lol). I do NOT have a slow cooker/crock pot. I'm not setup for canning, but might go that route next year.
Can you roast/bake/broil cockerel meat?
I plan to have all the cockerels in a medium sized pen, out if sight of the other chickens, and covered with a tarp until . . . well, their time is up.
My list:
Culling> Killing cone (size?), Buckets w/lids for discards and blood (how many? what size?) (do I put it out w/ the trash?), Ice chest w ice for the meat (how large for 10 cockerels), Hatchet/Axe
Processing> What do I remove first to avoid contaminating the rest of the meat? Feel free to link a thread/article on the subject. I debone chicken regularly, so I'm good there, but wouldn't be able to tell a liver from a kidney.
Storage> Gallon sized freezer bags for the organs, Labels (so we don't defrost the wrong bag for dinner), Freezer safe containers for the meat
I feel like this list is too short am I'm missing something?
I have read articles and threads on the subject, but having everything in this post will make it easier for me to keep my notes/thoughts organized. I want to make sure I have everything I need so I'm gathering supplies now. For reference, the closest I've come to processing a bird is removing the bag of innards from a store bought turkey during the holidays.
In roughly a month I'll be culling approximately 10 RIR cockerels (I hope to rehome some before then). I did not start raising chickens for meat birds, but I knew this was coming since I prefer to hatch from eggs. Thankfully, this will only be a once a year project. I have a friend that will be helping with this task since it's my first time around. I'd hate to get squeamish and cause the birds any undue suffering. The cockerels will be between 12 and 16 weeks when they're culled, depending on my friend's schedule.
First off, some questions:
Should I cull all the birds first, then process the lot? Or cull and process each bird individually? I'm thinking the first would be optimal so the waiting birds aren't getting unnecessarily stressed. Once they're culled and skinned I can move indoors to process them and not have to worry so much about flies and such. It also seems more sanitary to do it this way. I answered my own question here.
Are there any bits I should NOT feed my birds? Aside from the meat I don't plan to eat any of the organs.
Should I cook the 'scraps' before feeding them to the birds, or just freeze and feed as needed? I'd like to keep anything we don't plan to eat for the birds as a bit of a boost during winter or when they're molting.
Any uses for feathers (nest lining)? I plan to skin them rather than plucking since pluckers are so expensive, so the feathers will likely get tossed. I answered my own question here.
I'm thinking about getting a large crawfish pot https://a.co/d/5siEqPa and just season and boil the lot. How large of one would I need to handle 4-5 at a time? All 10? Once they're boiled I can pack and store them in freezer safe containers and use as needed.
In case I don't go with the crawfish boiler:
How do I store/prepare cockerel meat? I hear it's tougher than store bought chicken so it should only be used for things like soups/stews. I have a meat grinder, slicer and a dehydrator (would they make good jerky?), and obviously a stove and oven (lol). I do NOT have a slow cooker/crock pot. I'm not setup for canning, but might go that route next year.
Can you roast/bake/broil cockerel meat?
I plan to have all the cockerels in a medium sized pen, out if sight of the other chickens, and covered with a tarp until . . . well, their time is up.
My list:
Culling> Killing cone (size?), Buckets w/lids for discards and blood (how many? what size?) (do I put it out w/ the trash?), Ice chest w ice for the meat (how large for 10 cockerels), Hatchet/Axe
Processing> What do I remove first to avoid contaminating the rest of the meat? Feel free to link a thread/article on the subject. I debone chicken regularly, so I'm good there, but wouldn't be able to tell a liver from a kidney.
Storage> Gallon sized freezer bags for the organs, Labels (so we don't defrost the wrong bag for dinner), Freezer safe containers for the meat
I feel like this list is too short am I'm missing something?
