Smell after butchering..UPDATED. We ate them! (Most of them.)

[rc4u]

if the cooler had ice in it you didnt leave them in to long...i leave mine on ice over nite sometimes....and they do have to rest in the fridge or cooler for 2-3 days of course to soften up the rigor to be more tender ..before you freeze them...and i would just rinse them and rub with hands before frezzing which i always so anyway...jeff

 

[ChaoSS]

Were they on ice or in an ice bath? If just on ice the cooler may not be insulated well enough and the side opposite the ice could have heated up. An ice bath will maintain a consistent temperature throughout, and do long as there is always ice you could leave meat in there for days.

 

[acro1010]

It's better safe than sorry, every time!

 

[IdasChickens]

Hi everyone! Sorry it took me so long to get back. I have been sick...though fortunately, NOT from the chickens!

But, I wanted to update the outcome of my situation, since so many of you took the time to help me out!

I did call the market back. They were very helpful and suggested I try washing the chickens in very cold water and to also check every package.
They told me that all the birds looked good when they were cleaning them, so, no issues found there. But, they did remind me too; when in doubt...throw them out.

I admitted that I DID NOT put the chickens in an ice bath...a mistake I made. I misunderstood the proper way to chill the birds after they had been processed. Instead, I just put them packaged in bags as they came, into a cooler of mixed loose and bagged ice. Left the cooler in a shaded spot, BUT STILL...it was not sufficient enough for all the birds to chill properly on such a hot day like that....and not having made sure they were each receiving sufficient cooling was totally my bad.

Even then, BEFORE I threw them all out, I decided that my nose isn't always the most reliable so, I waited until my husband got home so he could offer a second opinion sniff test. We both agreed that at least one of the chickens smelled off (had that sorta "sweet" smell to it when something starts to turn) but he assured me that the rest smelled as they did when he was butchering the other day. Okay then...

I guess between not being used to the fresh chicken smell and sniffing one that wasn't good...threw me for a loop!

The remaining chickens; we rinsed thoroughly in very cold water...vacuum sealed them, let them finish resting the 48 hours in the fridge, and then threw them into the freezer.

I have been defrosting them slowly in the fridge, then brining, then cooking them (mostly Mexican style dinners or crock pot). So far, they all have come out OK. They all tasted like chicken! Except...kinda gamey for my tastes. I suppose that is from all the bugs they ate and running they had done.

I will admit...at least one tasted like he had gotten into a juniper berry bush (we don't have those here.) Tasted (to me) like Gin. And I'm not a fan of Gin. We ended up feeding that one to the chickens who were very happy with that decision.


I learned A BIG lesson here for the next time I do this. And that is... get those cluckers on ice. Real COLD ice...an ice bath, in fact....pronto. Make sure all the real cold ice is completely engulfing each individual bird. And then, as soon as I get them sealed...right into the fridge (if it is really hot out). Otherwise, I suppose they could chill a little longer in the cooler when the weather is more crisp....that seems to be the preferred method amongst the pros!
I also might want to look into purchasing a newer cooler.

Once again, I am very appreciative of all the help and kind words! Thank you everyone!

Sincerely,
Ida