Tips for after butchering barn yard mix roos.

[Torinik]

This is why I like reading all the threads, this is info I did not know. I haven't had an issue with processing older birds yet since mine have always been fairly young, If I do process an older bird can they go straight to the crockpot from processing or should I let them rest a few days?

That's not an easy question. Sometimes rigor mortis sets in really fast and sometimes it's delayed. I haven't figured out why yet.
So, if you're fast and lucky enough that bird can go straight to the pot.
When I was a kid, my dad used to butcher and on rare occasions cut slices of meat (lamb usually) that my mum would cook immediately, that meat was always fine. But most always the innards would get eaten on the day and the carcass would be left to rest.

 

[Molpet]

That's not an easy question. Sometimes rigor mortis sets in really fast and sometimes it's delayed. I haven't figured out why yet.
So, if you're fast and lucky enough that bird can go straight to the pot.
When I was a kid, my dad used to butcher and on rare occasions cut slices of meat (lamb usually) that my mum would cook immediately, that meat was always fine. But most always the innards would get eaten on the day and the carcass would be left to rest.

X2 if you're quick and can get it cooking before rigor starts....

 

[Ridgerunner]

If I do process an older bird can they go straight to the crockpot from processing or should I let them rest a few days?

I don't know. I have not been able to find anything I trust as to how fast rigor sets up in chickens or where it starts. I've seen some things that say within 30 minutes but I just don't know how reliable that is. I'm not sure it's always that fast. I'm sure there are some variables but I don't know what they are. There are always variables.

When I was a kid Mom would say "get me a chicken". I'd butcher one and she cooked it that day, often by frying, sometimes chicken and dumplings. I don't know how quickly she cooked it, I was outside burying the offal and cleaning up. It wasn't the kind of thing I'd pay attention to then anyway, but it wasn't that long.

The safest thing to do would be to wait a few days. But if you are relatively quick you should be OK. I just don't know how long "relatively quick" is.

 

[Parront]

I don't know. I have not been able to find anything I trust as to how fast rigor sets up in chickens or where it starts. I've seen some things that say within 30 minutes but I just don't know how reliable that is. I'm not sure it's always that fast. I'm sure there are some variables but I don't know what they are. There are always variables.

When I was a kid Mom would say "get me a chicken". I'd butcher one and she cooked it that day, often by frying, sometimes chicken and dumplings. I don't know how quickly she cooked it, I was outside burying the offal and cleaning up. It wasn't the kind of thing I'd pay attention to then anyway, but it wasn't that long.

The safest thing to do would be to wait a few days. But if you are relatively quick you should be OK. I just don't know how long "relatively quick" is.

I believe some of this variability is due to the temperature of the meat. Fast cooling seems to me to promote fast rigor. Just doing one, not cooling at all before cooking would probably delay the rigor longer. Think of a deer killed in fall. It can be hours before it is cooled on ice, the meat is cooling much more slowly while being transported and maybe field dressed. Those venison steaks were always delicious and tender. I once had caribou in Alaska, never iced because we did not have any! Best eating ever. It was in the 80's, we took it to the meat locker the next day, it was fine. We might be a little too influenced by commercial meat processing rules in our modern quick cooling war on germs.