With deficit becoming a prominent stipulation in the food market store , many people have originate to become ego - reliant , and an even largerhomesteading movementis read place right before our eye . Many people have commence toraise and march meat chickensfor the manybenefits and product that they offer while also being grim - maintenance animals .
Before we look at the slaughtering process , you necessitate to take a few things into condition such as the type of chickens you ’ll be raising . If you make up one’s mind to go with aCornish Cross , you ’ll easily rule them in many feed stores . Cornish Crosses are chicken chicks that grow rapidly and are quick for slaughter within eight to 10 weeks . Because the ontogenesis rate is expedite , this decreases their provender consumption required over clip .
Cornish Crosses are the most popular breed when it comesto chickens citizenry put up and process for meat production . However , if they go past 12weeks of age , aesculapian issue will arise , such as possible break-dance legs from weight profit and gout . You ca n’t keep this breed for an extended period because of how tight and easily they put on weight , without enforcing a strict eating regiment .
I favor heritage breeds and mixes on my farm . This agency , if life gets in the manner , I ’m not on a strict slaughter timeline to ensure their health and welfare . There are slews of inheritance breeds uncommitted that produce wonderful birds with a good amount of meat .
The breeds I have enkindle and slaughtered ranged over the age , but my darling has been the Buckeye . The kernel try amazing , and knowing I raised them myself put up an altogether young appreciation for the animal and what it render me and my kinfolk .
We also must consider the cons of raising heritage breed . They do n’t grow quick , for starters . So while a Cornish can be mow down at 8 to 10 weeks of age , a heritage stock will take 14 to 20 weeks .
Marissa King
With heritage breeds , you do get kernel with a more typical tone , though .
Once you ’ve decided on your chickens and your timeline , it ’s time to consider the actual slaughtering cognitive operation . I ’m not go to say processing chickens is the easiest matter you ’ll ever do . You should take the time to make mentally before you glean your first hiss .
The first time I harvest my own pith chickens , I happen many electronegative emotion and had to put my slaughtering twenty-four hours off . I was just not quick to do it . These is a normal response a fate of us go through when meet with the intimidate task of pick our first animals .
Marissa King
Keep in mind that you ’ve given your birds a bully animation , and , if you slaughter them correctly , they ’ll pass peacefully . You must develop for the walloping , though . The day before , you ’ll necessitate to remove their food . you’re able to leave behind water , but the crop and digestive tract should be as clear as possible .
Tools Needed
Tools you ’ll call for for carnage are as follows .
The Clarence Shepard Day Jr. of slaughtering , you will need to dress up everything before you start culling birds . Youdon’t want to be fumbling with equipment while attempt to humanely dispatch birds . Make certain theequipment is in working society and ready to go . Marissa King
Getting Ready
The first footprint you should take is unhorse your fire or burner and setting your pot full of water over it . The body of water temperature in the pot require to be between 140 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit toloosen the feathers without whip the delicate pelt . That can take a few hours if you ’re using a fire ( a gas burner will heat faster , of row ) .
You do n’t want to have a culled bird and be waiting on the water to stir up up .
Once your water is heated up and you ’ve hung your kill cone shape , you ’re ready to begin . enamour the bird and turn it upside down , hanging it from your hands by its back feet . We do n’t want the shuttle to go into tonic immobility but to loosen . The bird should relax automatically and kind of overspread out its wings .
Marissa King
rear the shuttle up and into the kill cone . The head and neck should be exposed . This part is very important . Your knives must be highly sharp to keep the hiss from needlessly suffering . With the headway exposed , feel for the chick ’s mandibular bone , and visualize where the ear is . With fleet and steady motility , make two cutting on either side of the neck , parallel to the mandibular bone , flop under the ear on either side of the fowl . This will break up the chicken ’s artery .
The bird should n’t struggle but rather slowly close its eye ( though , after destruction , the Bronx cheer ’s nervous organisation may oppose mechanically with some movement ) . I use a bucket to get the blood and make cleanup easier .
After around a minute , the bird should be completely bleed out . Now it ’s time to start the cleaning process . Take your hiss out of the kill cone and dip it into the scalding pot for 45- to 60 - second intervals , until the feathering are easy to pull up off .
Marissa King
I ’ve found that two to three minute of arc of dipping is ideal . Marissa King
Feathers, Head & Gland Removal
Once you ’ve reached the full point where the flight of stairs feathers come out with relief , splice the Bronx cheer up by the back leg with your rope . This is n’t a must , but I rule it easier than laying it on a table . Pluck the razz by manus , until no feathering or feather shafts stay . The shafts can be stubborn , especially when you process heritage stock chickens . Some homesteaders bypass pluck by skinning the bird instead .
Once the plucking or skinning is done , move on to the headspring , innards and preening gland removal . Place your pick off bird on a clean surface . Stainless steel works best to keep bacterium at bay , but any nonporous open can work . At this point , I remove the razzing ’s head . You ’ll follow your initial cuts with a separate sharp knife , or you’re able to prune with hurt shears decent below the bird ’s brain to remove it .
Some people remove the head at different points , either before scalding it or during viscera removal . It ’s your selection . I do n’t care the scald water getting bogged down with line from a headless bird , which is why I do it after scalding .
After removing the brain , localize the hoot boob down and locate the preening gland where the bird ’s rear end feathering were before you plucked them . If you miss the oil gland , your meat could have a funny taste to it , so it ’s imperative that this is take away . On a lot of birds , it has a yellow tint to it .
Once the preening gland is removed , transfer the leg . At the junction , you ’re going to take a disjoined sharp knife — never your haemorrhage knife — and cut right at the birdie ’s joint . The first few times you do this , it ’ll be visitation and computer error until you find the sweet blot . Some people do n’t keep the feet , but I dehydrate them and use them as dog treats . I ’ve also had people separate me you could make the bestchicken brothwith them . Just make trusted to clean themwell first . Marissa King
Next Steps
Now we ’re lead to relax the windpipe and craw . set forth at the principal ( my preference ) or the back . Flip the doll tit up . There will be anindentation at the bottom of the neck and the topof the breast . Make a snatch here with your tongue , and you ’ll see a gravid tendon . cabbage your fingerthrough it and pull it unaffixed but not out of the snort .
tear the windpipe loose next but not out of thebird .
After that measure is complete , flip your razzing around to where the back ending is front you . site the blowhole and carefully abbreviate above the vent-hole , taking upkeep not to cut the intestine within . slue your helping hand into and through that dent , scraping the inside of the chick along its rib to loosen the organs .
Once everything is loose , loving cup your deal over the entrails and tear them out in one swoop . They ’ll still be attached by the bottom of the vent . Make a minor V swing , and your intestine will pretermit down . A well - place pail is ready to hand to catch the entrails . Some mass do keep the different section of the chicken such as the heart and liver . Just check that you may properly identify them , and set an area off to the side to gargle them . Keep them together .
If you ’re by yourself , like I am most of the clip , you ’ll have to go bird by bird from start to refinement . It ’s a foresighted process , peculiarly if you have a lot of chickens . If potential , get another person or two to facilitate so you’re able to set up an assemblage line to make the cognitive operation run smoother and faster .
Now wash the wimp under insensate H2O . Once it ’s rinsed , put it immediately into a cooler filled with ice H2O for at least two hour . You require the bird to reach 40 degree Fahrenheit , as measure in the deepest part of the breast . Then , pat it teetotal and move on to publicity or quartering .
Packaging/Quartering
quarter a chicken seems pretty intimidating the first prison term , but there are so many ways you may do it . The process of cutting up chickens is not difficult at all .
To remove the legs , call on the crybaby breast up and pull the leg away from the eubstance . With a sharp knife , cut where the body and second joint receive . You may have to go around the pegleg around a piddling bit , but you ’ll see the hip socket reefer . Just like the leg , edit out through that to separate the second joint from the body . Some people will pop it out by manual imperativeness , but I like a clear cut . Repeat with the other side and , thunder , you have your thigh .
you’re able to cut these down to only a leg and drumstick also by disregard the snick where the drumstick see the second joint . You ’re repeating the same process we used for the legs on the wings . Cut through where the wing meets the organic structure and continue through the shoulder joint on both side of the birdie . Voila ! You have your wing .
To get the chest pieces out , put the volaille chest - side down and cut along each side of the spine . Once the backbone is removed , set this aside to make some awesome Gallus gallus stock . Cut through the ribs where the neck once sit . Once shorten , the chicken chest will split in two . Remove the excess costa bones , and you have your to the full quartered poulet !
After pulling the birds out of the ice bathtub , pat them as ironical as potential . Our last whole tone is to package our boo . You want them in the deep-freeze or cans as soon as potential after the two - hour ice bath .
Can your poulet if you ’d like , or store it in head-shrinker handbag . I in person store in psychiatrist bag because it ’s spry and easiest ! After publicity , leave the birds to rest for at least 48 hours before using them .
This article earlier appear in the Sept./Oct . 2023 issue ofHobby Farmsmagazine .
