Juniper Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 I mentioned on another thread that we butchered our first chickens yesterday. For something neither dh or I have done, it went really well. :001_smile: But, even though I know they are good for us I am having such a hard time actually eating them. :o I dunno. I sorta feel like it couldn't be that easy, I must have done something wrong and I am going to end up killing my family. Ugh, I hate that I have more trust in the grocery store than I do in myself. Anyway, I do have a sick kid and decided to start with something easy. Chicken noodle soup. Uuuuuum, DELISH! :D I will be honest that the flavor is stronger than store bought, but it was very good. The bonus is that the kids devoured it!!!! The only down side was that I found a teeny tiny black feather in my soup bowl. :crying: If you have the stomach for this, I highly recommend. The kids were wonderful and helped with just about everything. My dh, who is a suit and tie kind of guy, really amazed me. ;) (he did all the really yucky parts.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Good for you! I've never butchered my own but helped butcher many times. I have a friend who has a farm and I've went for the last 6 or 7 yrs pretty much every year, usually we do 200-300 in a day but they have a scalder and plucker machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LG Gone Wild Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 I mentioned on another thread that we butchered our first chickens yesterday. For something neither dh or I have done, it went really well. :001_smile: But, even though I know they are good for us I am having such a hard time actually eating them. :o I dunno. I sorta feel like it couldn't be that easy, I must have done something wrong and I am going to end up killing my family. Ugh, I hate that I have more trust in the grocery store than I do in myself. Anyway, I do have a sick kid and decided to start with something easy. Chicken noodle soup. Uuuuuum, DELISH! :D I will be honest that the flavor is stronger than store bought, but it was very good. The bonus is that the kids devoured it!!!! The only down side was that I found a teeny tiny black feather in my soup bowl. :crying: If you have the stomach for this, I highly recommend. The kids were wonderful and helped with just about everything. My dh, who is a suit and tie kind of guy, really amazed me. ;) (he did all the really yucky parts.) That is very, very cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleIzumi Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Good for you!! We sent ours to a butcher after the first time. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WistfulRidge Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Good for you!! Homegrown chicken is the best. Since an aunt gifted us with several whole chickens that she'd raised (this was a couple of years ago) I've never been able to enjoy store chicken. It just taste so...bland. And maybe I'm a little morbid, but I'd rather kill the animal myself and know that it had a good life and that it went quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juniper Posted June 21, 2012 Author Share Posted June 21, 2012 Good for you!! Homegrown chicken is the best. Since an aunt gifted us with several whole chickens that she'd raised (this was a couple of years ago) I've never been able to enjoy store chicken. It just taste so...bland. And maybe I'm a little morbid, but I'd rather kill the animal myself and know that it had a good life and that it went quickly. This was a big part in why we did it. Knowing it was going to be quick, and that they got to live happy chicken lives up until that moment. Running for bugs, destroying my garden :glare:, and being able to live a normal chicken's life. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Live2Ride Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Well Done! You will be glad that you now know how to do it from start to finish...on to pigs...or calves...:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juniper Posted June 21, 2012 Author Share Posted June 21, 2012 Good for you! I've never butchered my own but helped butcher many times. I have a friend who has a farm and I've went for the last 6 or 7 yrs pretty much every year, usually we do 200-300 in a day but they have a scalder and plucker machine. I wish I had a plucker machine!!!! And I am considering using the power washer on the inside of the bird after it has been cleaned. That was the trickiest part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juniper Posted June 21, 2012 Author Share Posted June 21, 2012 Well Done! You will be glad that you now know how to do it from start to finish...on to pigs...or calves...:D I really want both of those! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WishboneDawn Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 We raise our own meat chickens but take them to my husband's cousin for processing. We know he does a good, humane job. I'd still like to learn to do it myself so we could send the occasional old laying hen to the stew pot ourselves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
besroma Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Wow! I am impressed. I would love to do this someday. We had layers in the past, but that's it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juniper Posted June 21, 2012 Author Share Posted June 21, 2012 Wow! I am impressed. I would love to do this someday. We had layers in the past, but that's it. I kinda forced myself by buying too many layers. I knew if I had more than I wanted to manage I would eventually have to par down the flock. It really wasn't that bad. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Congratulations! I know it takes some backbone to actually do the deed. Backbone that I don't have.:D My dh and sons would do the butchering. I did have to scald and pluck and all of that mess. We are starting again with chickens after not having any for a couple years BUT are only getting layers. Whew! I understand how you feel about eating them. It was hard the very first time we ate one of ours but my kids were sooo nice about it - they kept exclaiming how great it was and boy doesn't this taste so good, etc. I think they were trying to make me feel ok about it. Enjoy your chickens. They really are fun (when you're not eating them). :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amy g. Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 We just got 15 turkeys this morning, so I will be doing some butchering of my own soon. It has gotten so difficult to find non injected meat that my kids won't have a reaction to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truscifi Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 We only have layers at this point, but if we can every get the rabbits to do what rabbits are supposedly famous for doing, we'll be butchering our own chicken alternative. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Ahh you bring back memories. Me: "Mr. Local Farmer, I have this Godzilla chicken and he's not like the others. HE can't run or anything. Farmer": ahh, he's a Cornish rock. You hafta butcher him or he'll up and die. me: but I've never butchered a chicken before! Farmer: well, you're a farmer now and you'll have to learn. So I went on the internet and taught myself how. Man, that bird was good. Amazingly delicious. Then, later, I did my flock. It helps if you just tuck them into the freezer until you 'forget'. And, I will say, that I think if I had to do it again, I'd learn to do the swing and whomp, where you you swing them over your head and whomp them on the ground to knock them out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El... Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 I'd like to raise some small food animals when "we" retire from the military and land somewhere. I'm not sure I'd have the nerve to butcher them myself, though. I remember having chickens as a kid that would just get old, quit laying, and keep eating! They were uncontrolled, pesky, dirty and LOUD! I'd like to do better than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dory Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Good for you!! I've been butchering chickens since I was little. My grandparents used to do 200 every fall or everyone. I was a plucker when I was younger. I was always taught to use the milk jug method so that there isn't as much flopping around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juniper Posted June 21, 2012 Author Share Posted June 21, 2012 I'd like to raise some small food animals when "we" retire from the military and land somewhere. I'm not sure I'd have the nerve to butcher them myself, though. I remember having chickens as a kid that would just get old, quit laying, and keep eating! They were uncontrolled, pesky, dirty and LOUD! I'd like to do better than that. There are lots of tutorials on youtube and the web. I did research for awhile. This was my favorite Blog on it, but the youtube videos were more helpful. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzie in Ma Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Good for you! We have another year or so with our first batch before they become less productive. We have one who is a pet but the rest are eventually food. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 I wish I had a plucker machine!!!! And I am considering using the power washer on the inside of the bird after it has been cleaned. That was the trickiest part. Have you checked out the homemade whizbang plucker and scalder? IIRC my friend's is a premade version of those, it holds about 7 at a time, but it is sure fast. Mom has an old plucker but hasn't worked on much to get it working. You have to do the scalding just right or it won't pluck right (ie the feathers don't come out or you lose the skin). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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