We had the distinct pleasure of being gifted with 11(live) turkeys, destined for the freezer.
Yesterday consisted of catching, killing(which had a few interesting experiences, but I'll spare you the gory details), plucking, gutting and preparing for the freezer. We had the help of a couple of friends, we split the turkeys 50/50.
Unfortunately I did not have my camera to hand. I had plenty of opportunities for interesting pictures. Yes, they may have pushed a few boundaries, but, I believe we, as a society, have stepped way too far back from the "discomfort" of dealing with an animals death for our benefit.
Plucking any poultry is not something I had done before. Turns out it was way less gross and much easier than I had considered it to be. I did not try my hand at gutting, left that to the guys, but I did observe and may step up to the challenge next time. The biggest issue there seems to be not to split the entrails inside the carcass.
I washed the turkeys in cold water, and used rock salt as a natural scrub to clean the skin and cavity. I'm not sure if that is recommended at all, but I cant see it hurting as I will rub the turkey with salt prior to roasting anyway. Popped them straight in the freezer.
I'm not sure if they are meant to hang(age) before freezing. I do recall reading, somewhere, that it is recommended that they age(in the refrigerator) for 48hrs prior to freezing. The idea behind this is that the meat will tenderise. I was not willing to risk the chance of salmonella poisoning, we will see how they taste.
Yesterday consisted of catching, killing(which had a few interesting experiences, but I'll spare you the gory details), plucking, gutting and preparing for the freezer. We had the help of a couple of friends, we split the turkeys 50/50.
Unfortunately I did not have my camera to hand. I had plenty of opportunities for interesting pictures. Yes, they may have pushed a few boundaries, but, I believe we, as a society, have stepped way too far back from the "discomfort" of dealing with an animals death for our benefit.
Plucking any poultry is not something I had done before. Turns out it was way less gross and much easier than I had considered it to be. I did not try my hand at gutting, left that to the guys, but I did observe and may step up to the challenge next time. The biggest issue there seems to be not to split the entrails inside the carcass.
I washed the turkeys in cold water, and used rock salt as a natural scrub to clean the skin and cavity. I'm not sure if that is recommended at all, but I cant see it hurting as I will rub the turkey with salt prior to roasting anyway. Popped them straight in the freezer.
I'm not sure if they are meant to hang(age) before freezing. I do recall reading, somewhere, that it is recommended that they age(in the refrigerator) for 48hrs prior to freezing. The idea behind this is that the meat will tenderise. I was not willing to risk the chance of salmonella poisoning, we will see how they taste.
No comments:
Post a Comment