Sun. Shine. On Chicken Day!

Yesterday was terrific!  The sun was out, it was 65*, and it was chicken day!  All of this in February - can you believe it?

The sun was as golden as all of this chicken fat. 

We sent about half of our remaining creepy meats to their glory yesterday. It was fabulous to be outside. All the laying hens and the rest of the poultry mob were out also - everyone was soaking up the sun. Our winter will be back soon but these mild days have just been heaven.

I posted this over on the facebook.... it's my Top Ten Butcher Day tips. Can you butcher your own chickens? Yes, you can! We are just regular people and if we can do it... then so can you. Now is a great time to start planning for raising your own creepy meats... and stalking the feed stores. The farm stores will start having chicks soon.

Our Shine soaked up the sun on chicken day. He was very helpful. 

If you want to give it a go then I'd say start with 10 creepy meats. That is a good number because it allows for attrition and is enough for you to get a feel for what a yard of creepy meats is like....but it's not overwhelming. Also, if you "chicken out" and decide not to butcher them then it's an easy number to sell on craigslist.

Should you chicken out? Nope. You should give butchering a try - at least then you'll know if you can do it or not. But everyone is different so do what is right for you. 

But you should still give it a try on your own. Our process is extremely easy. We noodle around with chores in the morning, take our time getting our tools ready, and then put the dogs on the deck so they can watch the best show in town. The Big Man goes and gets a volunteer, dispatches it on the block, then I skin and gut them. We save the fat, liver, and hearts in a big bowl. The hardest part about the day is keeping the regular chickens from stealing my fat and liver.

Under all that creepiness is a chicken just like you get in the store... but usually without all the green muscle disease.  And yes, I'm still mad that the one package of chicken we got at the store was so gross. Talk about a message from the universe to keep growing your own! We got it, believe me.

The chickens we worked on yesterday are resting comfortably in our coldest fridge. Today I'll part them up and get them into the freezer. I'll make stock and can it the next day. I've already rendered the fat and made pate from the liver.

After we finished up I laid in a big pile of dogs on the dog bed with my crew and it was the best day ever.

Happy Sunday everyone! Are you having chicken for dinner tonite?