Monday, December 30, 2013

Power Plucker Critique

We knew the inevitable day would come when we would butcher some of The Compound chickens.  In this instance, roosters.  We decided to deal with the trouble makers first, which were also the smaller roosters.

We purchased a "Power Plucker" with the hopes it would help pluck the feathers off of the birds easier and faster than by hand.  Watch the video and let me know what you think.




It really cut down on the time it took to process the birds.  From beginning to end, set up, boiling of water, and the actual processing of 6 birds, took us no more than an hour.  The others that have processed chickens before, thought it well worth the 30 bucks we paid.


I worked through the whole process, and yes it was gross, but not to the point where I could not participate.  We baked our chickens off and served them up.  They were not as tender as the store bought variety, the dark meat was darker and the breast meat was smaller/less.  Miss Izzy is a happy camper, eating the leftovers.  I don't think these smaller roosters were really meant to be eaten, as they are not considered dual purpose.  It was a learning experience for sure.

I figured there are enough videos online, showing the processing itself, that I wouldn't waste your time here.

The feathers were sure flying!


4 comments:

  1. I've not seen that model. All the ones I've looked at & watched are the kind in the round plastic barrels that you just throw the bird(s) in after softening the feathers in the water. either one seems to make a mess. I wasn't as grossed out as I thought I would be my first time either. I've heard that if you let them rest in the fridge for a day or so, they are more tender.

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    1. We couldn't afford the barrel models, and this one fit the budget easy enough. We don't plan on butchering too many at one time anyway. We didn't wait more than around 12 hours before they headed to the oven, so we'll try waiting for a couple of days first. It may also be the breed of chicken. We'll see...

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  2. Izzy,

    I like your power plucker. Bulldog Man and I will keep this one in mind when we get chickens in the future. $30.00 a good investment, there usually more expensive. Thanks for the video demonstration.

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    1. You are welcome! Thanks for following along. Happy New Year!

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