Follow this tutorial to kill, pluck, clean the skin, and package a whole chicken efficiently; video included. Knowing the entire process ahead of time will make the butchering day go smoothly without costly delays.
This post contains photos of butchering chickens. If you’d rather not see these images, we understand, please enjoy some of our other posts here.
Our BIG Meat Chickens
We chose to raise meat birds using a chicken tractor so that they could free range and have as much room as possible to forage. Free range produces healthier chickens because it allows them to have a broader diet and exercise.
The benefit to you is healthier meat, it cuts down on feed and grit costs, less coop space is required, and it provides natural insect control on the farm.
If you are interested in an efficient way to raise meat, Cornish Cross meat birds mature quickly and are ready for butchering day in 8-10 weeks. We butchered ours at eight weeks, and they grew to just over nine pounds live weight.
How Do You Humanely Butcher Chickens?
Our kids have been asking a lot of questions about butchering day. We raise, slaughter, and eat several types of farm animals, and our children are aware of this.
They know that while some of these animals are more special to them than others, the day will eventually come when we need to move on to the next step.
As a family, we believe that God gave us animals as food. The respect we show the animals by raising them on our homestead and treating them with care gives them a better life than commercially grown, store bought animals.
We are confident they have been fed a healthy diet and know they have no unnecessary steroid injections.
How Long Should a Chicken Rest After Butchering?
We all find ourselves anxious to eat a fresh chicken, but you should wait 24 hours before cooking. When you place the chicken into a cooler and chill, it allows the muscles to begin decomposing. Chilling will make the meat more tender, giving it a better texture and taste.
Preparing for Butcher Day
If you don’t own what you need, you should be able to rent equipment or even borrow from a neighbor or friend. Decide what area of your homestead is the best location for butchering (preferably shady) and set it up the day before butchering.
Withhold feed from the chicken flock the night before slaughtering day. Chickens will hold food in their crop as they digest it. It’s best to have this processed through the bird to eliminate extra mess while cleaning it.
Supplies Needed
- Restraining Cones – Restraining cones are also known as killing cones. Placing the chicken’s head down into the cone causes the blood to run into the head, effectively sedating the bird and calming it.
- Buckets – These are essential for various steps of the butchering process. Buckets make catching blood, collecting innards, and hauling off carcasses much easier.
- Sharp Knife – Boning knives with a five to six-inch blade work well.
- Scalder – This can be any pot large enough to submerge a whole chicken in boiling water.
- Large Pot – Filled with ice water to submerge the chicken after removing it from the boiling water.
- Gas Burner and Propane Tank – Necessary to get heat to the scalder.
- Thermometer – You will want to monitor the temperature of the water in the scalder to keep it between 130°F-170°F.
- Chicken Plucker – A drum-style plucking machine will pluck the feathers in about thirty seconds. A plucker is an upgrade from hand plucking!
- Processing Table – We used a collapsible table with a plastic tablecloth, which worked fine. A sink with a side surface tabletop would make this run more smoothly.
- Scale – Before butchering, I use a fish scale and a bucket to record the chicken’s live weight. After butchering, a food scale can be used to record packaged weight.
- Running Water – Do not underestimate the luxury of this supply!
- Cooler and Ice – After the birds are processed, you must chill them promptly. We used a large cooler and filled it with ice. You could also use an empty refrigerator to cool the birds. Pro-Tip: Before the butchering day, fill empty ice cream buckets with water and freeze. The blocks of ice will last longer than ice chips.
- Shrink Bags – We used plastic poultry shrink bags and were impressed with the results. The bags, straws, and zip ties are included in the package.
- Labels – Use a simple label to record the date and weight before freezing.
How to Butcher a Chicken Step by Step
- Twenty-four hours before butchering, withhold feed.
- Gather supplies, and set up the butchering station so that everything is ready nearby.
- Fill the scalder with water and heat to 130°F-170°F.
- Catch a chicken from your flock, weigh it, and record its live weight.
- Place the chicken in the restraining cone, find her head, and gently pull it through the bottom.
- Hold the head and quickly slice into the side of the neck as close as you can towards the cheekbone. Quickly cut the other side of the neck to encourage a quick bleed. Cut off the head completely.
- Place the chicken into scalding hot water. Keep the hot water at a temperature of 130°F-170°F.
- Thoroughly and evenly scald by moving the chicken around inside the scalding pot. At 145°F, it takes 30 seconds to a minute. Don’t leave it in the water for too long, or the skin may become too tender and tear. Pro-Tip: Dip the scalding chicken into a pot of cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Place the chicken into the plucker and run the plucker to remove the feathers. You must pluck the chicken by hand to remove any excess hair and pin feathers.
- Remove the chicken and place it on the table.
- Begin by cutting off the feet. Pro-Tip: These make good dog treats!
- Remove the oil gland and gut the chicken, removing the insides.
- Place the whole chicken into an ice chest with plenty of ice for 24-48 hours, continuously checking and replenishing the ice to ensure the temperature stays cold.
- To package the chicken, heat fresh water in a clean pot. The large pot you used for the butchering process works well. The recommended temperature is 195°F.
- Remove the chicken from the ice chest and rinse clean.
- Place the clean, rinsed chicken into the plastic bag with its head down and legs up.
- Stick a straw into the chicken cavity.
- Twist the bag top and secure it with a zip tie.
- Dip it into the boiling water for several seconds and remove it.
- The bag will shrink around the chicken as the air releases from the chicken.
- Cinch the bag opening tightly as you remove the straw and tighten the zip tie one more time.
- Use a label to mark the date and weight of the chicken.
- Store in a freezer for up to one year.
And that’s it! You can now raise chickens with the confidence that you know how to butcher them to store in your freezer. The first time you butcher will be the hardest, but you learn the most in the “doing.”
On the Farm
Yo-Yo looking so pretty, strutting her stuff all over the farm! Check out those baby blues!
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