[tesni]

Well, we have done our first kill and dress for the table from a young Indian Game fella we hatched last year.  It went well enough given we are novices, the detaching of neck was fiddly but we shall persevere.  (feel free to share any tips and wisdom, we are all ears!)

One point is the plucking seemed easier than I expected but the skin ripped - is that because we dunked in too hot/cold water for too long/not long enough?  Or is it technique or just one of those things?  We have two more to ready ourselves for soon so any advice gratefully received. Thanks!

[GrannieAnnie]

We never dunk, so can't help you there!  Sometimes I think the skins are thinner on some birds, we pluck dry and some skins rip, others don't

[joyfull]

this web blog has step by step instructions - all nicely sectioned off and may help you 

http://butcherachicken.blogspot.com/

[Aunt Sally]

Did you say

"For the table" or "On the table"  ?

[tesni]

That blog is excellent thanks Joyful!  and my rescue exbatts were never bald enough to need jummies thankfully tho I did have a pattern ready just in case - like the bow, very purty!

[bantam novice]

Love the pic, Aunt Sally 
Versace and Yves St Laurent had better watch out.  Is your girl looking for a career as a model?  She would certainly wow them on the catwalk or should I say the hen run?

[Casey76]

One thing I found invaluable when dressing chickens... a pair of garden loppers.  They make no hassle of taking the feet off and make easy work of taking the neck right out too.

Skin tearing I found is being too enthusiastic and trying to remove too many feathers at once.  I usually "scald" at 50°C for 2 minutes, but mainly concentrate on the big wing and tail feathers (you may also want a comfy set of pliers for these too!)

When you are plucking do the wings and tail first as these parts cool the quickest, and the feathers comt out easier when the body is warm

[GrannieAnnie]

If you can rig up a V of some sort, Brian said when he was young he used a rake tied to a fence or something and hook the feet onto it, you can pull the foot off which pulls the sinews out and makes the leg meat more palatable.

Brian cuts across the front of the foot first and then bbreaks acroos the cut, then pull off the foot and the sinews come out as well.

If you do it often, there is this sort of thing, but easy to make one!

http://www.awsmith.co.uk/Poultry+Processing/Poultry+Knives+%26+Utensils/Sinew+Puller+%28Stainless+Steel%29/63630/sinew_puller_stainless_steel_each_

[rachelr]

When do you let them bleed and for how long. The thread says after killing but as annie says its better to pluck when warm.

Some one else said after plucking?

[joyfull]

I cull and dry pluck straight away, then as there is a gap where the neck has been broken I hang my chicken upside down for about 3 days in a cool area - this allows the blood to drain into it before gutting and finishing  .