[AT] Pluck chickens with a clothes dryer?

Phil Vorwerk pvorwerk at newulmtel.net
Thu Jul 14 09:03:18 PDT 2011


This thread hits home with me pretty hard.  My father was a lifetime poultry
fancier - had his own coop from the time he was five.  He just passed away 2
years ago at the age of 94, and he had birds all the way until the last 5
years of his life.  I kind of think the chores that he did with the birds
helped keep him young, although the last years I was doing more and more of
it for him.  He was actually grandfathered in with his coop in the city of
New Ulm, MN - he built the house in 1950 and the town grew around him.  One
time a new neighbor started a petition to have his coop removed.  The
neighbor went around the neighborhood and couldn't get a single
signature....

Dad raised bantams, his lifelong breed was Blue Wyandotte Bantams, but he
always had 4 or 5 different breeds that he kept for variety.  I think he
chose the blues because they were so difficult to breed and maintain the
proper color, so it was more of a challenge.  He had a national reputation
as a top breeder among the poultry crowd.

The last 25 years of his life he worked on the "Vorwerk" bantam, a breed
based on the German Vorwerk bantam, but not available in the US.  He
recreated the exact look starting from scratch (took many years, but he got
it.)  He was very proud when the breed was accepted as a standard breed in
the US.

I grew up in a small town, but with the sound of roosters crowing in the
morning, and fresh eggs for breakfast.  Also went to a lot of poultry shows
as a kid, and showed my own line of Rhode Island Reds until all of my birds
got an illness that got passed around at the national Rhode Island Red meet
in Minneapolis - wiped out every show quality bird that I took to the show,
and that was the end of it for me.

Unfortunately, none of us brothers had enough interest to continue his
flock, and they were distributed to area breeders when we were getting ready
to move my folks into assisted living.

Good childhood memories.

Phil Vorwerk
Courtland, MN



-----Original Message-----
From: at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com
[mailto:at-bounces at lists.antique-tractor.com] On Behalf Of Ben Wagner
Sent: Wednesday, July 13, 2011 12:25 PM
To: Antique tractor email discussion group
Subject: Re: [AT] Pluck chickens with a clothes dryer?

Unfortunately, I've heard that many of the heritage breeds are seeing a huge
drop in numbers.  I'd like to get the Plymouth Rock breed, since they have a
great appearance with the speckled feathers.

I think the Cornish cross was a cross between the leghorns and Rhode Island
reds, but don't quote me there.

Have you ever heard of the "skinning" method of plucking?  Somewhere along
the way I remember hearing about it; maybe it wasn't for chickens.  I think
the way it works is to pull the entire skin with feathers off the bird.  I'd
think it's only good for immediate cooking, since the meat would dry out
quickly, and you'd also lose the fat which makes the flavor.

Ben Wagner

On Wed, Jul 13, 2011 at 12:21 PM, Larry Goss <rlgoss at insightbb.com> wrote:

> Right.  Orphington, barred rock, Plymouth rock -- we looked down our noses
> at leghorns.  I had some Bantam's when I was a kid.  It was fun to gather
> eggs that were already decorated for Easter.   :-)  Believe it or not, the
> only interest I have seen recently in raising "real" chickens has been
from
> antique tractor collectors.  I don't know what that says except maybe that
I
> have a limited circle of people that I correspond with.  :-)
>
> What was the rooster's name in the cartoons?  Foghorn Leghorn?  It has
> always been an oxymoron to me that the cartoon character was depicted as
> being so big -- totally out of character!
>
> Larry
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Ben Wagner" <supera1948 at gmail.com>
> To: "Antique tractor email discussion group" <at at lists.antique-tractor.com
> >
> Sent: Wednesday, July 13, 2011 10:52:02 AM
> Subject: Re: [AT] Pluck chickens with a clothes dryer?
>
> The plucker I saw still needs the feathers to be scalded.  I think ducks
> are
> dry plucked, and maybe geese too, but I'm not for sure.
>
> The process you mentioned is exactly the way I still process my chickens,
> except that I use a plate of alcohol to singe the pin feathers.
>
> The breed I raise is Cornish Cross, but I'm sure you grew up on real
> chickens.  Those Cornish Cross birds are useless for anything beyond
eating
> and sleeping.  They have heart attacks if they move too fast, and they go
> lame without supplements; the only advantage is that they put on the meat
> in
> two months.  The old "laying hens" live longer, but I think the flavor is
> the best.  You can't beat the flavor of gravy from a culled hen, or the
> quality of the meat.  People who say they've had chicken are wrong until
> they get a real bird.  We need folks to start raising chickens like you
> had.
>
> Ben Wagner
>
> On Wed, Jul 13, 2011 at 10:36 AM, Larry Goss <rlgoss at insightbb.com> wrote:
>
> > LOL!  I guess the question I have is a bit more basic, Roy.  I remember
> > seeing chicken pluckers for sale at Sears after WWII, but I never saw
one
> > work.  The question I had then was, "Do you have to scald the chicken
> first
> > just like we do for hand plucking?"  Scalding loosens the feathers so
> they
> > nearly fall out of the pores.  But plucking a chicken is messy -- maybe
I
> > should say -- Messy, or MESSY!  It was amazing to me that some people
> > actually plucked chickens without getting the feathers wet.  There was a
> > specific process to be followed: chop off the head, bleed the carcass,
> scald
> > the feathers, pluck them, singe the pin feathers with a rolled
newspaper,
> > gut the body, and cut it up into precisely eleven pieces. Two wings, two
> > thighs, two drumsticks, wish bone, breast, back, tail, and neck.  The
> > gizzard may be fried or cut up with the giblets and added to the gravy
--
> it
> > all depended on how much mashed potatoes were going to be prepared.  Of
> > course, I'm talking about a CHIC!
> >  KEN, not a pullet.  Typically, one chicken would serve Sunday dinner to
> 10
> > people.  The idea that one person would eat a 1/4 or 1/2 of a chicken
was
> > unheard of.
> >
> > Larry
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Roy Morgan" <k1lky at earthlink.net>
> > To: "Antique tractor email discussion group" <
> at at lists.antique-tractor.com
> > >
> > Sent: Tuesday, July 12, 2011 10:47:11 PM
> > Subject: [AT] Pluck chickens with a clothes dryer?
> >
> > Tractor folks,
> >
> > On our local free/wanted email list a request appeared:
> > > My husband is looking for a dryer to convert into a chicken plucker.
> > >
> >
> > How on earth can a clothes dryer pluck chickens?
> >
> > Roy
> >
> >
> > Roy Morgan
> > k1lky at earthlink.net
> > K1LKY Since 1958 - Keep 'em Glowing!
> >
> >
> >
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