Last weekend I slaughtered and cooked my first ever bird. It was a rooster that could not be kept on an urban block. I wanted to make the best possible use of this beautiful animal and give it an humane death.

Me doing this was very important to me as it sums up the whole ethos of Grow It, Catch It, Cook It. I made use of a potentially wasted resource and put food on my family’s table. There was no plastic tray, long transport route and I used everything but the “beak” so to speak.

I was very pleased that despite it being my first attempt the bird did not suffer unduly. I had done a lot of reading, watched many youtube videos (see resources below) and spoken to my family and friends who were raised on farms.

Best of all, I got to make Coq au vin with a rooster as it should be.

Enjoy,

PK

Related Links:

• See some Australian RSPCA resources here.
• A youtube video I found useful on plucking/skinning (note the some might consider this graphic content and I point out it is not affiliated with my site in anyway)  – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGM8FzHhtBw
• See more butchery posts here.

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