homesteadmomma
Almost Self-Reliant
That is awesome, we processed our meaties last spring and it was a first for us and I felt very very self-sufficient. I let mine chill as few days also before eating or freezing them.
Savingdogs-Saving the chickens
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savingdogs
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It was good! Flavor was excellent, it was a little chewie. Next time we will wait a couple days while it chills. This worked too though. I even have a little left to nibble on tomorrow for lunch.
It feels good to know we did not pay anything for this meat except chicken feed. He free-ranged a lot too and had a good life. He certainly had TOO MUCH sex!
It feels good to know we did not pay anything for this meat except chicken feed. He free-ranged a lot too and had a good life. He certainly had TOO MUCH sex!
Neko-chan
Lovin' The Homestead
...
ohiofarmgirl
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yay!! you guys are adorable! its hard to wait when you got all that chickeny goodness in the oven!!!savingdogs said:
and yep you found out why - the meat will be more tender if it sets a couple days. even if they are destined for the freezer you should chill them in the coldest fridge for several days. i think our minimum is 3 days.
there is a technical explanation having to do with rigor but it always goes in one ear and out the next.
another thing you can do is brine your bird in water and salt - some folks always do this. we do not. but when we have we've had good results.
now when you are done pickin' off the bones, but the whole carcass in a stock pot - or like i did last nite - in the crock pot and let it simmer low and slow for a long long time (see AnnaRavans stock thread).
our Teddie Grumpkins (grumpy old cat) is standing around waiting for the neck.. its her favorite!
noobiechickenlady
Almost Self-Reliant
Yay you!! 
Dace
Revolution in Progress
CONGRATS on your first chicken! That is great and you should be very proud...especially since you are in L.A.! 
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savingdogs
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Actually, Dace, I'm in Washington state now, but I lived and grew up in Los Angeles. Then when we moved here, we lived in the city. That is why I'm such a newbie in the county ways......
In Los Angeles, no one has a live chicken, much less processes their own, at least not where I came from!
So next time we will plan ahead and chill the bird three days as we should have. I don't know about the salt water soak as I try to avoid all sodium so I think I could soak them, but not in salt. Vinegar and water? Marinade? Is there another way to make a brine without salt? That would taint the meat for me (I am supposed to stay under 1-2,000 mg per day).
I AM making stock! Also cooking a turkey this week.
I tell you the birds are dropping like flies around here. The turkey actually came from a sale at the store though.....
Happy Monday everyone! I look forward to reading all your journals and comments as usual....
In Los Angeles, no one has a live chicken, much less processes their own, at least not where I came from!
So next time we will plan ahead and chill the bird three days as we should have. I don't know about the salt water soak as I try to avoid all sodium so I think I could soak them, but not in salt. Vinegar and water? Marinade? Is there another way to make a brine without salt? That would taint the meat for me (I am supposed to stay under 1-2,000 mg per day).
I AM making stock! Also cooking a turkey this week.
I tell you the birds are dropping like flies around here. The turkey actually came from a sale at the store though.....
Happy Monday everyone! I look forward to reading all your journals and comments as usual....
lorihadams
Always doing laundry
You could add a little white vinegar. We usually soak them in salt water for about 30 minutes and then pour it off to chill them for another 24-48 hours. You don't have to do a brine soak but they will be more tender if you give rigor mortis time to cycle through "the body" muhahahahhahha
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savingdogs
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The Story of Saffire
Saffire was one of those "victim" animals. I have actually fostered many dogs that had been abused. They include some that were just neglected and starved, some that were fought, some that were beaten, and some, well, some we will never really know what happened. Saffire had something "happen" to her, and a man did it.
She was a pretty little heeler/aussie mix with ice blue eyes that caused us to name her Saffire. A friend I knew took her from someone when she witnessed him abusing the dog. When he said he didn't want the *^%$ thing, she said she did and brought the dog to me (she lived in an apartment). The dog came to us with cigarette burns. She would not tell me the persons name so I could turn them in (it was someone related to her).
Saffire was just plain old terrified of men. Hubby has a specialty....you see, all dogs love him. We don't know what it is about him, but if a strange dog walks into a room full of people, it will walk over to my husband first and then to me. Never fails. All dogs love him. So, he tried and tried with Saffire. First, she was so terrified of him, she would not come in the house. So, we went slow. First night, she slept outside because that is where she wanted to be. Next day, she came in when Hubby was at work. When he came home, she freaked out, charging and lunging, trying to find somewhere to escape from evil man. Hubby slowly, slowly, got her used to him. But she would never let him touch her willingly, never let him come near, just stopped tearing around the room trying to escape. It took extreme effort and several weeks for her to tolerate his presence in the room without freaking out, especially if he looked directly at her. He was the only one who fed her.....so she was getting thin! We tried everything.
We knew if Hubby could not win this dog over, no man could.
I was at somewhat of a loss as to how to find a home for this one. She was a nice size, attractive, young, and was actually a very good dog when only women and children were around (once she settled in), just a little separation anxiety. We found she would do okay when Hubby was home if she had a crate to hide in. A crate became her sanctuary.
When I would take her to adoption events, she would flip out. Too many men! Men approaching from everywhere! If one approached and she was made to sit still, she would sometimes just urinate in place, she was so terrified. She would be okay in her crate but it was so big, it would be in the way. So I did not take her, except to one event that was very spread out and had a covered outdoor area where I could sit by my vehicle. Saffire loved my van (like a big crate) I had at the time and felt safe there, so we would sit in front of it and participate a little bit in the event, slowly getting her used to people. Often we would have interest in her, but always, it was a woman with a man somewhere.....and when the man showed up to meet the dog, she would freak out and of course the man of the family would want to adopt one of the nicer dogs. So Saffire stayed with me awhile. We wrote different web descriptions for her but had to keep including "doesn't care for men" and so she just wasn't a very good match for many people. I was hoping for a single woman. Unfortunately, Saffire really did not care for being alone very much and so I was having trouble finding the right situation...a single woman who works from home? It was hard to find a match for that. A recluse who never sees many men? What happens if the person marries next year? Hm.......
Well one day, I'm sitting outside by my van at the adoption event when two ladies approach. I can spot right away that they are a couple as they were strolling together like a couple would...and I also feel an immediate liking for them. They were there buying a whole bunch of goodies for their other pets and they seemed so happy and jolly. They approached Saffire and she did really really well with them, better than I had ever seen. They LOVED her name and thought she was the cutest dog they ever saw (always a good sign). I started talking to them about her because I saw they were charmed that she really liked them and how nervous new people made her, and about her abuse. I told her how she really, really was scared of men and how I couldn't find a situation for her.................and I suddenly looked up at them and said "I guess I need an all female household for her, like you guys." They smiled because they knew I was acknowledging their sexual orientation. I get this certain twinge or twinkle or something that happens when I see the right match for a dog, and it happened for me then. I always see it as a message from God because usually it will be some sort of funny little sign. This time, it was just their smile when I said that sentence that gave me the twinkle.
Well, about an hour later, I was at their house, showing Saffire around her new home. They were not looking for a dog until they met her, but they adopted her anyway because they saw she needed them and only them. They worked staggered shifts so she would never be alone. They were perfect. They had done animal rescue themselves and her continued rehabilitation was interesting to them, not a pain.
I insisted she needed her crate and they went and bought one, but it turned out she did not need it at her new house because men did not show up at night so she no longer needed to cower for hours at a time. While she later learned to tolerate the male friends of these ladies, she never really had to deal with them for very long. She even learned to be good around their sugar raptors and was a good pal for their other dog. They later donated the crate back to my organization.
About three years later I was at a dog park with my dogs, just messing around. I see a dog in the distance and I hear people calling the name Saffire (I could still hear then), so I walk over that ways. Sure enough, it is the same people and the same dog. She was older but doing excellent, much better adjusted. They said she was even starting to like a few men. They thanked me about 20 times for bringing the dog into their lives, she was like their child they had together. Their other dog had since passed and Saffire was training his replacement. Saffire, who at one time would only go to me and stay with me, did not even remember me and only stopped for a pat before she was off and enjoying her people and her dog park and her friend. And never once approached Hubby!
He loves to say "All dogs love me." and I have to remind him, "Except Saffire."
I learned a lot from that dog. One, dogs will act very different in different homes (not needing the crate that was formerly her salvation). Two, some dogs will never forget certain types of abuse or like people who remind them of it. And three, gay couples make great pet owners. I've adopted animals more purposefully to gay couples once I learned this worked (found two cats that were afraid of women and they live with a gay male couple now). But animals are good and comforting friends to all kinds of people and it isn't for me to judge their lifestyle except in how they care for their pets when I think about placing a dog with a family. Indeed, I feel more of a kinship with the people who adopted Saffire than I do with most folks I meet. Us rescuers recognize other rescuers.
So now you have heard the story of Saffire.
Saffire was one of those "victim" animals. I have actually fostered many dogs that had been abused. They include some that were just neglected and starved, some that were fought, some that were beaten, and some, well, some we will never really know what happened. Saffire had something "happen" to her, and a man did it.
She was a pretty little heeler/aussie mix with ice blue eyes that caused us to name her Saffire. A friend I knew took her from someone when she witnessed him abusing the dog. When he said he didn't want the *^%$ thing, she said she did and brought the dog to me (she lived in an apartment). The dog came to us with cigarette burns. She would not tell me the persons name so I could turn them in (it was someone related to her).
Saffire was just plain old terrified of men. Hubby has a specialty....you see, all dogs love him. We don't know what it is about him, but if a strange dog walks into a room full of people, it will walk over to my husband first and then to me. Never fails. All dogs love him. So, he tried and tried with Saffire. First, she was so terrified of him, she would not come in the house. So, we went slow. First night, she slept outside because that is where she wanted to be. Next day, she came in when Hubby was at work. When he came home, she freaked out, charging and lunging, trying to find somewhere to escape from evil man. Hubby slowly, slowly, got her used to him. But she would never let him touch her willingly, never let him come near, just stopped tearing around the room trying to escape. It took extreme effort and several weeks for her to tolerate his presence in the room without freaking out, especially if he looked directly at her. He was the only one who fed her.....so she was getting thin! We tried everything.
We knew if Hubby could not win this dog over, no man could.
I was at somewhat of a loss as to how to find a home for this one. She was a nice size, attractive, young, and was actually a very good dog when only women and children were around (once she settled in), just a little separation anxiety. We found she would do okay when Hubby was home if she had a crate to hide in. A crate became her sanctuary.
When I would take her to adoption events, she would flip out. Too many men! Men approaching from everywhere! If one approached and she was made to sit still, she would sometimes just urinate in place, she was so terrified. She would be okay in her crate but it was so big, it would be in the way. So I did not take her, except to one event that was very spread out and had a covered outdoor area where I could sit by my vehicle. Saffire loved my van (like a big crate) I had at the time and felt safe there, so we would sit in front of it and participate a little bit in the event, slowly getting her used to people. Often we would have interest in her, but always, it was a woman with a man somewhere.....and when the man showed up to meet the dog, she would freak out and of course the man of the family would want to adopt one of the nicer dogs. So Saffire stayed with me awhile. We wrote different web descriptions for her but had to keep including "doesn't care for men" and so she just wasn't a very good match for many people. I was hoping for a single woman. Unfortunately, Saffire really did not care for being alone very much and so I was having trouble finding the right situation...a single woman who works from home? It was hard to find a match for that. A recluse who never sees many men? What happens if the person marries next year? Hm.......
Well one day, I'm sitting outside by my van at the adoption event when two ladies approach. I can spot right away that they are a couple as they were strolling together like a couple would...and I also feel an immediate liking for them. They were there buying a whole bunch of goodies for their other pets and they seemed so happy and jolly. They approached Saffire and she did really really well with them, better than I had ever seen. They LOVED her name and thought she was the cutest dog they ever saw (always a good sign). I started talking to them about her because I saw they were charmed that she really liked them and how nervous new people made her, and about her abuse. I told her how she really, really was scared of men and how I couldn't find a situation for her.................and I suddenly looked up at them and said "I guess I need an all female household for her, like you guys." They smiled because they knew I was acknowledging their sexual orientation. I get this certain twinge or twinkle or something that happens when I see the right match for a dog, and it happened for me then. I always see it as a message from God because usually it will be some sort of funny little sign. This time, it was just their smile when I said that sentence that gave me the twinkle.
Well, about an hour later, I was at their house, showing Saffire around her new home. They were not looking for a dog until they met her, but they adopted her anyway because they saw she needed them and only them. They worked staggered shifts so she would never be alone. They were perfect. They had done animal rescue themselves and her continued rehabilitation was interesting to them, not a pain.
I insisted she needed her crate and they went and bought one, but it turned out she did not need it at her new house because men did not show up at night so she no longer needed to cower for hours at a time. While she later learned to tolerate the male friends of these ladies, she never really had to deal with them for very long. She even learned to be good around their sugar raptors and was a good pal for their other dog. They later donated the crate back to my organization.
About three years later I was at a dog park with my dogs, just messing around. I see a dog in the distance and I hear people calling the name Saffire (I could still hear then), so I walk over that ways. Sure enough, it is the same people and the same dog. She was older but doing excellent, much better adjusted. They said she was even starting to like a few men. They thanked me about 20 times for bringing the dog into their lives, she was like their child they had together. Their other dog had since passed and Saffire was training his replacement. Saffire, who at one time would only go to me and stay with me, did not even remember me and only stopped for a pat before she was off and enjoying her people and her dog park and her friend. And never once approached Hubby!
He loves to say "All dogs love me." and I have to remind him, "Except Saffire."
I learned a lot from that dog. One, dogs will act very different in different homes (not needing the crate that was formerly her salvation). Two, some dogs will never forget certain types of abuse or like people who remind them of it. And three, gay couples make great pet owners. I've adopted animals more purposefully to gay couples once I learned this worked (found two cats that were afraid of women and they live with a gay male couple now). But animals are good and comforting friends to all kinds of people and it isn't for me to judge their lifestyle except in how they care for their pets when I think about placing a dog with a family. Indeed, I feel more of a kinship with the people who adopted Saffire than I do with most folks I meet. Us rescuers recognize other rescuers.
So now you have heard the story of Saffire.
