Anyone rear & prep their own Turkey - Advice sought?

stratts

Well-Known Member
Hi all,
I traded a Munty for a Turkey from a friend which I crowned last night as it wouldn't go in the oven but there are quite a few ends of the feathers I can't get out of the skin. When you prep your own do you get every one out with tweezers, etc, or do they burn off in the oven? I just think leaving them in will make it look unsightly and may not be so nice to eat! Or do you just peel off the skin before carving, which to me would be sacrilege as it's the tasty bit when it's all crispy!!

Cheers

Stratts
 
When I was a boy ! We had a week off before Xmas to pluck turkeys for the village farmer half the village helped and a very fond memory of mine .it is pretty difficult once the bird is cold to get out the feather ends esp if you've crowned it a pair of pliers may help mate .....personally I'd have kept the munty :D
norma
 
When I was a boy ! We had a week off before Xmas to pluck turkeys for the village farmer half the village helped and a very fond memory of mine .it is pretty difficult once the bird is cold to get out the feather ends esp if you've crowned it a pair of pliers may help mate .....personally I'd have kept the munty :D
norma


Cheers mate you must have had a dull upbringing if pulling feathers out of a turkey was your highlight at Xmas!! :D My outlaws are proper towny types so a munty at Xmas would see me blackballed, which wouldn't be a bad thing!! They expect something wierd and wonderful when they visit so I'm doing pigeon & sausage rolls and a Pate de Campagne with rabbit & pheasant, but I doubt they'll eat many so more for me!! ;)
 
OK, stubbing Turkeys. Get you self a blunt knife and trapping stub between thumb and knife blade to remove stub. easy if you have the knack. Plucking and stubbing turkeys, that takes me back to another life:D
 
OK, stubbing Turkeys. Get you self a blunt knife and trapping stub between thumb and knife blade to remove stub. easy if you have the knack. Plucking and stubbing turkeys, that takes me back to another life:D

Losing the will to live just thinking about it......did some of this a couple of years ago helping a friend who rears & sell a few....man alive, tedious job if ever there was one!
 
HYou can then singe any remaining feathers with methalated spirits poured on a metal coal shovel ,lit and the bird is held just above the flames to gently singe any remaining feathers.
Best to do this,outside or in the garage/ shed though!!.

Bob
 
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Losing the will to live just thinking about it......did some of this a couple of years ago helping a friend who rears & sell a few....man alive, tedious job if ever there was one!

Never said it was a fun thing to do :D. I did start my working life at 15 killing and plucking chickens and have killed and plucked thousands of chickens ,turkeys, geese and ducks.
Last turkeys i did were for a chap who had them left over from Christmas. It was Easter and these turkeys were over 30lbs each and had been swill fed. They were monsters and a strange grey colour and smelt of pig swill when plucked due to them being swill fed. They put up quite a fight when putting there necks under a broom handle so i could stretch their necks.
As others have said, easier to buy from the supermarket.
 
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