Some of the roosters, enjoying their time in the yard.
Recently we made a delicious rooster soup, and used all of the bones for the broth. We came out with a fantastically fatty stew that we will certainly enjoy again!!!
We wanted to be sure to use the entirety of each rooster, since wasting any part of them would feel like a disrespect. I watched each of them come into this world, hovering over the incubator like a ridiculous, nervous mom. I spent time with them and they came to know me as a creature to trust. Witnessing life’s full circle is a meaningful event, one that makes me all the more aware of our responsibility to honor the roosters after they have been dispatched. Here is how we used all of our roosters…
After they were killed, they were scalded in hot water to make plucking their feathers easier. All of these feathers were saved and I will be using them for earrings, a headdress, or even for stuffing fun, homemade pillows.
Feathers!
So many feathers!
Their heads were removed and we later put them in the compost pile so they can contribute their nutrients to our garden beds.
Their internal organs were removed, and the majority were fed to the pigs, who loved this snack!
We saved the livers for our dog, Bolt, and he got a snack also.
Then we fried the 3 hearts with salt and ate them ourselves. Delicious! This is one of my favorite little snacks… It makes me think of my childhood!
The feet were removed, cleaned, and steamed so that the skin would be easy to peel. These peels were given to the pigs and I saved the toenails for making jewelry.
The peeled feet were added to the soup… There is such great gelatin in chicken feet and it is so good for your body!
Once the broth was complete, the meat was removed from the bones and put back with the broth for our soup base.
I saved some of the more beautiful bones (the wish bones, phalanges, and other foot bones) for jewelry.
The remaining bones were cooked down over the course of a few days to make bone broth, a highly nutritous supplement to any future soup.
The bones that didn’t beak down fully were then mashed into a pulp to give to Bolt as a supplement… One better than money can buy!
So, thank you dear roosters! For all you have given us! We certainly appreciate it.
.:.