The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: FiB on February 08, 2015, 08:00:10 pm

Title: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: FiB on February 08, 2015, 08:00:10 pm: Grrr, struggling to attach image (how do I make a file size smaller on an iPad).

Anyway kidney was very hard and about 7cm across.. any ideas what can cause this and whether meat might be unsafe to eaT? Many thanks
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: fsmnutter on February 08, 2015, 09:18:50 pm: Sounds like the gizzard?
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: Womble on February 08, 2015, 10:23:28 pm: ^ Agree. Slice it open. If it's full of sand / grit / grass, that's the gizzard.
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: Steph Hen on February 08, 2015, 10:28:36 pm: How many were there?
I remember my first gizzard, mum cooked the first cock we'd reared in a stew. Heart, liver, meat, kidneys. my brother cut open this new weird and surely wonderful organ, to find it full of stones! Was very off putting!
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: Clansman on February 09, 2015, 09:46:29 am: Does indeed sound like the gizzard, I wouldn't think your young cockerels kidneys would be much of a size at all.

Cut the gizzard through the centre and remove the hard inner lining (and contents if it has any) before cooking them.

(https://www.extension.org/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/Giblets.jpg)

(https://howlingduckranch.files.wordpress.com/2009/07/imgp2884.jpg?w=500&h=332)

(https://howlingduckranch.files.wordpress.com/2009/07/imgp2885.jpg?w=500&h=332)

(https://www.extension.org/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/Inside_gizzard.jpg)
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: Devon Boy on February 09, 2015, 12:22:10 pm: I'm never gong to look at a red onion the same again :innocent:
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: FiB on February 09, 2015, 05:01:42 pm: Yes gizzard thanks! How come I've never noticed one of these before? ! Now going to have to find out what a gizzard does! So normal then? Many thanks
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: Clansman on February 09, 2015, 05:04:21 pm: The gizzard is just a strong muscle where they grind down their feed, this is where they store the grit/stones to aid the grinding job.

When you go in the back entrance its the first thing you'll find :thumbsup:
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: HesterF on February 10, 2015, 12:27:39 am: Certainly not sure how you've missed it before - they are the biggest organ aren't they? I was lucky to have a vet show me how to dress a chicken the first time so she gave me a run through of all the organs - and which you could eat. Personally I don't normally bother with the gizzard because of the hassle of extracting the middle but apparently it's the best bit!
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: FiB on February 10, 2015, 03:49:24 pm: Thanks all, I think in previous plucks it has all been out in a big blob and been a bit disguised by intestines. I have even given son a guided tour of the innards and missed it on previous ovpccasions!..... And then went on to just whipping breasts and legs off, so this is first dressed bird for a while.
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: Izzy on February 11, 2015, 08:21:15 pm: When you go in the back entrance its the first thing you'll find

?Is this correct?

The gizzard is at the start of the alimentary canal where grains etc are ground down by stones/muscley gizzard wall. When u go in the back entrance you find the oviduct and caecum.
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: Clansman on February 12, 2015, 08:50:05 pm: You are of course correct :thumbsup:

But as we were talking organs, I meant it was the first organ you would find, as opposed to the kidneys etc.

With the bird on its back i usually put my hand in first up along the inside of the breastbone and pull out the gizzard and all its attachments.
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: Izzy on February 14, 2015, 06:34:10 pm: Sorry to be a pedant.
Title: Re: Help! Giant hard kidney in Young cockrel pluck
Post by: Clansman on February 16, 2015, 09:42:30 am: Not at all, its well worth pointing it out in case anyone who hasn't done it before is reading this and gets misled :thumbsup: