Christmas Turkey

[elkdiesel]

My buddy brought me over a Christmas turkey. The only problem is it is still running around in my yard. I'm not a bird hunter, so I've never dressed and plucked a turkey before. Any ponters to help me get this turkey table ready for Saturday dinner?

 

[wingman1]

Are you kidding? Google how to butcher a turkey. Lol. I did it when I was a kid but don't remember what went wrong other than blood flying in my mouth when dad brought down the hatchet. I do remember that part took two people. Good luck

 

[Mudranger1]

want to skip the hatchet? try a 12 gauge!

 

[upper deck]

Start plucking right away. Goes way easier when warm.

 

[Hunt2Live]

Dip in a boiling pot of water. Start plucking. I usually just take the breast and thighs for meat.

 

[BirdDogWebb]

Shoot or whack its head then skin it. With the bird laying on it's back, start at the breast and peel back to the wings, mutch easier than plucking. If your not worried about looks, breast it out (about the same as back straps on deer).

 

[Hem]

Not much constructive advice so far.Here we go.Figure out how you want to kill the bird.(shoot with full choke 12 gauge at close range in the head or do a Henry IIX).Lay bird on its back and find the point of the breastbone(its a knob) and stick a knife underneath and circumvent the cavity down each side to the anus.The best,or worse part is to now reach in the cavity and rench out the guts right down to the anus,you might have to cut around the anus to get a proper cleanout.Wipe out cavity.Now, hang the bird by the feet,each foot tied seperatly so it won't spin on you.Cut the tail off right behind where all the feathers are rooted together.Take game scissors and cut off wings at elbow joint.Now start plucking from the feet down.You'll find some feathers come easily,some not so easy.Generally most pluck well,problem areas would be the armpit,portions of the breast,.The trick is to not try to pull too many at once.Be patient .Helps if you give a quick tug at the base of the feather versus a continous pull....plucking right?Pluck your bird all the way down to about halfway on the neck.Take a knife and remove the neck/head right where it leaves the shoulders.Now clean out the crop which lays behind a layer of goo between the breasts.Very important to get this removed,it can spoil the taste of the breast meat.You are basically done.If it looks clean,well it probably is.Don't worry about torn skin,it happens.Cut off feet.Sometimes I like to run tap water to get any leftover blood,under feathers,etc. Good idea to seek out any shot if you make an errant kill.No fun to bite lead or copper plated.Good luck and pm me if you have any questions.I can generally manage this in 30-45 minutes.

 

[drtdeer]

If it is a wild turkey, may just want to breast it out and cut the legs off. IMO, not enough meat other than that to mess with gutting it, they smell bad.

If it is a domestic (white turkey), or if you want it to "look" like a turkey on the plater, probably worth going with Hem's directions.