The star-independent. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1904-1917, 1914-12-09

short hairs which have to be removed
by singeing. If a chicken has been
scalded, the skin is hard, thick, close
to the muscles underneath and almost
| free from these hairs. The skin of a
| dry-picked chicken which has been
chilled in water has lost the powdery
look which is characteristic and is
shiny, thicker than when air chilled,
! and it is scarcely possible to see the
pink muscles underneath as one should
be able to do. A water chilled chicken
is also a fraud to the buyer because it
a'bsords water which is charged for at
chicken prices.
Housewives should insist on a dry
picked chicken, because any wetting of
chicken, and especially scalding, les
sens or destroys the delicate flavor of
| the meat
How to Draw Chicken
Following are the directions given
| by the poultry-dressing specialists of
the department for drawing a chicken
at home:
(1) Hold the chicken by the legs
| and run it quickly over tine flame from
a losely twisted lighted newspaper
which, for safety, may be laid in coal
bucket or ash tray. This will remove
the fine hairs. Remove any pin feathers
with the aid of sharp, small knife
blade. The charred hair may be washed
off later.
(2) Cut the legs off well below the
knee Joint. If the legs are cut above
the knee joint, the flesh on the drum
stick will be pull back from the end
(3) Cut the head off, leaving as much
| of the neck as possible, then push the
| skin of the neck back and cut the neck
off close to the body. The envelope of
the remaining skin gives the dressed
| bird a neater appearance. The neck
bones with the adhearing meat make a
valuable addition to the gfblets. The
gullet and windpipe are, of course, on
the neck and must be pulled away.
How to Remove Entrails
(4) To remove the entrails. make an
incisicn about 2h inches in length
across the abdomen and as close to the
vent as possible. In making this in
cision, be careful not to penetrate the
intestine. Slip the fingers in first, and
gradually insert the whole hand
through the slit into the body cavity
Work the viscera loose from its attach
ments by sliding the fingers over the in.
ner surface of the body walls. In this
way after little practice, the viscera
can be removed quickly and easily. The
lungs will almost invariably tear, leav.
ing shreds sticking to the back. These
and the kidneys of the chicken. which
are two long, dark red bodies lying
each side of the backbone and firmly
fastened, should be removed in pieces
The rest of the viseera, including the
crop which lies far front and Just un,
der the skin of the breast, when loosen.
ed will come out in mess through the
incision. The intestine is still attached
to the bird at the vent. To separate il
cleanly, the tube should be picked uI
just as close to the vent as possible
and its contents pushed well back from
the vent. Then cut closely around the
vent, holding the intestine tightly be
tween the fingers to insure cleanliness
Run a stream of water through the sill
into the body cavity in such wise that
it flows out through the vent and cleans
the short piece of intestine still remain
ing. Then cut both vent and intestine
away, leaving neat, round hole nc
larger than is necessary
Preparing the Giblets
To prepare the giblets, detach the
heart, gizzard and liver, taking great
care not to break the little green gal
bladder attached to the liver, which
contains very bitter liquid which, il
allowed to escape, will give bitter
flavor to the giblets and gravy This
gall bladder is so close to the liver that
some liver tissue must be cut away. tC
be on the safe side. The color of a
healthy chicken liver may vary from
yellow to dark red. To prepare the
| gizzard, hold it with the Thin edge to,
ward the palm of the hand and make
an incision the whole length along the
thick side, being careful merely to
cut through the muscle, but not into
the inner sac. Then open the gizzard as
you would a pocketbook and remove
the inner sac which is full of gravel, il
possible without breaking it.
e Finally, wash the chicken and glib
let's in clean, cold water, but do not
let the chicken soak in the water, be
cause the finest fiavors of the meat and
much nutritive material are dissolved
| in the water.
Once the chicken is dressed and
washed, put it at once in the coolest
place available and keep it there until il
is to be put on the fire. The best way is