How to drain the blood from chicken legs

The key to bloodletting chicken legs lies in the processing steps after slaughter, mainly including bloodletting time, incision position, flushing method, and refrigeration and standing.

1. Bloodletting Time

Immediately after slaughter, hang the chicken leg upside down and let the blood flow naturally for 5-10 minutes. The muscles of freshly slaughtered poultry are not completely stiff, and at this time, the blood vessels are in a relaxed state, which is more conducive to blood excretion. It is recommended to use a dedicated hook to fix the chicken feet when hanging upside down, to avoid blood reflux and contamination of the meat.

2. Incision location

Make a 1-2 centimeter longitudinal incision at the large blood vessel on the inner side of the chicken leg, cutting off the femoral artery and vein. professional slaughter often uses neck bloodletting method, and for home processing, the area with dense blood vessels on the inner side of the joint can be selected. The optimal depth of the incision is to cut through the blood vessels without damaging the main tendons, as excessive depth can cause bone debris to mix into the flesh.

3. Rinsing method

Rinse muscle tissue repeatedly with flowing water at around 4 ℃, focusing on cleaning the bone marrow cavity and tendon junction. Low water temperature can cause blood vessels to constrict and hinder blood flow, while high water temperature can accelerate protein denaturation. When flushing, gently press the muscles with your fingers to help residual blood seep out, and pay attention to keeping the direction of water flow consistent with the direction of blood vessels.

4. Refrigerated chicken legs treated with

should be left to stand at 0-4 ℃ for at least 2 hours. Low temperature environment can slow down the precipitation of residual blood cells and inhibit microbial growth. The chicken legs can be placed in a leaky bowl and refrigerated. During this period, flip them 1-2 times to ensure that the blood is fully drained, avoiding blood clots from depositing in the fascial spaces.

It is recommended to choose freshly slaughtered live poultry and handle them immediately. If the blood vessels of poultry die for more than 2 hours, it will cause difficulty in bleeding. Throughout the processing, it is necessary to keep the utensils clean and separate raw and cooked products to avoid cross contamination. For cases where blood streaks are still found before cooking, soaking in light salt water for 15 minutes can help with hemolysis. If you need to completely remove hemoglobin from the bone marrow, you can try adding a small amount of lemon juice or white vinegar during pickling to promote decomposition. Daily storage should be sealed and placed in the coldest area of the refrigerator. Freezing storage should not exceed 3 months to ensure the best taste.