I don’t know. That’s the honest answer

Yesterday we processed our first real meat harvest of the homestead. A few months ago we bought three Broad Breasted Bronze Turkeys with the intent of using them as meat birds for our family. Two of them (both males) made it to harvest day. One of the males was massive! Twice the size of the other one and I have no idea why. They were the same age, same breed, same feed, but very different in size. After processing, the larger one ended up being a 26lb bird. We didn’t weigh the smaller one but I would guess about half that size so around 13lbs.

We are lucky enough to live close to my husband’s family and have Thanksgiving together every year. This year our smaller turkey will be gracing the table of the family dinner. With our big one, we went ahead and broke him down and turned the meat into ground turkey. From the 26lb carcass, we ended up with 13 lbs of ground turkey meat. I am currently in the process of making stock from the bones and will probably end up with around 3 gallons of broth total. The broth I am thrilled with, the meat however doesn’t seem like all that much when you think about how much time and feed cost went into that turkey.

Now, I really don’t want to sound like I’m complaining. I am very thankful to have homegrown meat in the freezer, however those turkeys ate a ton of food. I didn’t keep track of the numbers but it was a bit. I also know that homesteading isn’t usually a cheaper option. Most people homestead and raise their own meat for other benefits. We want to know how our animal was raised, exactly what it ate, and ultimately to give it a good life until the end. All of that was accomplished. Those turkeys had a grand time until they didn’t and it was quick and as painless as possible. It is also a skill I am thankful to have. I hope none of us ever truly need those skills, but I like knowing that we can. All in all, I still am unsure if the whole process is worth it.

Thanksgiving update……the Turkey was delicious. I am still on the fence though if this is something we will do again.