Sheila J > wrote in message news:<cTHFb.782133$pl3.502093@pd7tw3no>...
> As I continue to flog my daughter's interests here (my apologies to one
> and all...) I would like to ask whether or not it would be possible for
> a 7th grader to mummify a chicken for a Science Fair Project. Perhaps
> the more knowledgeable of you might know? Her thoughts were to just
> cover it in Sea Salt, and then wrap it up and then compare the decay
> process to a non-wrapped chicken.
>
> Of course, she has also thought of using a less-smelly orange.
>
> Would any of this work?

Sheila:
A lot depends on what is inside and outside of the subject.
Would she peel the orange first, and mummify the inner fruit,
or peel it and mummify the peel, or just mummify the whole thing?

Similarly for the chicken, one needs to know some details:
- does it have feathers?
- does it have a skin?
- does it have all of its organs?
- have some of its organs been removed, then placed in a small plastic
bag and returned to the body cavity from whence they came (no, I'm not
referring to a capon)?
- does it have a head?
- is it frozen?
- has it been cooked?
And most importantly,
- is it dead?
I ask this because I happen to know from experience that attemting
to wrap a live chicken is anything but simple.
If the bird is still alive, I would recommend grabbing it by the
legs, then holding it upside down and slipping a sock over its head;
then tape the legs together (duck tape works very well).
It should quiet down somewhat, perhaps enough to stuff the whole
bird into a large toque or tea cosy (fold the wings, first).
If it does not quiet down immediately, you should hold it by the
legs and run around the room with it, until it gets tired of flapping,
then stuffit into the toque.
You can then proceed to wrap the chicken.
If you try to wrap the chicken before it is stuffed, then I fear you
will go through literally reams of Christmas wrap, as it is much too
flimsy to restrain the chicken's struggles without reinforcement. (You
would also want to stock up on first aid supplies beforehand, because
chickens have sharp beaks and claws.)
Then again, if you stuff it into a Santa Claus hat instead of a tea
cosy, you really don't have to wrap it; it makes a dramatic
presdentation all by itself.
And for Hallowe'en, you can use a Harry-Potter-style "Magic Hat" for
stuffing. Just imagine the looks on your guests' faces when you ask
them to pick up the hat! They'll swear that it's haunted!
An that's A Good Thing.

The Best to You and Yours over the Holidays,
Martha

Daryl,
You obviously have too much time on your hands...
Thanks for the laughs, but you owe me for about a half a box of kleenex...
Sheesh....

But I think if the original poster wanted to, he/she could stuff the
chicken with salt, the completely cover it (recommend rock salt) withit
sitting on a rack so that the juices will drain, (YES... lots of salt)
let stand for a week, then place in a deg=hydrator, and it would come
out very, very mummified... Keep it in the fridge during the salting
phase, then keep chilled after the drator's done it's job... NO clue as
to time in the dehydrator...

Daryl Krupa wrote:

>Sheila J > wrote in message news:<cTHFb.782133$pl3.502093@pd7tw3no>...
>
>
>>As I continue to flog my daughter's interests here (my apologies to one
>>and all...) I would like to ask whether or not it would be possible for
>>a 7th grader to mummify a chicken for a Science Fair Project. Perhaps
>>the more knowledgeable of you might know? Her thoughts were to just
>>cover it in Sea Salt, and then wrap it up and then compare the decay
>>process to a non-wrapped chicken.
>>
>>Of course, she has also thought of using a less-smelly orange.
>>
>>Would any of this work?
>>
>>
>
>Sheila:
> A lot depends on what is inside and outside of the subject.
> Would she peel the orange first, and mummify the inner fruit,
>or peel it and mummify the peel, or just mummify the whole thing?
>
> Similarly for the chicken, one needs to know some details:
>- does it have feathers?
>- does it have a skin?
>- does it have all of its organs?
>- have some of its organs been removed, then placed in a small plastic
>bag and returned to the body cavity from whence they came (no, I'm not
>referring to a capon)?
>- does it have a head?
>- is it frozen?
>- has it been cooked?
> And most importantly,
>- is it dead?
> I ask this because I happen to know from experience that attemting
>to wrap a live chicken is anything but simple.
> If the bird is still alive, I would recommend grabbing it by the
>legs, then holding it upside down and slipping a sock over its head;
>then tape the legs together (duck tape works very well).
> It should quiet down somewhat, perhaps enough to stuff the whole
>bird into a large toque or tea cosy (fold the wings, first).
> If it does not quiet down immediately, you should hold it by the
>legs and run around the room with it, until it gets tired of flapping,
>then stuffit into the toque.
> You can then proceed to wrap the chicken.
> If you try to wrap the chicken before it is stuffed, then I fear you
>will go through literally reams of Christmas wrap, as it is much too
>flimsy to restrain the chicken's struggles without reinforcement. (You
>would also want to stock up on first aid supplies beforehand, because
>chickens have sharp beaks and claws.)
> Then again, if you stuff it into a Santa Claus hat instead of a tea
>cosy, you really don't have to wrap it; it makes a dramatic
>presdentation all by itself.
> And for Hallowe'en, you can use a Harry-Potter-style "Magic Hat" for
>stuffing. Just imagine the looks on your guests' faces when you ask
>them to pick up the hat! They'll swear that it's haunted!
> An that's A Good Thing.
>
>The Best to You and Yours over the Holidays,
>Martha
>
>