Turkey hunting season is an exciting time of year for hunters. After bagging your bird you’re left wondering what to do with the carcass. While most hunters keep the fan, beard, and spurs the feet often get discarded. But preserving turkey feet is a gratifying project that allows you to use every part of the animal.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk through everything you need to know about preserving turkey feet for display or cooking.
Why Preserve Turkey Feet?
Here are some great reasons to preserve turkey feet rather than tossing them out
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Decoration – The unique scales, claws, and bony texture make interesting natural decor. Feet can be proudly displayed as hunting trophies or used in arts and crafts projects.
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Cooking – Simmering preserved feet makes rich stocks and broths. The collagen adds body, nutrients, and thickness.
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Snacks – Properly preserved feet can be fried or roasted for a crispy, salty snack in African and Chinese cuisine.
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Dog treats – Dried turkey feet make long-lasting, natural chews for dogs to enjoy.
Supplies Needed
You only need a few simple supplies on hand to preserve turkey feet:
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Turkey feet – Freshly harvested, used within 24 hours.
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Non-iodized salt – Coarse kosher or sea salt works best.
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Container with lid – A plastic tub or cardboard box.
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Cheesecloth & rubber bands – To wrap feet during drying.
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Borax (optional) – Helps dry and preserve the feet.
Step-by-Step Preservation Process
Follow these steps for perfectly preserved turkey feet:
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Clean – Scrub the feet under cold water using a stiff brush to remove any dirt, blood, or debris. Pat dry.
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Remove Flesh – Trim off excess skin, fat, and flesh with a sharp knife while leaving tendons intact.
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Salt – Thoroughly coat feet with a heavy layer of salt, getting into all crevices.
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Store – Place salt-packed feet into a sealed container and cover with 1 inch of extra salt.
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Re-salt – After 24 hours, rinse and resalt the feet with a fresh coat of salt.
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Borax (optional) – Soak feet in a borax solution for extra preservation.
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Final Salting – Bury feet in salt for 5-7 days until completely stiff and dry.
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Air Dry – Remove from salt and air dry feet on racks until hardened, about 1-2 weeks.
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Use – Enjoy your preserved feet for cooking, crafts, or displaying.
Tips for Best Results
- Work in a cool, dry area to prevent spoilage.
- Check feet daily during drying for damp salt or mold growth.
- Discard any feet that smell bad or appear slimy.
- For display, spray with clear coat paint to further preserve.
Alternative Preservation Methods
Beyond salting, other options for preserving feet include:
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Freezing – Freeze cleaned feet in airtight bags for later use.
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Brining – Submerge feet in a salty flavored liquid.
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Drying – Use a dehydrator or oven on low heat to crispy dry.
Uses for Preserved Turkey Feet
Once preserved, turkey feet can be used to:
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Flavor soups, stews, and bone broths.
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Add to ethnic dishes like African peanut stew or Chinese dim sum.
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Save in the freezer for later use.
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Make dog treats or chews.
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Use in arts, crafts, or hunting trophy displays.
Cultural and Historical Significance
Preserving turkey feet connects us to time-honored traditions including:
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Sustainably using every part of the animal.
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Passing down generational cooking methods.
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Providing protein through tough times.
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Following Native American practices.
Display Your Trophy Parts without Spending a Fortune
Turkey taxidermy is expensive. And it doesnt take many full-body turkey mounts to fill a room. Yet, so many gobblers are worth remembering beyond a beard lost in the garage. Here are five cool DIY turkey taxidermy projects that are easy to make . . . and even easier on the wallet.
Simple Tail Fan Display
Turkey Parts: Tail fan
Tools/Supplies: Knife, 3×3 sheet of plywood, thumbtacks, weights and Borax
Remove the turkeys tail by slicing around the ball-and-socket joint at the base and twisting it free. Keep all the tail feathers intact and attached to the meaty base. Carefully trim remaining flesh and liberally apply Borax. Lay the tail fan flat against the plywood and spread the tail feathers into a drying position. Place books or other heavy, flat weights over the fan to hold it in place, and use thumbtacks to pin the feathers down.
Put the tail fan somewhere safe, away from family pets, basement mice and garage bugs. Check it frequently. When the tail stiffens, trim even more skin and flesh, but keep the feathers held tightly in place. Once its completely dry (usually after three weeks to a month), use a piece of thin leather or cloth to cover the tail base. Thin wood works for this, too, and you can paint it. Hang your fan with a wire or nail, or add to the effect by mounting it on a plaque and displaying it with the birds beard.
Turkey Parts: Several tail feathers, spurs, beard and the turkey tag if available
Tools/Supplies: Knife, small hand saw, Borax, back fasteners or tacks, wire and shadow box
Remove the turkey beard, keeping a small bit of meat intact at the base. Take several tail feathers from the bird, sized to fit in the shadow box (you may have to evenly clip the quill ends). To mount the spurs, remove the turkey legs at the joint beneath the feathering. Cut through the leg on either side of the spur to remove it, either with a saw or heavy-duty shears. Clean the insides out with a pipe cleaner. Remove the leg scales above the spur if you wish, and finely trim them with a knife. Use Borax to aid the drying process.
Once the turkey parts are dry, arrange them inside the display with the beard and spurs hanging down in the middle of the glass-fronted mount, using thin wire to hold everything in place. Hardware and craft stores often sell small, pre-cut circles you can use with fabric or wood called sticky back fasteners (Velcro brand is a good choice). Mount the tag above your feathers, beard and spur arrangement.
Turkey Parts: Beards
Tools/Supplies: Knife, wood plaque, small nails or tacks and Borax
Glue a beard inside your spent shotgun hull, along with a note about the hunt. Hang it anywhere.
Remove turkey beards by cutting them free and keeping a small bit of skin intact near the base. Some hunters jerk the beard straight off the bird, but you get one chance at doing that right. The risk of pulling it apart is high. So spend the extra 6 seconds and use a knife.
Affix beards behind or in front of your wood plaque using small nails, tacks or other hanging options. Hang the plaque with a wire and nail. This is a good mount if youve hunted numerous states and want to have beards displayed from a particular season, or if youve killed a gobbler with multiple beards.
Turkey Parts: One dead gobbler
Tools/Supplies: Knife, pins or thumbtacks and Borax
Hang your turkey by the head. Begin cutting where the neck feathers meet the head skin. Gently skin away toward the direction of the tail fan, retaining as much of the skin with attached feathers as possible. Youll need to skin alongside the birds flanks the farther down the back you go. Take your time, as turkey skin is thin. When youre done, gently remove the remaining flesh with your knife. Use Borax as a drying agent, covering the damp skin side. Lay the cape on a big piece of wood, pinning or tacking it into the desired drying position. Be sure to spread the tail fan the way you would with a standard fan mount, detailed above. Allow the cape to dry a month or more, and check it frequently. Remove pins or tacks, clean off the Borax and youre ready to display the turkey cape on your camp wall.
Simple Preservation of a Turkey Foot for Display
FAQ
How long does it take for turkey feet to dry out?
Every few days to up to a week take a look at how the salt is doing and knock off any wet salt. Replace it with new salt and push it into the open section of the leg. When the salt falls off and the open joint appears dry the foot should be safe to remove from the box and will stand on its own.
How do you preserve turkey feet with salt?
Put some salt on the tops. Propped up the legs against a wall with a brick over the toes to keep them flat. I let them dry a week till stiff enough to not curl back, then began three coats of clear Krylon.
Are raw turkey feet safe for dogs?
Completely digestible and perfectly natural, uncooked bones are an important part of their daily diet. Your dog will love the bone’s yummy taste and the mental stimulation. Plus, all that chewing is a wonderful workout not only for your dog’s jaw muscles but their entire musculoskeletal system.