Chop Day Recipe

[chris-md]

It takes time to figure out what your bird likes. Much of it comes down to how you prepare it.

I know with parker (and I'm pretty sure Terry's eclectus, Ekko), if I prepare anything with chunks, or try to feed him cubed veggies, he won't touch it. I have to run EVERYTHING through a food processor so its all small bits he can't pick through. But not every bird will like this preparation.

So size matters to birds. but so to can the preparation. Some birds won't touch raw carrots, but will chow down on a nice steamed carrot. Others? Won't touched cooked, but go crazy for raw carrots. Or may only eat carrots if they are julienned or round circles.

Quality of the chop is the other thing. A well prepared chop isn't going to be so mushy. How do you prevent uber mush? Two keys:

ingredient curation/choice,: Don't add fruits/high moisture materials to the frozen stuff (fruits etc.). Save REALLY wet foods for top dressing before you serve. DO add moisture absorbing ingredients (some pasta, rice, grains, etc).

and

Preparation: at every turn, I'm constantly squeezing and wringing out handfuls and colinder-fulls of chop to remove as much water as possible.

The other side of the equation is simply do whatever you possibly can to get the beak down into the bowl. If hes a seed addict, top dress the chop with his favorite seed. Or any favorite treat. Does he like rotini? add rotini to the chop!

 

[imouse1]

Ooh, I have a question on this, then =(

(I'm wondering if I made a mistake)

I made a couple of purees of veggies into ice cubes with a small amount of the Sir's favorite fruits, and I melt a piece of one under some fresh chop twice a day. The sweeter one I give go him at night (since I give him some fresh fruit after we are done training for the day, and the more effervescent one I give him in the morning. He'll eat a little bit of it sometimes, sometimes no. It kind of acts like a salad dressing lol

Should I be avoiding doing that? Or is this just a preference for your birdie buddy? I put some chopped up vegetables and herbs on top for him to pick through, top it with a pinch of hemp heart, if that changes anything.

 

[chris-md]

I can’t see anything wrong with that. Though perhaps the sweeter at night might not be the way to go. Not based on anything really, just pure conjecture that increased sugar before bed probably doesn’t make for the best night time z’s. But if nothings amiss, no harm no foul.

 

[imouse1]

I can’t see anything wrong with that. Though perhaps the sweeter at night might not be the way to go. Not based on anything really, just pure conjecture that increased sugar before bed probably doesn’t make for the best night time z’s. But if nothings amiss, no harm no foul.

I do it just because we finish training about an hour before bed and then ge goes and wacks* the bejeesus out of his bell toy lol. It has fans on it and he will hold onto those as he uses his legs to get the whole* thing swinging. Then he gets his cube o'fruit (or a couple bites of leftover good boy grape) and beds down--whether or not I want to. Because he's weird (and also in charge now) haha. The puree he'll eat somewhat in the middle of the night when he gets up. But he's still baby sleeping--several times a day for short periods.

Edit: fixed autocowrecks

 

[Littlechris123]

My friend Janine (who owns the rescue) and I decided to have a chop day on Monday, and make an enormous amount since between us we have around 120 birds. We got started at noon, and had to go to a couple of stores to gather everything, and then were back at my house by 2:00pm and got started. We had my oven and all 4 burners going from then until 10:30 pm, and finally finished with the packaging at 11:45pm...a long, but very fun day!
We also made muffins which I will make a new post for
We used over 50 ingredients in the chop:

White,red and black quinoa , Hemp Seed
Boiled popcorn kernels , Chickpeas
Yellow and green split peas , 5 bean soup mix
Mung beans , hulled sunflower seeds
Red, Green and yellow lentils , Pumpkin seeds
Millet , Vegetable pasta
Cous Cous , Zucchini
Chia seed , Green Peas
Corn , Pineapple
Long grain brown rice , Pomegranate
Papaya , Strawberries
Sprouts , Celery
Blueberries , Wheat Germ
Pot Barley , Bok Choy
Swiss Chard , Snap Peas
Broccoli , Cauliflower
Red,orange and yellow bell peppers , Jalapeno peppers
Beets and beet greens , Slivered almonds
Kiwi , Flax Seed
Parsnips , Sweet Potatoes
Cranberries , Oats
Spelt Flakes , Carrots
Amaranth , Green beans
Turnips , Pumpkin
Rutabaga , Coconut
Spaghetti Squash , Chili pepper flakes

Here are a couple of pics of the prep and finished chop:

Hi this chop looks tasty can i ask is that mincemeat in there aswell x

 

[Terry57]

Hi this chop looks tasty can i ask is that mincemeat in there aswell x

Nope, no mincemeat

 

[MissMac]

My friend Janine (who owns the rescue) and I decided to have a chop day on Monday, and make an enormous amount since between us we have around 120 birds. We got started at noon, and had to go to a couple of stores to gather everything, and then were back at my house by 2:00pm and got started. We had my oven and all 4 burners going from then until 10:30 pm, and finally finished with the packaging at 11:45pm...a long, but very fun day!
We also made muffins which I will make a new post for
We used over 50 ingredients in the chop:

White,red and black quinoa , Hemp Seed
Boiled popcorn kernels , Chickpeas
Yellow and green split peas , 5 bean soup mix
Mung beans , hulled sunflower seeds
Red, Green and yellow lentils , Pumpkin seeds
Millet , Vegetable pasta
Cous Cous , Zucchini
Chia seed , Green Peas
Corn , Pineapple
Long grain brown rice , Pomegranate
Papaya , Strawberries
Sprouts , Celery
Blueberries , Wheat Germ
Pot Barley , Bok Choy
Swiss Chard , Snap Peas
Broccoli , Cauliflower
Red,orange and yellow bell peppers , Jalapeno peppers
Beets and beet greens , Slivered almonds
Kiwi , Flax Seed
Parsnips , Sweet Potatoes
Cranberries , Oats
Spelt Flakes , Carrots
Amaranth , Green beans
Turnips , Pumpkin
Rutabaga , Coconut
Spaghetti Squash , Chili pepper flakes

Here are a couple of pics of the prep and finished chop:

So is everything cooked then cooked then chopped or? Sorry I am new to all this and feeling in over my head.

 

[Terry57]

So is everything cooked then cooked then chopped or? Sorry I am new to all this and feeling in over my head.

It can definitely feel overwhelming!
All beans must be cooked for safety reasons.
In this chop, we cooked all the grains, beans, legumes, pumpkin, sweet potato, parsnips, rice, turnips, squash & rutabaga.

 

[MissMac]

My friend Janine (who owns the rescue) and I decided to have a chop day on Monday, and make an enormous amount since between us we have around 120 birds. We got started at noon, and had to go to a couple of stores to gather everything, and then were back at my house by 2:00pm and got started. We had my oven and all 4 burners going from then until 10:30 pm, and finally finished with the packaging at 11:45pm...a long, but very fun day!
We also made muffins which I will make a new post for
We used over 50 ingredients in the chop:

White,red and black quinoa , Hemp Seed
Boiled popcorn kernels , Chickpeas
Yellow and green split peas , 5 bean soup mix
Mung beans , hulled sunflower seeds
Red, Green and yellow lentils , Pumpkin seeds
Millet , Vegetable pasta
Cous Cous , Zucchini
Chia seed , Green Peas
Corn , Pineapple
Long grain brown rice , Pomegranate
Papaya , Strawberries
Sprouts , Celery
Blueberries , Wheat Germ
Pot Barley , Bok Choy
Swiss Chard , Snap Peas
Broccoli , Cauliflower
Red,orange and yellow bell peppers , Jalapeno peppers
Beets and beet greens , Slivered almonds
Kiwi , Flax Seed
Parsnips , Sweet Potatoes
Cranberries , Oats
Spelt Flakes , Carrots
Amaranth , Green beans
Turnips , Pumpkin
Rutabaga , Coconut
Spaghetti Squash , Chili pepper flakes

Here are a couple of pics of the prep and finished chop:

Learning here so forgive my ignorance but what items are cooked and what is left raw?

 

[Terry57]

Learning here so forgive my ignorance but what items are cooked and what is left raw?

Learning is good, I still learn new things every day
All beans must be cooked for safety reasons.
In this chop, we cooked all the grains, beans, legumes, pumpkin, sweet potato, parsnips, rice, turnips, squash & rutabaga.

 

[MissMac]

Learning is good, I still learn new things every day
All beans must be cooked for safety reasons.
In this chop, we cooked all the grains, beans, legumes, pumpkin, sweet potato, parsnips, rice, turnips, squash & rutabaga.

Thank you so much Terry. I totally forgot to Google it on YouTube... oldfartitis I'm afraid but thank you for your patience.

 

[Terry57]

Thank you so much Terry. I totally forgot to Google it on YouTube... oldfartitis I'm afraid but thank you for your patience.

You're very welcome

 

[aussie_wings]

I didn't know "chop" was a recognized term! I actually heard it for the first time the other day when we adopted Gremlin and the owner of the parrot store was explaining that as part of their diet, and how they make their own for sale there. One good tip she gave us was to use ice-cube trays (I'm sure you all know this already, though) to freeze it and thaw out one per day for each bird, so that the rest of it can stay fresh!

 

[Tanglwood02]

My friend Janine (who owns the rescue) and I decided to have a chop day on Monday, and make an enormous amount since between us we have around 120 birds. We got started at noon, and had to go to a couple of stores to gather everything, and then were back at my house by 2:00pm and got started. We had my oven and all 4 burners going from then until 10:30 pm, and finally finished with the packaging at 11:45pm...a long, but very fun day!
We also made muffins which I will make a new post for
We used over 50 ingredients in the chop:

White,red and black quinoa , Hemp Seed
Boiled popcorn kernels , Chickpeas
Yellow and green split peas , 5 bean soup mix
Mung beans , hulled sunflower seeds
Red, Green and yellow lentils , Pumpkin seeds
Millet , Vegetable pasta
Cous Cous , Zucchini
Chia seed , Green Peas
Corn , Pineapple
Long grain brown rice , Pomegranate
Papaya , Strawberries
Sprouts , Celery
Blueberries , Wheat Germ
Pot Barley , Bok Choy
Swiss Chard , Snap Peas
Broccoli , Cauliflower
Red,orange and yellow bell peppers , Jalapeno peppers
Beets and beet greens , Slivered almonds
Kiwi , Flax Seed
Parsnips , Sweet Potatoes
Cranberries , Oats
Spelt Flakes , Carrots
Amaranth , Green beans
Turnips , Pumpkin
Rutabaga , Coconut
Spaghetti Squash , Chili pepper flakes

Here are a couple of pics of the prep and finished chop:

did you just throw it all in a pot and cook it?

 

[Tanglwood02]

My friend Janine (who owns the rescue) and I decided to have a chop day on Monday, and make an enormous amount since between us we have around 120 birds. We got started at noon, and had to go to a couple of stores to gather everything, and then were back at my house by 2:00pm and got started. We had my oven and all 4 burners going from then until 10:30 pm, and finally finished with the packaging at 11:45pm...a long, but very fun day!
We also made muffins which I will make a new post for
We used over 50 ingredients in the chop:

White,red and black quinoa , Hemp Seed
Boiled popcorn kernels , Chickpeas
Yellow and green split peas , 5 bean soup mix
Mung beans , hulled sunflower seeds
Red, Green and yellow lentils , Pumpkin seeds
Millet , Vegetable pasta
Cous Cous , Zucchini
Chia seed , Green Peas
Corn , Pineapple
Long grain brown rice , Pomegranate
Papaya , Strawberries
Sprouts , Celery
Blueberries , Wheat Germ
Pot Barley , Bok Choy
Swiss Chard , Snap Peas
Broccoli , Cauliflower
Red,orange and yellow bell peppers , Jalapeno peppers
Beets and beet greens , Slivered almonds
Kiwi , Flax Seed
Parsnips , Sweet Potatoes
Cranberries , Oats
Spelt Flakes , Carrots
Amaranth , Green beans
Turnips , Pumpkin
Rutabaga , Coconut
Spaghetti Squash , Chili pepper flakes

Here are a couple of pics of the prep and finished chop:

Terry did you just cook everything together?

 

[Tanglwood02]

pure life bottled

 

[Tanglwood02]

Terry I wanted to say thanks for this recipe- somehow I found myself out of chop mix the other day so I had to find new recipe since the last batch was edible but not that great (lol). I used your ingredient list as a guideline, but was unable to find a few things and left out the fruits except for blueberries.



This batch includes:
Chickpeas
Corn
Peas
Carrots
Green beans
Red and yellow bell peppers
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Blueberries
Flax seed
Kale
Sugar snap peas
Celery
Steamed brussel sprouts
15 bean mix
Lentils
Veggie pasta
Pearl barley
Quinoa
Long grain brown rice
Boiled popcorn kernels


So far, I think this is the best batch I've done- she's been eating for the last 45 minutes...and counting [emoji33] lol

This looks great too! Did you just throw it all in a pot and cook it? I think my birds are getting a little bored of the chop I make

 

[Terry57]

Terry did you just cook everything together?

No, we cooked everything separately that needed to be cooked

 

[Kiwi&Zeus]

This is how my food counter looked while preparing chopped food for Kiwi and Zeus. Normally I make for about 3 weeks.

 

[Terry57]

This is how my food counter looked while preparing chopped food for Kiwi and Zeus. Normally I make for about 3 weeks.

That looks yummy!