Question on chop

[taniaandkids]

I need to figure out the chop thing, (that's what it is called on here).
Question is, with mixing everything together and freezing it, does it have to be cooked (ie, sprouts, cabbage, squash ect)?
I have never frozen raw foods....and is it safe?

 

[Amanda_Bennett]

Everything that goes into the various "chops" I make is cooked. Mine usually consist of Whole grain pasta, brown rice, 15 bean mix, and assorted veggies like zucchini, yellow squash, sweet potato, kale, spinach, turnip, carrots, assorted peppers, whatever looks good at the market that day.

I freeze in bags that hold enough to last about 3 days for my zon. I warm a portion every morning & evening for "breakfast" & "dinner" and always serve with fresh fruit, sprouts, cucumbers and some other fresh veggies that can not be frozen well.

 

[chris-md]

Honestly, I gave up on doing chop. Freezing and thawingalways made the food look like crap. Parker wouldn't eat it, and I wouldnt either. Now I just defrost frozen vegetables and assorted fresh stuff.

 

[denaw]

chris-md,
When you defrost it, do you then heat or cook it bfore feeding it to them, or just defrost?

 

[chris-md]

I would move it from the freezer to the fridge to thaw while I'm at work or overnight and serve it that way.

 

[DexMom]

My first couple of batches of chop did not turn out in a way that was appealing to me at all, but Dexter ate them anyway. Thankfully they were small batches and I learned as I went along. Now I still do a chop - but it has less ingredients and is not chopped nearly as fine so it seems to stay a little crisper through the freeze/thaw process.

The things I decided to leave out of the chop mix and instead serve fresh (along with the chop) are peppers, squash, softer greens and broccoli. The peppers and squash made the chop too wet and mushy, the greens always seemed wilty and the broccoli would stink to high heaven by the time I got home from work (about 4 hours after Dex was fed in the AM).

My last batch was pretty simple and still needs a good bit of fresh food added, but takes about 1/2 the workload off in the morning. I used coarsely chopped carrots, red cabbage, parsnips, kale, peas and lima beans, along with cooked quinoa/wild rice/amaranth mix, soaked and cooked 15 bean soup mix and very al dente whole grain pasta. I freeze in small batches, thaw in the fridge and add things like fresh cucumber, peppers, celery, radishes, broccoli, cooked butternut squash or sweet potato, fresh leafy greens (like watercress, basil or parsley) and a variety of berries each day.

Now that I typed that all out and read it, it sure doesn't seem like the chop is saving me much morning prep!

 

[Anansi]

The only stuff that gets cooked for my flock are legumes and potatoes. Cooking sprouts would pretty much defeat the purpose.

I basically make enough chop for 2 days and refrigerate. When time comes to warm it up, I either put it in the strainer and rinse it with hot water, or quickly heat it in a pan with some coconut oil.

 

[chris-md]

I'm with you, Stephen. I don't cook much except rice, maybe sweet potatoes once or twice. Even with pasta, Parker likes the crunch so I feed that raw/uncooked.

I don't suppose you count heating up frozen veggies in the microwave cooking. If you do then I do actually cook daily :30:

 

[SilverSage]

I only cook potatoes, I sprout my legumes, and don't use the ones that would still need to be cooked. Everything else is raw. I honestly usually chop mostly fresh. I keep each ingredient in a separate container, and only mix it in the bowl. That way, even if my peppers are not fresh anymore I don't have to throw away perfectly good carrots, etc. I try to have at least one kind of sprout, one leafy green in each dish, but other than that I really rotate through a lot. I don't try to get every color in every day, or anything like that, I just feed a huge variety in general. Say I run out of peppers. The next day I may chop up broccoli instead, and add that to the mix. Don't stress about not having the time to get every single thing in. Get as much as you can and still reasonably maintain your life. Rotate foods, add frozen veggies if you want, but I personally just find the all fresh option to be the best fit for my birds. I don't even have to chop the greens, I literally just hang them in the cages.

 

[Anansi]

Ha! That's right, Chris! I forgot (brown) rice and pasta! Of course I cook those, too!

 

[SilverSage]

I should clarify I means sweet potatoes, not white potatoes!

 

[RavensGryf]

I just cut the vegetables fresh. I find it's super easy to do quickly. Usually I have 5-7 types in there. Some days they eat more of one thing than another, and at the end of the day there is always some to throw out. I don't like the idea of freezing and thawing out finely chopped items, fearing it will go bad or if not bad, then soggy and wilted during the day when no one is home. Most fresh vegetables will last an entire day. I don't cut super small either. I'll be absolutely honest... There might be a couple days a month or so where it doesn't get done, and they eat their dry foods. I know I'm not the only one, but probably the only one who will admit it lol.

I don't cook yams. They are a raw flock favorite. Both of my avian vets say they do not have to be cooked, and the birds have been x-rayed over the years (not because of yams), and the digestive system is fine. The last thing I want to do is start a discussion on the controversy of yams raw or cooked, I'm simply mentioning it.

I actually have a BIG question about "chop".... WHEN did people start calling fresh cut foods "chop"? Last time I was active on forums (and remember Yahoo Groups before Facebook?) it was around 10 years ago, and I don't believe the word "chop" was even around then. 'Someone' once said it I guess, and it from then on it stuck? Anyone with birds for some time on the forums remember when no one ever said "chop"?

 

[Aquila]

I make a big batch of a base which includes mostly grains including quinoa, oat groats, red wheat, amaranth, and whatever else I have around. I add dry rolled oats when it's done so I can absorb as much water as possible. The dryer your mix the better it will be when frozen.

Every other day I'll pull out a baggie and put it in the fridge to start to thaw, rough cut whatever veggies I have that day, to fit in my food processor, buzz it a few times, heat up the base in the microwave, mix it all up, sometimes add hot pepper flakes, cinnamon or peanut butter powder (not PB2, which has added salt and sugar) depending on what else I added, mix it all up and serve. I'll usually do things like fruits with cinnamon, or veggies with hot pepper flakes, banana and powdered peanut butter, etc.

I have a big variety of packaged frozen vegetables, mixed, peppers, zucchini, carrots, as well as a few different kinds of frozen fruit. I grab whatever's on sale, and since my mom's currently staying with me, she asks "Which is for us and which is for the birds?"

My mix ends up being a decent variety, and you don't need to spend too much time on it. It's fine to mix some canned or frozen with fresh, and since my birds are usually getting things I'm eating, I'm not worried about variety. If I'm making pancakes, you know my fids will be getting a few little pancakes stuffed with fruit or veggies. If I'm cutting an apple for myself, they'll be getting half. I don't think I can even eat my cereal without them getting some!