You peel them first and I always cut off their last knuckle with the nail. A friend's farm down here has their chickens processed professionally so they can sell them at Farmer's Markets and such. They have the feet processed separately and sell them. I went to their farm last week and purchased several packages of chicken feet to make stock with. It makes an extremely nutritious broth! I picked some up to boost nutrition throughout pregnancy. Also, we have a purebred Great Pyrenees due for puppies in about 3 weeks, so I plan to make some broth for her as well to ensure healthy puppies for us to sell!