Takeaway worker is ‘caught preparing raw chicken in an alleyway using a BLOWTORCH’

Shocking footage shows a food store worker preparing raw chicken using a roaster in an alleyway behind a shop in Middlesbrough.

The clips, shared on social media and viewed by MailOnline, appear to show a man using the cooking method to grill the chickens, which are kept in a cart next to a large container.

In the bottom of the cart, someone from the unnamed eatery has placed a piece of cardboard, presumably positioned to collect any liquid that comes out of the raw meat.

You can hear the person who filmed the clips yell “f***ing hell, I’m not eating that!” as he walks past the man, who appears to be using the blowtorch connected to a propane gas tank.

In a second video, pieces of chicken can be seen in a shopping cart nearby.

Some suggested that using the blowtorch was a means of removing the chicken’s feathers

Middlesbrough council has been notified and it was believed that environmental health experts were investigating the videos.

A council spokesperson said: ‘We are aware of the video circulating online and are investigating the matter.

‘It goes without saying that we expect all food processes to be carried out in a safe and hygienic manner.’

People reacted to the images on social media.

One of them said, ‘How can people put (their) trust in takeaways after seeing this!’

Another commented, ‘So glad I’m vegan! This is rancid.’

But some suggested that using the roaster was a means of removing the chicken’s feathers, with one writing, “I think he sears the skin to remove any loose feathers before preparing it for cooking.”

Hand plucking a chicken’s feathers removes only the larger feathers from the bird, but does not remove the smaller snags.

These can be removed by passing a blowtorch quickly over the raw meat without bursting the skin.