Is it obligatory to give the 'aqiqah as cooked meat, and does a cow suffice for the 'aqiqah of a group of children?

Question:
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success. He says: Is it obligatory to give the 'aqiqah after it is cooked, or is it permissible to give it raw? And is it permissible to give a cow for a group of children?

Answer:
The 'aqiqah is given as charity in the form of raw meat or cooked meat; all of it is permissible, praise be to Allah, according to the benefit of the person receiving it. If the benefit lies in the cooked meat, you give it cooked. If the benefit lies in the raw meat, you give it raw. Because he may not need the cooked meat; he may need the raw meat for another day. Or it may be the opposite: he may not need the raw meat, but needs the cooked meat to eat immediately. This varies according to the people. So the matter is broad in this regard.
As for the cow and the camel, they do not suffice for more than one person in the 'aqiqah. There is no sharing in it. This is in the case of the 'udhiyah (sacrifice), where a camel suffices for seven people and a cow for seven people; that is in the 'udhiyah. But in the 'aqiqah, it is necessary to give it all for one person.