Squirrel

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brums
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Squirrel

#1

Post by brums »

Had a fun mid-winter squirrel hunt today and am now looking for a good recipe. I have had squirrel and dumplings, squirrel white chili and am thinking of squirrel pot-pie. Any other "proven" recipes to consider?

jvh
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Re: Squirrel

#2

Post by jvh »

Fried. Roll in flour and fry in lard in a cast iron skillet. Fry slow so they won't be tough. Then make milk gravy and fried taters. Yum.
Vern

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WF70
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Re: Squirrel

#3

Post by WF70 »

Prolly too late for your squirrel. 1960. Went hunting with a buddy over Thanksgiving. Spent several days in a big, green, canvas Coleman tent. Our bag for those days? One squirrel. He was a hunter so knew how to prepare it. I only knew pork and beans. We skinned that rascal and brined it overnight. Next day over an open fire it was one of the finest meals I've ever had. Perhaps our limited hunting success was the spice needed to make it spectacular.
Should you feel adventurous you might research Jimmy Mathews' original Brunswick Stew from 1828 made from squirrel, onions and stale bread as a base. It was a great hit with returning hunters who probably had little to show for their hunting day but a huge appetite.

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jhuskey
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Re: Squirrel

#4

Post by jhuskey »

jvh wrote:Fried. Roll in flour and fry in lard in a cast iron skillet. Fry slow so they won't be tough. Then make milk gravy and fried taters. Yum.
Vern
This is perfection - season flour well.

aged_sage
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Re: Squirrel

#5

Post by aged_sage »

And, the younger the suirrel, the better!

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flyfishingpastor
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Re: Squirrel

#6

Post by flyfishingpastor »

It's been years since I've had squirrel but the only way I've had it was fried with squirrel gravy. Man, that was good - when my mama cooked it. :)

Pat

brums
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Re: Squirrel

#7

Post by brums »

Since it turned out that a couple of folks were joining us for dinner, I decided to make Squirrel and Dumplings over roasted garlic mashed potatoes. They were willing to try squirrel, but I wanted to keep the "shock value" down, so frying it was out (this time). Everything done by hand......Roasted the garlic in the oven, mashed the potatoes (butter, cream cheese, and a little milk) and topped with the squirrel and dumplings.

The squirrel was in the crock pot with turkey stock for 8 hours throughout the day. Took the meat off the carcass and set aside. Sauteed an onion, carrot and celery in a little olive oil. Made a roux with butter and a bit of flour and added that after the onion, carrots and celery were soft. 6 cups of turkey stock and squirrel meat were added back in and brought to low boil. Made dumplings from scratch and added them for 15 minutes. It was a hit....too bad the squirrel season ends in about 10 days or so around these parts.

I will definitely try the fried squirrel sometime with a more adventurous crowd.

jvh
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Re: Squirrel

#8

Post by jvh »

That sounds really good. A great way to deal with tough squirrels. When I get several old, tough squirrels I make a big pot of gumbo.
Vern

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Random Casts
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Re: Squirrel

#9

Post by Random Casts »

Don’t know about squirrel but I have been known to eat crow!

Each year between my wife and I, we do in about forty red squirrels that regularly devistate our bird feeders or at least prevent the song birds from getting at the feed.

Has anyone tried a red squirrel recipe?


Richard
Random Casts

jvh
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Re: Squirrel

#10

Post by jvh »

The main difference is the red's tend to be chewy but have more flavor. Long slow cooking is best.
Vern

rasnickr
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Re: Squirrel

#11

Post by rasnickr »

My dad always loved to fry the skulls and eat the brains. Not I, but I do love fried squirrel, just haven't had it in many years.
We would always score the backs and back legs so that the seasoning and flour coated more of the meat. We would always throw away the rib cage(not the back).
I have plenty of grays in my backyard but neighborhood squirrels.
rick

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Re: Squirrel

#12

Post by Serpentine »

In the UK the Red squirrel is protected however the American Gray is classified as vermin,they carry a form of pox that’s fatal to the native Red’s

Cook them the same as rabbits long and slow.
Cut the squirrel into 4 or so pieces wrap each piece with smoked streaky bacon lightly dust in flower and seal in a hot pan ( duck or goose fat is best) until golden brown then set aside.
Give the pan a quick wipe with a paper towel then add a little more fat .
Add diced carrots,leeks and celery ,mushrooms and a couple of cloves of smashed garlic Sautéed until the veg takes on a bit of colour .
Then add some streaky smoked bacon lardons and a couple of juniper berries,cook for a few more minutes.
Add a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste cook that out for a few minutes.
Add 1/2 a bottle of red wine and a pint of brown chicken stock along with a few bay leaves, a bunch of fresh thyme, salt and pepper and a dash of wostershire sauce .Bring up to a rolling simmer. A few anchovy’s can be used instead of the salt . Add the squirrel ,some small potatoes cover and braze slowly in the oven for 3 hrs .
Serve with warm crusty bread , steamed greens and hot English mustard .

Andalusian Blue
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Re: Squirrel

#13

Post by Andalusian Blue »

Substitute quartered squirrel or rabbit for the chicken in any authentic Hungarian Paprikash recipe (of which there are many). Find one that suits your fancy and you will not be disappointed. Must be accompanied by an excellent brew and fresh baked bread however. Possibilities are wide and flavorful.

Bamboo River
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Re: Squirrel

#14

Post by Bamboo River »

Fried in bacon grease with home fries and gravy. The thought makes me hungry.

Eyegofaster
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Re: Squirrel

#15

Post by Eyegofaster »

By one of my favorite game cooks, Hank Shaw. His recipes rarely disappoint. Will try it this weekend if I manage to bag one or two of the little buggers:

https://honest-food.net/squirrel-carnitas-recipe/

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Brooks
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Re: Squirrel

#16

Post by Brooks »

Eyegofaster wrote:By one of my favorite game cooks, Hank Shaw. His recipes rarely disappoint. Will try it this weekend if I manage to bag one or two of the little buggers:

https://honest-food.net/squirrel-carnitas-recipe/
OK, I’m going to quit making fun of squirrel recipes: that just sounds fantastic. I love the fact that he has achieved a squirrel ‘grand slam’.

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jacknoir
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Re: Squirrel

#17

Post by jacknoir »

Our resident gray squirrels have been stealing my tomatoes all summer. Now I know how to turn the tables on them!

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cheffy
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Re: Squirrel

#18

Post by cheffy »

I’ll have to try and find it again but a chef friend just did a BBQ pulled squirrel. Smoked and braised with a mopping sauce.

Bamboo River
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Re: Squirrel

#19

Post by Bamboo River »

jvh wrote:Fried. Roll in flour and fry in lard in a cast iron skillet. Fry slow so they won't be tough. Then make milk gravy and fried taters. Yum.
Vern

Brings back a lot of happy memories.

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Brian K. Shaffer
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Re: Squirrel

#20

Post by Brian K. Shaffer »

Watch old Fox Statler clean one in this youtube video - an artful master!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUUR6lxnAME

A true legend. Below is his : Fox's Arkansas Scud
https://www.flyanglersonline.com/flytyi ... 08fotw.php

Fox - " One day, I decided to dig up one square yard of gravel near Bull Shoals Dam and collect every aquatic insect in it. Being a math teacher, numbers were and still are pure logic in the raw to me. I found that there were about 7,000 sowbugs, 500 scuds, 100 planarian, 3 mayflies, and 1 caddis per square yard of gravel. Well to me this represented the ratio of bites that I could expect using any of these bugs. While the ratio of bites of sowbugs to planaria, to mayflies, to caddis was true. The ratio of sowbugs to scuds wasn't. You see there were 14 sowbugs to every scud, but in the fish's stomach the ratio was 5 sowbugs to 1 scud, or 4 to 1, and sometimes 3 to 1. I wanted to find the reason why this was happening. I thought I knew the answer but I wanted proof from a reliable source before I started spouting off. I searched for the answer to my paradox for almost a year. "

Thanks for looking Fox - you found it.
" There's no such thing as a fly fisherman wholly satisfied with his casting performance. " ~ Jim Green (1971)
" Just once I wish a trout would wink at me. " ~ Brian Shaffer

Use the SEARCH for justification and reasoning.

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