first success at cooking squirrel

[mazzgolf]

After many attempts at several different recipes, I finally got something that I can at least say was edible (and this was even more than "just edible"). So, in preparation of the coming 'ronapocalypse (or when the governor closes down the supermarkets) at least I figured out a way to get some kind of meal out of the backyard tree rats  

I love squirrel hunting. But unless it is for population or pest control, I really do not like killing something and not eating it or using it in some way (I like saying I harvested an animal, and harvesting means using the resource), and my problem with squirrels was I could never figure out how to cook them so they are edible. I've tried all kinds of recipes I found on the 'net for squirrel - fried and in a smoker are the main ways I've seen it done on the 'net in various configurations. And honestly, I don't know how people eat fried squirrel - chewy and tough.

Well, as a bunch of you told me on here - pressure cooker is the way to go for squirrel. So, a few months ago, I got an InstaPot and only now just put it to its first use. In pressure cooker, I put cup of water with some chicken bullion and put in pieces of 3 squirrels quartered.  Pressure cooked for 20 minutes, then let it naturally depressurize for another 15 minutes before I vented. I then picked the meat off the bones (some meat was fall-off-the-bone tender, other not so much - not sure why the difference?? Maybe I need more liquid to cover the meat? Some of the meat wasn't covered. Are you supposed to cover all the meat in liquid when you pressure cook???). I added some salt, pepper, BBQ sauce and a little Worcestershire sauce. It ain't venison backstrap, but it wasn't bad. It's a dark meat and tastes like it.

I had a bowl of rice left over from a previous meal - used that as a side. Could have put this on a roll or some kind of bread - I'm sure that would have been good.

That was half my squirrel harvest from this past season - I have three more in the freezer. I think next time I'll do the same with the InstaPot, but then maybe after I take the meat out of the pressure cooker I'll put it in another pot and make some kind of stew out of it.

 

[hunterbob1]

Would'a liked to try that sounds  a heck of a lot better than Jay's Woods party squirrels.

[BowhunterNJ]

My only squirrel meal was at Jays as well.  Not bad but that looks pretty good too!

[Zipper]

Limb chicken

[formakos]

Make a squirrel pie.  Basically, the same as a chicken pot pie.  Very tasty.

[MRMCR]

Does it taste nutty ??   I had an uncle who lived in the Catskills right on the esopus......anyway he would eat  squirrel possum almost anything that moved  , really grossed my mom out    LOL.......I guess he was a Catskill hillbilly.........

[Gman]

my grandmothers recipe; par boil squirrel and then fry in bacon fat.