'Tis Hunting Time—A smallish blog

[rotuts]

thank you for letting us fallow along.

[Shelby]

Crap, I forgot that they took pictures of the lone fish yesterday 

 

 

Couple of nice filets  

[kayb]

Enjoyed hunting season, as always. Sorry the doves weren't moving. We didn't have a lot of dove opening weekend in Arkansas, I heard people saying. Shame.

 

 

 

 

[KennethT]

Thanks for doing this!

[blue_dolphin]

I enjoyed that taste of fall while we were dragging summer out with 90°F temps here.  My favorite is always your appetizer selections - I could happily make them my dinner....along with some wine, of course!

Thanks for welcoming us to come along when your hunter visits!

[Thanks for the Crepes]

@Shelby,

 

Thanks! I sure enjoyed. Meet you back here in November. 

[Anna N]

Thanks, Shelby.  Anxious for deer season to start. 

[BeatriceB]

I just finished this thread from the beginning. Thank you so much for sharing (some of) your life and cooking! I'd  love to try all the game -- it looks delicious, as does all your food.

 

I love seeing the dogs in action. I had a black lab who, I think, secretly wished she was a working dog instead of a spoiled city pet. I'd take her up to the mountains and woods from time to time and her eyes would just light up. (I won't get into the time I took her to the beach and she tried to drown herself pursuing a seagull.) Chum is adorable with her own deer-watching chair.

 

Very much looking forward to the next installment.

[Shelby]

1 minute ago, BeatriceB said:

I just finished this thread from the beginning. Thank you so much for sharing (some of) your life and cooking! I'd  love to try all the game -- it looks delicious, as does all your food.

 

I love seeing the dogs in action. I had a black lab who, I think, secretly wished she was a working dog instead of a spoiled city pet. I'd take her up to the mountains and woods from time to time and her eyes would just light up. (I won't get into the time I took her to the beach and she tried to drown herself pursuing a seagull.) Chum is adorable with her own deer-watching chair.

 

Very much looking forward to the next installment.

Thank you so much!  I like it when someone says they would try the game --many people around here turn up their noses.  I served venison chili at a family get together years and years ago--along with potato soup.  Thank goodness I made the tater soup or some people wouldn't have eaten due to the chili being venison.  But, to each their own  

 

I know just what you mean about your doggies eyes lighting up  

 

[KennethT]

10 minutes ago, Shelby said:

Thank you so much!  I like it when someone says they would try the game --many people around here turn up their noses.  I served venison chili at a family get together years and years ago--along with potato soup.  Thank goodness I made the tater soup or some people wouldn't have eaten due to the chili being venison.  But, to each their own

 

Really?  I LOVE game, and I think there are quite a few other NYC folk who would agree with me... especially by judging how much it costs to buy quail or squab in the market!  I think if a store started carrying doves, it would cause a stampede at the store because everyone would know that the quantities were limited and no one would want to be left out.

[BeatriceB]

Oh, yes Kenneth. Farmed squab or quail are too expensive here (also NYC) for me, except for very special treats. (I especially love squab, but ouch! the expense.) The opportunity to eat wild venison, ducks, and doves would be so exciting to me. So different that people there turn up their noses at Shelby's fantastic-looking venison chili.

[Shelby]

1 minute ago, BeatriceB said:

Oh, yes Kenneth. Farmed squab or quail are too expensive here (also NYC) for me, except for very special treats. (I especially love squab, but ouch! the expense.) The opportunity to eat wild venison, ducks, and doves would be so exciting to me. So different that people there turn up their noses at Shelby's fantastic-looking venison chili.

Maybe it's just so common place here?  Maybe it stems from people not knowing how to cook it properly?  I dunno....I do know it leaves more for me 

[KennethT]

Have you ever considered a mail-order business?  I'd be your first customer!

[kayb]

On 10/2/2017 at 10:07 AM, BeatriceB said:

Oh, yes Kenneth. Farmed squab or quail are too expensive here (also NYC) for me, except for very special treats. (I especially love squab, but ouch! the expense.) The opportunity to eat wild venison, ducks, and doves would be so exciting to me. So different that people there turn up their noses at Shelby's fantastic-looking venison chili.

 

I've never had farmed quail, but we used to hunt quail, when there were still quail here some 50 years ago when I was a kid, and I could and did eat them like there was no tomorrow. Mama would split them, soak them in buttermilk, bread them in flour, egg wash and cracker crumbs, and pan-fry them. I could eat half a dozen.

 

We would regularly eat squirrel and dumplings (Mama always went a bit heavy on the black pepper for my taste), and rabbit and dressing (plenty of sage!). Wild duck -- the reason, I think, I'm just not a huge fan of farmed. Venison -- chops, roast, backstrap, sausage, ground. Bass, bream and catfish. I dearly love a pan-fried fresh-caught bream to this day.

 

I have turned down, in my day (we didn't cook it, but some of the "old folks" did) possum and coon. Greasy, and very gamy. Tried bear, once; wasn't fond of that. Turtle is ... OK. Ditto rattlesnake. I wouldn't go looking for either.

 

Now, I guess after venison, my favorite game, when I can get it, is dove, wild turkey (the breast, SV'd, served with a fruity sauce, is To Die For), and wild duck. And of course, venison. Think I may have found a source for venison.

 

I should start hunting again. My father taught me to lead a covey of quail with my .410 Mossberg when he got it for me for Christmas when I was seven. Good times.

 

[cakewalk]

@kayb, I feel like I just read a page out of a novel! 

[BeatriceB]

Wow, kayb, you have really experienced all that woods, fields, and water have to offer! I envy you, even the not-so-nice possum (we had one that lived in our suburban garage when I was a kid) and coon (which knocked over our garbage cans on a regular basis). 

 

I think my only taste of wild meat was when I had a long-distance BF, who lived in Southwestern Louisiana. Oh, such good food there! I do make good gumbo now, because I craved it so after spending time there, with LOTS of help from the fabulous old gumbo thread here and a little from John Besh's My New Orleans.

 

Anyway, we went to his grandfather's "camp" (to my surprise, actually a very nice rustic house located by a swamp) for Thanksgiving, and the main course was some ducks his grandfather had shot himself. I think they were braised, and there was rice "dressing" to go with them. Lots  of other things too, but what I remember is the wonderful duck and dressing, which, thinking about now, probably had the duck liver in it. While my family had many nice Thanksgivings with the traditional turkey, what we called "stuffing" and so on, that was definitely the most memorable Thanksgiving of my life.

 

[chromedome]

I grew up in rural Nova Scotia eating rabbit and venison and moose, and on one occasion* shot myself a few squirrels so I could see what they tasted like. I concluded they tasted much like rabbit but were infinitely more work because they were so small in comparison, and abandoned that particular line of inquiry. 

Later we moved to Newfoundland, where I got to try a few other things. This gave me the opportunity later in life to troll my mostly-urban classmates in culinary school: We'd been discussing offal, to the distaste of most of my classmates, and I piped up that I was a big fan. "It's often the best part of the animal as far as I'm concerned," I told them, "I know back in Newfoundland the old-timers are all about the flipper pie, but give me the seal's liver any day." 

As I'd anticipated, this led to a chorus of revulsion centered around a rough theme of "Ew, you ate SEAL?" As that initial reaction died away, someone asked the question I'd been waiting for: "What does seal taste like?"

"Well," I said, "It's dark and rich and rather strong-tasting. I'd say it's gamier than moose, but not as strong as whale."

 

Yeah, they lost their minds over the whale thing, which was exactly what I'd intended. Just for the record, said whale was not killed deliberately as food (it got caught in a gillnet and drowned, and was a small and non-endangered species, so the fishermen pragmatically butchered and shared it). 

 

Right now  my freezer contains a few small pieces of my father's last deer, and a nice bear roast from one of my Newfoundland uncles. The flavor of bear depends heavily on what it's been eating (it gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "garbage in, garbage out") but this was a really good one. 

 

* I asked my father what they tasted like, and he invited me to find out for myself. The proviso was that if I shot it I ate it, and wouldn't whine about liking it or not liking it. Also, I had to skin and gut them myself. 

[Shelby]

Happy Deer Season Eve!

 

Good afternoon from the cloudy, blustery  state of Kansas where the highs this week will be in the mid to upper 50's and lows will be in the lower 30's.  Thank goodness it's not going to be too hot.  I don't like hanging deer in a hot garage...I'm weird like that. 

 

I've gotten all of my Christmas decorations up and as we speak, my cleaning angel is here.  I need to wash the lights over the stove in the kitchen, but somehow my mind keeps telling me that I don't need to do that.   I'd rather putz around the kitchen this afternoon.

 

Our hunter will be here tomorrow morning, which is also the first day of the season.  I think the plan is to go directly out to the field from the airport.  As usual, they will have the camera.

 

Anyway, we ventured into the big city yesterday to stock up for this week.  We went to the grocery store and also the Asian Market.  Then I spent the afternoon putting things away and cleaning out the fridge.

 

Nothing too exciting from the grocery store.  

 

Ronnie was deeply disturbed because the eggs were over $2 a dozen lol.  My wonderful egg person's chickens have taken a hiatus and aren't laying right now. 

 

 I should have gotten the ginger at the Asian Market--it was far cheaper there.  

 

And, I think this is like only the second time in my life that I've bought skinless, boneless chicken breasts.  I am planning on making a dish this week that uses chicken breasts and I just didn't feel like thawing out the whole birds and cutting them up.  OR I might sub in pheasant for the chicken......  

 

\

And yes, I adore brown gravy made from the packets.  Turn away, true chefs, and don't look lol.

 

Much more exciting stuff from the Asian market--I plan on an Asian food fest one of the nights this week.

 

Needed some sesame oil and some fish sauce.  I forgot to look up what brand of fish sauce to buy....so we will see if this is any good.  I mean, hey, the label actually says "good" so what could go wrong?

 

 

 

 

And the star of the show:  pork belly

 

 

I've planned a bit, but nothing is set in stone so we will see what we get up to this week.  

 

 

[Smithy]

Yay for hunting season and your blogs!  It's interesting to see how the season shifts; our Minnesota deer season (rifle) is long since over.  I've lost track of whether the archery season is still going.

 

I think pheasant breast could be a good substitute for chicken breast, with possibly more flavor but also more work.  I'll be interested to see how that comes out.

 

Documentation as you can on the Asian food please: I buy those things, then can't figure out what to do with them. I'm trying to get better about not making impulse purchases of odd foodstuffs, but I still have a backlog. 

 

Blog on!

[suzilightning]

YEAH!!!!  Bear season begins again on Monday for a week around here...

First they have to bring the pheasant home.....

interested in what you are going to do with the tinned bun bo Hue

[Anna N]

56 minutes ago, Shelby said:

I forgot to look up what brand of fish sauce to buy..

 Next time look for Red Boat. 

[Shelby]

3 minutes ago, Anna N said:

 Next time look for Red Boat. 

Oh I do have some of that now that you say it!!!!  I bought some after @rotuts said it was excellent on steaks and then I promptly forgot about it.

 

Sigh.

 

 

[ElsieD]

Hi Shelby,  looking forward to this!

[KennethT]

yay!  More hunting blog!

 

I don't want to rain on your parade or anything, but Mam Nem isn't really fish sauce... it's more of a fish paste-y-sauce and is much thicker and more pungent than normal fish sauce (nu'o'c mam) which is thin and clear.  They're certainly not interchangeable if making a dipping sauce.  If you take a look at my Central Vietnam foodblog (shameless plug) you'll see us eating things with mam nem a few times.

 

While Red Boat fish sauce (nu'o'c mam) is certainly high quality, it is really expensive.  When in Vietnam, I've asked people about it, but no one I've spoken to over there has heard of it - it seems that it is only made for export.  Then again, most of the brands used over there are not exported, so take it for what it is.

 

Personally, I always have a big bottle of Squid brand fish sauce (it's Thai, not Viet, but practically the same thing).  It's good enough to have straight, but cheap enough where I don't cringe every time I use a whole lot of it.  We use a 1 liter bottle every couple of months - and it usually costs us maybe $4-5, unless I get it while in Chinatown and then it would be like $3.

[Anna N]

42 minutes ago, Shelby said:

Oh I do have some of that now that you say it!!!!  I bought some after @rotuts said it was excellent on steaks and then I promptly forgot about it.

 

Sigh.

 

 

Oh Shelby.  So many of us do that!   Then we go out and buy more. Finally when we see six bottles of fish sauce in the pantry we accept that we actually have some and don’t need to buy anymore.