Anonymous wrote:Poor animal

It's really no different than eating any other animal.

Anonymous wrote:It was really gamey but it wasn't awful. As PPs have noted, there isn't a lot of meat on a squirrel. It would take a lot of effort to prepare enough for a meal, so this was probably a recipe I will tuck away until the zombie apocalypse.

I used a rabbit recipe: http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/12254-italian-style-braised-rabbit-with-rosemary-and-mushrooms. I may try it with rabbit someday, but a store-bought one (Whole Foods, not Petco). This whole locavore thing is really overrated.

My yard is overrun with rabbits. You can bring Annie Oakley to pick some off anytime you'd like.

This skeeves me out sooo BAD!! But, Op, you probably would have gotten better results if you had marinated it or slow simmered it to make it less chewy.

Yuck, yuck, yuck, yuck...shudder.

I was never a fan of squirrel until I had Squirrel Braised in Apple Cider, recipe here (taken from The Wild Harvest Table):

Ingredients
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 dressed squirrel, cut in pieces and very lightly floured
1 medium onion, cut in quarters and separated
2 medium carrots, diced
1-1/2 cups apple cider
1/4-1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
2 medium cooking apples, cored and quartered

Directions
In a dutch oven or similar braising pan, melt butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add squirrel pieces and brown on all sides. Add onions and carrots and cooks for 3-5 minutes. Stir in cider and scrape up any brown bits in the pan. Add thyme, salt, pepper and bay leaf.

Reduce heat and cover, braising until squirrel is tender and cooked through, about 45 minutes. Add apple pieces on top, cover and cook an additional 15 minutes, until apples are tender.

Remove the squirrel pieces and take the meat off the bone. Place the meat back in the pan and increase the heat, bringing the cooking liquid up to a gentle simmer.

Reduce the cooking liquid to a nice thick sauce (about 5 minutes). The mixture can be served on toast as an appetizer or served over whole grain rice as a main course.

It was really gamey but it wasn't awful. As PPs have noted, there isn't a lot of meat on a squirrel. It would take a lot of effort to prepare enough for a meal, so this was probably a recipe I will tuck away until the zombie apocalypse.

I used a rabbit recipe: http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/12254-italian-style-braised-rabbit-with-rosemary-and-mushrooms. I may try it with rabbit someday, but a store-bought one (Whole Foods, not Petco). This whole locavore thing is really overrated.

Well you already said you were braising it, but if you decide squirrels is good eatin', next time you might try some rabbit recipes for it.

My professor at Oxford used to say that you need two squirrels per person: not because they are so small, but because they are so delicious.

We live in the DC area, but our lot backs to woods. The squirrel was in our backyard.

I am a very adventurous eater but am gagging reading this post. This is just a squirrel from your backyard? Vomit.

Poor animal

Out of curiousity, where do you live, OP?

Lightly fried and spiced. Tastes just like tuna I hear.

Look for a Brunswick Stew recipe.

Anonymous wrote:Lightly fry it in antioxidant spices, put it between two pieces of bread. To get the full flavor, it's important that you carry it around in a lunch bag for 4-5 hours before enjoying your meal.

Needs cheese.

Good move. I'd go with 15:12's approach.