| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| susquesus |
Posted - September 16 2009 : 01:16:31 AM
The air is starting to dry, the nights are starting to cool down- we're in the approach to autumn. In Minnesota that means eatin' season. It could get cold soon, you could be caught outside- you gotta start bulking up. It's potato season, cheese season, apple and pumpkin season and it is definitely beginning to be meat season. In general- what is your favorite meat- or lack thereof? Any favorite recipes, memories or seasonal meaty meals on your mind? Please share it- we'll all let our mouths water together.
Favorite meat???
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| 24 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| BookwormMG |
Posted - October 03 2009 : 8:01:52 PM
A few days ago, my dog had an upset stomach with a predictably yucky result on the living room floor. The vet said to let her stomach rest for eight hours, then give her boiled hamburger and rice. While boiling the hamburger I realized that a substance which could indeed be called SCUM was rising to the top! That must be what the muskrat recipe was talking about. If the meat had been muskrat instead of hamburger I would undoubtedly have been disgusted by the scum.
With the sausage and scalloped potatoes recipe, I said that it doesn't get much easier than this. Then I remembered the following:
Poor Man's Lobster
1 pound frozen haddock
2 cups water
1 Tblsp. vinegar
1 Tblsp. Old Bay seasoning
1/2 tsp. salt
Pinch of sugar
Bring water to a boil and add frozen haddock. Bring to a boil again and simmer for 1/2 hour. Dip in butter. (The recipe doesn't specify when to add the vinegar and seasonings, and I made it so long ago that I don't remember what I did, so use your best judgment.) |
| BookwormMG |
Posted - September 27 2009 : 4:46:05 PM
Irishgirl, I'm really glad you liked the sausage and potatoes dish. You really can't go wrong with the preparation. And it surely does have an awesome smell!
Shadawick, sorry it's taken me so long to answer your question. I'm pretty sure I used just regular smoked sausage. I suspect that most any kind that's not really spicy would be OK. I also think it wouldn't make much difference if, say, you were out of cheddar cheese soup and used cream of chicken instead.
Does anyone like bear meat? In his narrative of a journey in 1725 to settle a boundary dispute between Virginia and North Carolina, William Byrd II wrote, "Our Men kill'd a Bear of 2 Years Old which was very fat. The Flesh of it hath a good relish, very savory, & inclining nearest to that of Pork. The Fat of this Creature is the least apt to rise in the Stomach of any other. The Men for the most part chose it rather than Venison, the greatest inconvenience was that they eat more Bread with it. We who were not accustom'd to eat this rich Dyet tasted it at first with some squeamishness, but soon came to like it. Particularly our Chaplain lov'd it so passionately, that he wou'd growl like a Wild-Cat over a Squirrel."
My family had a less favorable experience with bear meat. When I was very young (too young to remember this directly, I was told about it years later), a successful hunter gave my dad a chunk of bear meat. We may not have been considered poor, but there were weeks when my dad's paycheck didn't quite stretch far enough, so he was not about to turn down an offer of free meat. Unfortunately we knew nothing about cooking bear meat, and the result, as my mother said later, "stunk up the whole house" and no one would even taste the meat. There may have been growls resembling those of a wildcat, but if so they weren't intended as a compliment to the meat! No doubt the secret is in knowing what cut of meat you have and what to do with it.
Here's another recipe that isn't at all difficult:
Baked Meatballs
1 egg
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. dry mustard
1/3 cup dry bread crumbs or 1 cup soft bread crumbs
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup milk
2 Tbsp. finely chopped onion
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
Mix all ingredients thoroughly. Shape into 20 1 1/2 inch balls. Place in an ungreased baking pan and bake at 400 degrees about 20 minutes. When done, heat canned gravy or spaghetti sauce, add meatballs, and serve over rice, noodles, or mashed potatoes.
All or part of this recipe can be frozen. To serve frozen meatballs, heat gravy or spaghetti sauce to boiling; add frozen meatballs. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until meatballs are hot, about 20 minutes.
Serves 4. |
| susquesus |
Posted - September 24 2009 : 9:26:16 PM
KAY!!!
Thank you, thank you, thank you. I will be making that recipe. Reading it is making my mouth water. |
| Irishgirl |
Posted - September 24 2009 : 6:40:00 PM
Bookworm I made your smoked sausage and scalloped potatoes in the slow cooker yesterday and I must say it was truly scrumptious. Just the smell of it cooking was amazing but the taste was even better. Everyone loved it so thanks again. |
| blackfootblood |
Posted - September 24 2009 : 11:08:39 AM
Thanks for sharing Kay!! Looks and sounds delicious! You know, we should start a recipe thread to share some new ideas for dinner. I'm sure some folks would appreciate that, I know I would. I'm always looking for something new to try. |
| Kay |
Posted - September 24 2009 : 09:10:04 AM
Sus, you asked about the dill chicken recipe so here it is copied exactly from Mom's recipe card. Enjoy!
Sour Cream and Dill Chicken:
8 to 10 chicken pieces, skinned
pepper to taste
1 can (10 and 3/4 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
1 cup (8oz) sour cream
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped or 1 tsp dill weed
1 can (4oz) sliced mushrooms, drained
paprika
cooked wide egg noodles, optional
Place chicken in a single layer in a 13"x9"x2" baking pan. Sprinkle with pepper. Combine soup, soup mix, sour cream, lemon juice, dill and mushrooms; pour over chicken. Sprinkle with paprika. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until chicken is tender. Serve over egg noodles if desired. Yields 4-6 servings. |
| Wilderness Woman |
Posted - September 22 2009 : 12:26:24 PM
 You are most welcome, Sus! I thought you might get a kick out of that.
What I actually ended up cooking for the group this past weekend was a form of Goulash. I made it with ground beef (chuck) and white rice. I used a fairly traditional Hungarian goulash recipe that had a tomato base with onions, green peppers, garlic, and lots of paprika. Instead of cubed stew beef and macaroni, I used the ground beef and the rice. It was a big hit! When I sent the leftovers home with one of the guys who is a bachelor, I thought he was going to kiss the hem of my petticoat in gratitude.
To round out the meal, we had Pennsylvania Dutch cole slaw, made with a sour cream dressing, and thick slices of bread with real butter. |
| susquesus |
Posted - September 21 2009 : 2:25:04 PM
HA!!!
Skin and remove the musk gland from the 'rat
Cook until scum is no longer produced.
that is funny as all get out. I've eaten woodchuck, rabbit, goat, squirrel, moose, more venison than i can remember, buffalo, pheasant, duck, wild turkey, gator and probably some more critters i'm forgetting- but nowhere have i ever seen reference to "scum" in a recipe. Thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing that WW.
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| Wilderness Woman |
Posted - September 21 2009 : 1:54:26 PM
Fried Muskrat
1 muskrat
2 medium onions, chopped
salt and pepper
Skin and remove the musk gland from the 'rat. Immerse it in a kettle of water. Add onions. Salt and pepper to taste. Cook until scum is no longer produced. Drain off water, leaving onion with the muskrat. Add more water and continue cooking until tender. Remove and fry as you like in a spider. (A spider is a skillet that is elevated on legs.)
This recipe is listed as "Common Fare" in the book "Pease Porridge: Beyond the King's Bread. Cooking at Fort Niagara; Rations to Regal; Royalty to Republic, 1726 - 1865."
Notes along with this particular recipe state:
"Muskrat was (and still is, by some) considered a delicacy by the French inhabitants of the Great Lakes. This small game animal lives in marshy areas and has a strong but tasty flesh. The musk gland must be removed before cooking, however. If the gland is left in, the muskrat will taste as if it were allowed to rot! French garrisons, including those of Fort Niagara and Michilimackinac, have left large numbers of muskrat bones about their sites."
Speaking for myself, I can't get past the part of the recipe that talks about the scum. That doesn't sound very pleasant to me. All I can think of is marsh scum.
But, what can you expect from Lay Fran-say???
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| susquesus |
Posted - September 19 2009 : 6:25:40 PM
Kay- the chicken/cream of mushroom/DILL recipe has got my mouth watering. If you get a chance to share the details I would love to hear them.
Rich- I'm ashamed to say that I have never tried lamb. Have you ever tried goat? My pal and I went to a mexican grocery store and were looking for something we hadn't tried before. We saw the goat and when we asked about getting some the butchers eyes lit up. "You having a wild party"?, he asked. So I guess that goat=party time. It was pretty good, didn't lead to any dancing or risqu behavior though. |
| Kay |
Posted - September 19 2009 : 09:02:38 AM
Chicken.... when I was really little I called everything chicken. Mom makes great dishes like cranberry chicken and apricot chicken over rice. Then there's another recipe with cream of mushroom and dill. HmmmHmmm good! And Mom also makes the best stuffed pork chops filled with either stuffing and cream of mushroom or an apple/raisin/chutney like stuffing. Call me silly but it never once crossed my mind that someone would eat wildcat. Who's ate that one?!
Kay |
| richfed |
Posted - September 18 2009 : 09:39:54 AM
quote:
Originally posted by susquesus
Well now I am curious. What goes good with muskrat? I'll probably never make one but I'd like to hear about it.
The only thing that goes well with anything that has the word "rat" attached to it is ... well ... it is vomit! The thought makes me shudder, quiver, and heave. Even though I enjoyed a tasty squirrel [nothing more than a bushy-tailed rat ] stew at the 2001 Mohican Gathering pot-luck dinner.
I love beef, chicken, pork ... everything that comes with a skeleton on the inside and is not a rat or reptile, but my favorite is lamb. I eat it only on rare occasions, but it can be delicious ... a wonderful blend of gamey wild and farm raised smoothness. Love it!! |
| shadawick |
Posted - September 17 2009 : 10:39:51 PM
Hi Bookworm, I really want to try your recipe but have a question. In my Southern NC mountain location the sausage is usually the Hillshire farms or something like that. I have seen different varieties such as Polish Kielbasa and regular smoked. My question is which should I use? During the winter I like to fry potatoes with onions, wood stove simmerd pinto beans, home canned kraut with sliced sausage and local grown and ground corn bread. Your recipe sounds like it would be really good with the pintos and cornbread. Thanks for sharing your recipe! |
| Seamus |
Posted - September 17 2009 : 3:12:50 PM
Turnips, Sus! |
| susquesus |
Posted - September 17 2009 : 1:45:33 PM
Well now I am curious. What goes good with muskrat? I'll probably never make one but I'd like to hear about it. |
| Wilderness Woman |
Posted - September 17 2009 : 1:11:01 PM
I have a book of old recipes that I picked up at one of the forts this summer. As I was looking through it the other night, trying to find a suitable recipe to prepare for the group at AHEC this weekend, I found an intriguing one for a type of meat you don't have on your list, Sus. Muskrat.
I would be happy to copy the recipe for you, if you are interested.
 |
| Irishgirl |
Posted - September 17 2009 : 11:03:36 AM
That does sound delicious Bookworm and I too shall give it a try...will report back with my findings...yummy..looking forward to this assignment. |
| blackfootblood |
Posted - September 17 2009 : 10:27:22 AM
BW, I just copied your recipe off, thanks for sharing! I'm actually looking forward to making this one. I'm always looking for new ideas. |
| BookwormMG |
Posted - September 17 2009 : 07:01:19 AM
It doesn't get much easier than this:
Sausage and Scalloped Potatoes
2 1/2 pounds potatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1 pound fully cooked smoked sausage links, sliced 1/2 inch thick
2 medium onions, chopped
10 3/4 oz. can cheddar cheese soup
10 3/4 oz. can cream of celery soup
1. Layer one-third of potatoes, one-third of sausage, one-third of onions, and one-third of each soup into slow cooker. Repeat twice.
2. Cover. Cook on low 10 hours or on high 5 hours.
Makes 5 servings.
A co-worker of mine brings this to office potluck lunches, and she had to give everyone the recipe after we tried it. |
| winglo |
Posted - September 16 2009 : 7:46:53 PM
I could certainly do without meat. I eat very little anymore and I would do without it completely if I wasn't married to a man who thinks a meal isn't a meal without a hunk of meat. I never eat beef anymore because of prions, but will have a bite or two of chicken, turkey, pork or whatever is being served.
My favorite fall food is chili, but I put several kinds of beans in it and skip the meat. Grilled cheeses are also a favorite fall food. Unfortunately I don't like most of the foods in the squash family, except for zucchini (is that in the squash family?). Warm, comfort foods always sound and feel like fall. |
| susquesus |
Posted - September 16 2009 : 1:58:30 PM
I also went for chicken. I'm about to head out the door to my favorite meat market:
http://angusmeatmarket.com/
Best customer service around. They carry some great free range chickens. I like to walk in and say to the man, "Give me the largest whole chicken you've got". He'll walk into the cooler in back and about 5 minutes later he comes back with a chicken for my inspection. They always manage to find a 5 lb.+ bird for me. Brush inside and out with butter, season with salt, pepper, and lemon pepper- fill cavity with stuffing. Pop this little darlin' in the oven and pull out every 20 minutes to baste with butter and juices. DEEEEEEEEEE-licious.
and you are welcome WW |
| Wilderness Woman |
Posted - September 16 2009 : 12:31:12 PM
Chicken.
Deep fried.
Kentucky-style.
 Mmmmmmm.....
(Thanks, Sus. You know what I mean...  ) |
| blackfootblood |
Posted - September 16 2009 : 08:45:12 AM
mmmmmmmm.....what a delicious topic!! Well, I always remembered, growing up, every September we would get a huge wood fire going in our pit. Dad would get out the huge metal cauldron my mom had, hang it in the middle of the fire. Then from our garden, we would add some of the veggies we grew like carrots, beans, peas, rutabagas, tomatoes, onions, and so on. A freshly killed chicken from the coup. And let that concoction cook for the rest of the day. By the late afternoon, it was time to eat and I can still taste that nice smokey flavor of my parents chicken/veggie soup. Then we spent the rest of the night, canning all the rest we had left over. So even during the winter, we could still enjoy a nice Autumn evening. |
| Gadget Girl |
Posted - September 16 2009 : 07:37:46 AM
Favorite way to cook Salmon -
Place oven rack in top slot. Turn oven to Broil
Rub salmon fillets (completely thawed) with olive oil, add a little kosher salt and pepper.
Broil for 6 minutes
Pull fillets out and brush with a little dijon mustard.
In a baggy combine plain potato chips and dried dill (about a teaspoon). Close bag and crush and mix chips and dill. Spread evenly over dijon on fillets.
Place back under broiler for 30-60 secs.
~America's Test Kitchen recipe
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