What does squirrel taste like? Squirrels are animals that eat coconuts, these animals are not often hunted for food, but sometimes they become pests of coconut plants. However, for some people the desire to eat squirrel arises because according to some people its meat is similar to rabbit. Is it true that squirrel meat tastes like rabbit?
We will review further about squirrel meat. Even though it is not often consumed, squirrels are often considered to have soft meat like rabbits and even softer. So, many people use squirrel meat as a substitute for game meat dishes.
Squirrels have soft meat, and you have to be careful when slaughtering them because they only have a small amount of meat. If a lot is lost when slaughtered, then you will not be able to eat the meat with gusto except for the bones.
So, what does squirrel meat taste like? The answer is “like a rabbit” even though it is softer than a rabbit. The earthy taste is also almost the same as rabbit. But many people say rabbit meat is the same as chicken breast meat. So if this is true, we can say that squirrel meat is the same as the meat on chicken thighs, which is softer than chicken breast. This is based on the fact that squirrel meat is softer than rabbit.
How Much Meat Does One Squirrel Have?
We know that a squirrel’s body is very small but it looks big because it is covered in rather thick fur. So, many people ask how much meat a squirrel has.
Squirrels are small animals and there seems to be little meat covering their bones. It is true that some people eat silver skin and cartilage, but it is difficult to cook and the taste is not good.
So research shows that the average squirrel only has 0.435 pounds of meat, even if it is slaughtered with care, precision and care. But we know that there are very few people who are experts at slaughtering squirrels because it is very rare for squirrels to be hunted for food. So, we can conclude that the amount of meat a squirrel has is less than 0.435 pounds.
How is Squirrel Meat Harvested?
Harvesting squirrel meat is a bit difficult because of the small amount of meat and connective tissue. So, for those who are used to this, according to them, taking squirrel meat must be done using small and sharp tools so that it is easy to insert into the bones.
Usually using kitchen scissors, they will cut off the head, and the end of the body of the squirrel and throw it away. Then just think about how to take every inch of his flesh. Then use a small knife to take the flesh and separate it from the skin. This squirrel skin can be kept as a display in the room at home, but after cleaning and drying it first.
After skinning it, they will then remove the contents of the squirrel’s stomach. Some offal can be eaten like cow offal in general, but the internal organs of squirrels are of course very small.
After everything is finished, the butcher will take each piece of squirrel meat and remove the bones according to your request. There is only a small amount of meat, so ask the butcher to do the job carefully and carefully, also removing the spine and any bones that do not have meat.
When everything is finished, take the meat and store it in the freezer at 32F, or you can also cook it directly. If left at room temperature, squirrel meat will spoil quickly like other meat in general.
How is Squirrel Meat Cooked?
After you get the squirrel meat, now you will cook it, how do you cook squirrel meat? Let’s look at the explanation below.
Squirrel meat, for fans, will cook like you cook rabbit meat too. You can cook it with various meat recipes or add it to other dishes. Can be cooked as a main food or as a secondary food that complements other dishes.
You can also cook it by grilling it, or cook it as a delicious soup stock.
In some regions of America, squirrel meat is cooked in certain culinary ways. A dish that uses squirrel meat is called Brunswick stew. This food originates from American states such as Virginia, Georgia and North Carolina. Brunswick stew is served as a dinner menu or as a dish at any time that is savory and delicious on the tongue.
Various Recipes in Squirrel Cooking
This food is cooked with various ingredients such as using beans, vegetables and using squirrel meat. Instead, sometimes there are also those who use rabbit meat. This food is also generally cooked as various types of wild animal meat or hunted animals.
The squirrel meat is also often cooked as a delicious casserole slowly over low heat. Often used as an addition and complement to vegetables such as potatoes, carrots. Cooking squirrel is cooking wild meat, so the cooking method must be slow over low heat.
Ideally, you can grill the squirrel in a frying pan or Teflon grill, but if you don’t remove the bones, it’s a little difficult to grill. There are also those who add red wine and oil to a cast iron skillet, then place the squirrels on the sides so they form the crust they love.
A popular way to cook meat is to grill it, this meat is known to have little fat and is easy to cook or grill.
But to give a delicious taste to the meat, before grilling it, don’t forget to smear it with butter or oil. This not only provides great flavor, but also prevents dehydration of the roast.
If you dry it in the sun, the squirrel meat will have a rough, chewy texture and will be unpleasant to eat. So, the method that is generally followed is grilling it, you can use burning coals from coconut shells or use wood grilled. Using dry oak wood will provide smoke which makes the meat even tastier and tastier.
Can Squirrel Meat Go Bad?
If you ask whether squirrel meat will rot? Yes, this is the same as other meat in general. If you leave it for 2 hours at room temperature, it will rot. So, if you get this meat, immediately take appropriate storage measures.
To prevent spoilage, you can store the squirrel meat in a refrigerator to last for 24 hours. But if you want to store it longer, you can store it in the freezer. Freezing squirrel meat can make it last for several months.
If you catch a squirrel in the wild, it is possible that its meat contains parasites and this is meat that is dangerous to eat. So, the alternative is to buy squirrels from a trusted squirrel supplier.
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What Flavors Pair Well with Squirrel Meat?
This has to do with the taste of squirrel, what does squirrel taste like? As we mentioned above, squirrel meat is soft and similar to rabbit, and squirrel meat is even softer.
The soft and light taste of this meat means it can be combined with many types of spices. Depending on the recipe you use, a number of herbs and spices can be added to enhance the taste.
For savory dishes, you can cook squirrel with various spices that you use when cooking chicken. Among them are using oregano, thyme, and rosemary. The natural flavors of this concoction will complement and strengthen the taste of squirrel meat.
To give it a sharper taste, you can add other spices such as cayenne pepper or peppers. It is also a good idea to cook squirrel in tomato sauce, because it prevents the meat from drying out, and also improves the flavor.
Some people cook squirrel meat by frying it in bacon fat, you can make chili sauce from curly red chilies and coat the fried squirrel meat, this will increase the spicy taste in this exotic dish.
