As you may have guessed by now, Laura and I are proponents of trying new things, especially when it comes to potential food sources. Should things go awry and the end of the world as we know it (TEOTWAWKI) happens, we’d like to know what plants and animals may become a viable source of nutrition for us. Recently, we’ve shared our experiences with maypops, persimmons, dandelions, and even a snake.
Our latest adventure maybe considered common fare by many. To others, we may as well have eaten the most disgusting of rodents. Regardless of your ideas about squirrel, I can tell you that I was very pleasantly surprised.
Harvesting Squirrels
We have a number of nut-bearing trees on our property, including several mature pecan trees and black walnut trees. We are also fortunate to have red oaks and white oaks scattered throughout our property.Several persimmon trees also grace the landscape.
These kind of trees attract many animals such as deer and squirrel. In fact, some years we are nearly overrun with the furry animals and diligently fight for our share of the trees’ produce.
So, about a week ago, my oldest son and I decided to harvest a few squirrels. We like to hunt. We are not trophy hunters; we only hunt what we are going to eat.
It didn’t take long and we’d bagged three gray squirrels. We cleaned them, put in the a brine solution overnight, and I slow cooked them the following day in a crockpot. At the risk of sound immodest, they were far more than edible; they were actually very, very good. We were all surprised.
Squirrel Extraordinaire
I’ve shared the recipe below should have the opportunity to try it. It’s not special; there are no secret ingredients. But when put together, it made for a very good meal. We’ll definitely have it again.
Squirrel Extraordinaire
- 3 squirrels, quartered
- 5 medium potatoes cut into bite-sized chucks
- 1 onion cut into bite-sized chunks
- 2 cups of baby carrots
- 5 stalks of celery sliced into 1/4″ pieces
- 4 teaspoons of Better Than Bullion Chicken
- Salt & Pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon Montreal Steak Seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons of flour
- Water
Place potatoes, onion, celery, and baby carrots into a crockpot. Add squirrel pieces on top of the vegetables. Add Better Than Bullion Chicken, mixing with warm water as directed on the label. Add enough water to mostly cover the contents and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add Montreal Steak Seasoning. Cover and cook on high for 5 hours. Add flour and cook covered for another hour. Serve with rice.
The final meal is very, very tender and the meat easily falls off of the bones.
Note: Squirrels have many small bones so you’ll need to take care when eating the meal. You could probably reduce the number of small bones by not including the rib cage when cooking.
What about you? Have you tried squirrel or another non-traditional meat source?
PreppingToSurvive.com 
October 26, 2011 at 7:11 am
J has always said that squirrel dumplings are a lot better than chicken and dumplings. He said that you need about three squirrels when you make them. I’m sure Laura will be trying to make some the next time you and B decide to eliminate some of those evil nut thieves.
October 26, 2011 at 3:32 pm
Squirrel dumplings are on my list of things to try. These were amazingly good.
October 26, 2011 at 12:19 pm
I thought you needed to wait until after the first frost before it was considered safe to eat squirrel… supposed to kill the parasites. Just wondering.
October 26, 2011 at 3:30 pm
Thanks for bringing that up, Tardltl. I’ve heard and read many contrary positions on that subject and everyone is equally adamant about their take on it.
The research that I’ve done indicates that the main cause of the concern is a bateria that lives on the ground called Tularemia. It affects squirrels, rabbits, and other animals but doesn’t do them much harm. However it can apparently be quite harmful to people. It’s rare but can happen.
The primary way it can be transmitted to people is through blood to blood contact. So if you have a sore and you’re cleaning an infected squirrel, there is a possibility that you’ll be affected. If you are, there’s a chance it could become severe.
The safest way to prevent that is to be very careful while cleaning the squirrel and if you have any cuts on your hands, to wear rubber gloves.
Adequately cooking the meat is also a good idea.
Note: I don’t claim to have the definitive answer to this question. My response is based on my research. I feel safe eating the squirrels but each person should draw their own conclusion.
Thanks again, Tardltl!
Joe
November 10, 2011 at 7:01 am
Try some rattlesnake in that recipe, it’s good slow cooked or fried like fish.
September 12, 2012 at 9:08 pm
my maternal grandmother lived in the smoky mountains of north carolina, and her favorite dish was scrambled eggs and squirrel brains. she never told me how many squirrel brains she scrambled per egg. how big can they be, anyway?
September 13, 2012 at 8:17 am
I’ve seen brains and eggs on a couple of restaurant menus as I’ve traveled but I didn’t try them. In retrospect, I wish I had.
Joe
December 11, 2012 at 12:40 pm
come join us in Bentonville Arkansas on September 7th for the World Champion Squirrel Cook Off. You can see more about it at squirrelcookoff.com
December 11, 2012 at 12:44 pm
Nice! I bet there are some delicious recipes there!
Joe
June 6, 2017 at 9:32 pm
I cook tree rats in a pressure cooker with potatos, onion, carrots, garlic. Leave head on skinned of course. Very tender, crack the skull brains are good to