Kitchen Garden Forum

I feed the birds and sometimes the wildlife feeds me....................................though I've not had Pidgeon and squirrel for breakfast..................

I saw squirrels on sale at a game merchant's stall at a farmers' market. Of course I just had to buy it. It was pretty good - like an upmarket version of rabbit. Much nicer and tastier. Then I posted about it on the food blog I had back then and got loads of hate mail about how cruel I'd been.

Yes, it was a grey squirrel. Wouldn't dream of eating a red one.

Edit: I meant to say not to eat urban squirrels and pigeons. Stupid mistake - and now I've posted this correction in the wrong place. Brain not working especially as we've put under so much unnecessary stress over something that should've been quickly sorted out in March and we're still fighting our case.

Just a thought about having one of those days, I fell into a sewer and, after going home and showering and putting on clean clothes, then had a gas explosion in my kitchen. That wasn't the best day ever.

Edit (Sorry, I should probably have said this was nearly 40 years ago in what was then NWFP Pakistan.) We don't have open sewers here in Kent nor sell dodgy gas cookers with a tendency to explode if you do the wrong thing.

I know Hugh Fearnley Whittinghall was advocating squirrel as a good food source some years ago but somehow we've grown rather attached to the cute little fellow who comes up to our patio door every morning.
to be fed, sitting there on his haunches in begging mode.
It would somehow be a complete betraysl of confidence to put a bullet through his belly !

To the best of my knowledge (haven't yet checked) you don't eat wild squirrels anyway. Same as feral pigeons. You don't know what garbage they've been eating.

I would thought it would have been the opposite….

Some very posh restaurants in old London town are selling Squirrel for dinner, I had some a while back and was disappointed, I thought they'd taste of nuts....................................

We are over run with the buggers I’ll have to get the 22 out

We are on the frontline, Reds to the north and Greys to the West(the sea is to the East and South of us), neither in our village as we are in a sea of poly tunnels and tatties and barley, barely a tree to be seen.

Sorry, OH and anyone else who read that post, I said pretty much the opposite of what I meant. Stupid mistake. Thanks for alerting me to it. Probably too many glasses of wine.

You don't eat urban squirrels or pigeons. You do eat wild ones. (I don't mean you personaly. It's just that it sounds a bit pompous to say "One doesn't".

On the subject of Hugh FW, I thinks he's great! He tried to sell burgers made from rabbit meat (bunny burgers) at a village fete and a heck of a lot of customers turned up their noses.
"Oh no. I don't like rabbit!"
HFW - "When did you last have it?"
"I've never had it."
HFW - "If you've never had it then how do you know you don't like it?"
Punter then lost for words.
Some other people think of rabbits as being fluffy bunny pets, and you wouldn't eat your pet would you?

I blame Walt Disney….

We haven't had rabbit casserole for a while I must admit as I rather have to psyche myself up to eat it as it can be quite boney if you cook the whole carcass.

Also have memories if my mum,s occasional rabbit casseroles during wartime rationing and austerity years where even onions were in short supply so they were pretty unappetising meals for a small child.

Perhaps best curried in some way?

I used to have pies of mixed game meat from the farmers market, pigeon, rabbit were the main ingredient along with a bit of pheasant or wild duck, delicious.
When I used to shoot back in the '70's my mates mum used to cook most of what we shot, mostly rabbit and pigeon with the odd hare, rook or grey squirrel. almost all went in a pie.

oldherbaceous wrote: ↑Mon Oct 09, 2023 11:59 am I blame Walt Disney….

What's the difference between Bing Crosby and Walt Disney?

Bing sings and Walt Disney.

Oh, maybe you have to be Scottish for that one.