Post by Dread Gnat on Nov 21, 2012 15:49:05 GMT -5
Drir Recipes
OOC Notes:
- Common coastal fishes include eel, salmon, plaice (flatfish) and herring. Snapper and perch are also seasonally available.
- Use pork as a substitute for any recipe where “human” meat is listed
- Do NOT try to catch or kill snakes for these recipes. Snake meat can be found in specialty markets, ensuring the safety of the meat.
Fish in Blood Sauce
• to 3 pounds of whole fish
• 1 C dry wine
• 1/2 C white bread crumbs (optional if using blood)
• 1/4 C fresh fish blood
• 1/4 C juice from roasting pan
• 1 T wine vinegar
• 1 medium onion, finely minced
• 1 T parsley, finely minced
• 1 T cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. powdered ginger
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1/8 tsp. saffron
• Salt to taste
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Clean the fish, reserving one quarter cup of fish blood or minced liver.
3. Put the fish in a covered roasting pan, and put it in the oven. Bake for twenty to thirty minutes, or until the fish flakes. Remove from the oven.
4. Pour off and reserve one quarter cup of juice from the bottom of the roasting pan.
5. In a saucepan, over high heat, bring water to a boil. Add the minced onions and boil them for five minutes. Strain out the onions and reserve.
6. In a saucepan, over medium heat, combine wine and cinnamon. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring frequently until the mixture gets viscous.
7. Stir in the juice from the pan, boiled onions, parsley, blood or liver, (or bread crumbs in place of blood), pepper, saffron and salt. Simmer, stirring frequently, for ten minutes.
8. Place the fish on a serving platter and pour the sauce over it.
Yields about one and one half cups of sauce.
OOC NOTES ON THE RECIPE:
If you choose not to use fresh fish blood, you may thicken this sauce with a little bread. Similarly, you can bake the fish in a pan rather than spit roast it.
Crab in vinegar
• Fresh crab
• Red wine vinegar
DIRECTIONS:
Boil or bake a fresh crab until done; serve cold with vinegar as a dipping sauce.
Boiled Plaice
Boil the plaice in white wine, water, and salt with some cloves, mace, lemon pill, and some small onions.
Kakavia
• 1 cup scallions or leeks, sliced
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 stalk fennel, sliced
• 3 sprigs of parsley
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp thyme
• 2 cup dry white wine
• 4 cups water
• 4 pounds of fish (3 or 4 different types)
• 1 pound shrimp
• 1 pound mussels or scallops in the shell (well scrubbed)
• thick slices of home made bread
Saute onions in oil until soft. Add fennel, herbs, wine and water and bring to a boil. Season with salt and simmer for 45 minutes. Pour stock through a sieve and squeeze out the juice from the vegetables and discard the fibers. Return to the pot and bring to a boil. (For a richer stock, ask the fishseller for the heads and bones from your fish and add them to the water for the initial boiling. Remove when you strain out the vegetables. Or you could add a bottle of clam juice instead of some of the water). Lightly salt the fish and let stand for 10 minutes, then rinse and lower into the boiling liquid. Lower heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add shrimp and scallops or mussels and simmer an additional 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Toast the bread slices and place them in large soup plates or bowls. Place a variety of fish and some of the broth in each dish.
Aspic Fish
• 2 1/2 to 3 pounds of eel and whole fish, with heads, tails and bones intact
• 1 C dry wine
• 1 C wine vinegar
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/8 tsp saffron
• Salt to taste
1. In a large pot, over medium heat, bring wine and vinegar to a boil. Put the fish into the pot, cut to fit if need be, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for fifteen minutes, or until the fish flakes and is done. Remove the fish and allow to cool. Reserve the wine and vinegar in the pot.
2. Remove the heads, tails, skin, and all bones from the fish and return these to the pot. Set aside the cleaned fish.
3. Add spices and salt to the pot with the heads, tails, skin and bones, and return to the boil. Reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, for half an hour to forty-five minutes, until the liquid has been reduced by no more than half.
4. Remove the heads, tails, skin and bones from the pot. Strain the stock through a fine sieve, clean white cloth, or conical coffee filter into another container. With a slotted spoon, skim off any grease from the stock.
5. Arrange the cleaned fish in a serving dish or platter with a high rim, and pour the stock over it. Refrigerate for two hours or until the jelly sets completely. Serve cold.
Flampoyntes
• Pastry dough for 2 nine-inch pie crusts
• 1 pound ground human
• 2 C grated, mild cheese
• 3/4 C sugar
• 1 tsp each, cinnamon and powdered ginger
• 1/8 tsp each mace and cloves
• Butter for sautéing
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Line a pie pan with pastry dough.
3. In a frying pan, brown the ground human.
4. In a bowl, combine human, grated cheese, sugar, and spices. Fill the pie crust with this mixture. Bake for half an hour. Remove and allow to cool.
5. Roll out the dough for the second crust, and, with a sharp knife, cut it into little diamonds, about an inch and a half long.
6. In a frying pan, over low heat, melt butter and fry the pastry diamonds until they are golden brown. Take care they do not burn.
7. With a table knife, make incisions in the top of the pie, about three quarters of an inch deep, and laid out in an interesting pattern. Insert the pastry diamonds halfway into these incisions, so that a pattern of little points is made.
Serves eight to twelve.
Mincemeat
2 pounds lean meat (human or reptile)
1-1/2 cups fat
4 cups apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
2-1/2 cups raisins
1-1/2 cups currants, chopped
2-1/2 cups sugar
3 cups pie cherries, pitted
1-1/2 pints strong cold coffee
1 pint cider
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
6 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1 Tablespoon mace
1 Tablespoon allspice
Cook meat until tender. In large pan, add all ingredients except meat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add meat and stir well. Makes: 4 quarts.
Mortreus de Chare
• Minced human - this should be meat from a roast, or chops, etc., which has been boiled until done, and then very finely minced ar ground by passing through a meat grinder or a food processor.
• Unseasoned bread crumbs
• Broth - use of the strained broth the human was boiled in
• Ale - slightly flat.
• Egg yolks
• Ginger
• Salt
DIRECTIONS:
Combine the human, bread crumbs, broth & ale in a pot - the mixture should be thick to very thick. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Beat in egg yolks - use enough to thicken the mixture to a stiff pudding-like or paté-like consistency; season with ginger and salt. Place in serving dishes. Sprinkle on a little ginger.
Tongue Hash
• Boil and blanch the tongues, and slice.
• Boil again with raisins, mace, almonds, and wine
• Add butter, verjuice, and a touch of sugar
• Strain some of the liquid and beat with 2-3 egg yolks
• Pour as sauce over the tongue
Turtle Soup
• 1 1/2 sticks butter
• 2 1/2 pounds turtle meat, cut into medium dice*
• Salt and freshly cracked pepper
• 2 medium onions, cut into medium dice
• 6 stalks celery, cut into medium dice
• 30 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 bell peppers, cut into medium dice
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme, ground
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano, ground
• 4 bay leaves
• 2 quarts veal stock
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 26 ounces dry sherry (750-ml bottle)
• 1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 2 large lemons, juiced
• 3 cups peeled, chopped, and seeded tomatoes
• 10 ounces fresh spinach, stems removed, washed 3 times, and roughly chopped
• 6 medium hard-boiled eggs, chopped into large pieces
In a large soup pot over medium to high heat, melt 1/2 stick butter.
Add turtle meat and brown. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
Cook for about 18 to 20 minutes or until liquid is almost dry.
Add onions,celery, garlic, and peppers, constantly stirring.
Add thyme, oregano, and bay leaves and saute for about 22 minutes.
Add stock, bring to a boil, andsimmer for 30 minutes. Skim any fat that comes to the top.
While stock is simmering, make the roux. In a small saucepan, melt remaining butter over medium heat. Slowly add flour, a little at a time, constantly stirring with a wooden spoon. Be careful not to burn.
After all of the flour has been added, cook until roux smells nutty, is pale in color, and has a consistency of wet sand, about 3 minutes. Set aside to let cool until soup is ready (roux should be cool when adding to hot soup).
Using a whisk, stir the roux into the stock vigorously, adding a little at a time to prevent lumping.
Simmer for about 25 minutes.
Stir to prevent sticking on bottom.
Add sherry and bring to a boil.
Add hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce.
Simmer and skim any fat or foam that comes to top.
Add lemon juice and tomatoes and return to a simmer.
Add spinach and eggs, return to a simmer and adjust seasoning.
Spiced Alligator
• 3 egg whites, beaten
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• 10 to 12 alligator fillets
• Olive oil, for sauteing
• Salt
In a large bowl, thoroughly combine the beaten egg whites, garlic, lemon juice, and red chili powder. Using a meat tenderizer, pound all of the alligator fillets until they are tender. Marinate the alligator in the egg white mixture for about 20 minutes.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Remove the alligator fillets from the marinade and sprinkle them with salt. Carefully place the alligator fillets in the pan, and saute them until browned. Work in batches as necessary. Flip the fillets with tongs or with a spatula, and cook until browned on the other side, and the meat is cooked through.
Alligator Stew
1/2 c. of cooking oil
1 qt. of alligator meat, cut in small pieces about 1/2 inch thick
1/2 c. chopped onions
1/2 c. chopped green onions
1/2 c. chopped bell peppers or banana peppers
1/2 c. chopped celery
2 tbsp. minced parsley
1 (10 oz.) can of Rotel tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
Put oil and alligator meat in pot and brown lightly; add chopped vegetables, minced parsley and Rotel tomatoes and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Cover pot and cook over medium heat for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Fried Snake
• 1 snake, obtained from a trusted source or familiar environment; avoid the risk of eating a snake that has eaten a poisoned rodent
• 1 box of cornbread mix
• 1/2 c egg whites
• Splash black pepper
• 1/2" oil (depends on pan size)
Skin the snake. Cut off the head, strip off the skin, and remove the guts of the dead snake.
Rinse the meat, and cut it into pieces with a sharp knife or poultry shears. Make the cuts between and at the same angle as the ribs to avoid cutting the ribs. If the ribs are severed, they may be difficult to remove from the meat after it is cooked. Some people prefer to soak the ready-to-cook snake pieces in saltwater for a day or two to remove any remaining blood or "gaminess" from the meat.
Dip the segments in a bit of egg white (milk would also do) before dredging them in a pepper and sweet cornmeal mix (or cornbread mix with some extra black pepper). Shake off the excess.
Heat about 3/4" (2cm) of canola, vegetable, or peanut oil in a heavy frying pan until quite hot. Add the snake pieces one at a time to avoid from dropping the temperature in the pan too quickly. Use tongs to keep your fingers away from the sizzling hot oil, watch for dangerous splatters, and use a screen if necessary to prevent a mess. Turn the snake pieces just as the batter begins to turn golden - by the time it starts to brown the snake will be overcooked. There's not much meat on the bones, and the muscles are thin and lean.
Drain and cool. Remove the snake pieces before they're quite done - they'll continue to cook after removal from the pan - and set them on paper towels to drain and cool.
Eat the snake meat. There should be a line of muscle along either side of the spine; this is the thickest piece of meat on the snake's body. The ribs are quite firmly attached to the spine, so scrape your teeth over them firmly to remove the rest of the meat from the ribs.
Spiced Grill Rattlesnake
1 rattler per person
1/2 c. tomato chow chow
1 tbsp. chili powder
1 tbsp. oil
1 tbsp. molasses
2 tbsp. finely grated green pepper
Salt & pepper to taste
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp. Worcestershire
Wash, dry and cut snake into 4 inch pieces. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and allow meat to marinate for 2 hours. Lay snake on grill and cook slowly, basting frequently. Serve when tender.
Roasted Snake
Cut snake into 2 inch pieces. Place pieces on a skewer and roast over glowing coals, keeping the skewer constantly turning. When the meat quits sizzling, it is done.
Baked Cream Snake Casserole
1 rattlesnake carcass
1 cup half n half or milk
1/2 lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 limes, sliced thin
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. rosemary
Cut snake into 3-inch sections and place in a large baking dish. Cover with cream or milk and add the mushrooms, limes, basil, pepper, and rosemary. Cover tightly.
Bake in 300 degree oven for 60-70 minutes or until done.
***
-Recipes courtesy of Molly Rabe
OOC Notes:
- Common coastal fishes include eel, salmon, plaice (flatfish) and herring. Snapper and perch are also seasonally available.
- Use pork as a substitute for any recipe where “human” meat is listed
- Do NOT try to catch or kill snakes for these recipes. Snake meat can be found in specialty markets, ensuring the safety of the meat.
Fish in Blood Sauce
• to 3 pounds of whole fish
• 1 C dry wine
• 1/2 C white bread crumbs (optional if using blood)
• 1/4 C fresh fish blood
• 1/4 C juice from roasting pan
• 1 T wine vinegar
• 1 medium onion, finely minced
• 1 T parsley, finely minced
• 1 T cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. powdered ginger
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1/8 tsp. saffron
• Salt to taste
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Clean the fish, reserving one quarter cup of fish blood or minced liver.
3. Put the fish in a covered roasting pan, and put it in the oven. Bake for twenty to thirty minutes, or until the fish flakes. Remove from the oven.
4. Pour off and reserve one quarter cup of juice from the bottom of the roasting pan.
5. In a saucepan, over high heat, bring water to a boil. Add the minced onions and boil them for five minutes. Strain out the onions and reserve.
6. In a saucepan, over medium heat, combine wine and cinnamon. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring frequently until the mixture gets viscous.
7. Stir in the juice from the pan, boiled onions, parsley, blood or liver, (or bread crumbs in place of blood), pepper, saffron and salt. Simmer, stirring frequently, for ten minutes.
8. Place the fish on a serving platter and pour the sauce over it.
Yields about one and one half cups of sauce.
OOC NOTES ON THE RECIPE:
If you choose not to use fresh fish blood, you may thicken this sauce with a little bread. Similarly, you can bake the fish in a pan rather than spit roast it.
Crab in vinegar
• Fresh crab
• Red wine vinegar
DIRECTIONS:
Boil or bake a fresh crab until done; serve cold with vinegar as a dipping sauce.
Boiled Plaice
Boil the plaice in white wine, water, and salt with some cloves, mace, lemon pill, and some small onions.
Kakavia
• 1 cup scallions or leeks, sliced
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 stalk fennel, sliced
• 3 sprigs of parsley
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp thyme
• 2 cup dry white wine
• 4 cups water
• 4 pounds of fish (3 or 4 different types)
• 1 pound shrimp
• 1 pound mussels or scallops in the shell (well scrubbed)
• thick slices of home made bread
Saute onions in oil until soft. Add fennel, herbs, wine and water and bring to a boil. Season with salt and simmer for 45 minutes. Pour stock through a sieve and squeeze out the juice from the vegetables and discard the fibers. Return to the pot and bring to a boil. (For a richer stock, ask the fishseller for the heads and bones from your fish and add them to the water for the initial boiling. Remove when you strain out the vegetables. Or you could add a bottle of clam juice instead of some of the water). Lightly salt the fish and let stand for 10 minutes, then rinse and lower into the boiling liquid. Lower heat and simmer 10 minutes. Add shrimp and scallops or mussels and simmer an additional 10 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Toast the bread slices and place them in large soup plates or bowls. Place a variety of fish and some of the broth in each dish.
Aspic Fish
• 2 1/2 to 3 pounds of eel and whole fish, with heads, tails and bones intact
• 1 C dry wine
• 1 C wine vinegar
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/8 tsp saffron
• Salt to taste
1. In a large pot, over medium heat, bring wine and vinegar to a boil. Put the fish into the pot, cut to fit if need be, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for fifteen minutes, or until the fish flakes and is done. Remove the fish and allow to cool. Reserve the wine and vinegar in the pot.
2. Remove the heads, tails, skin, and all bones from the fish and return these to the pot. Set aside the cleaned fish.
3. Add spices and salt to the pot with the heads, tails, skin and bones, and return to the boil. Reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, for half an hour to forty-five minutes, until the liquid has been reduced by no more than half.
4. Remove the heads, tails, skin and bones from the pot. Strain the stock through a fine sieve, clean white cloth, or conical coffee filter into another container. With a slotted spoon, skim off any grease from the stock.
5. Arrange the cleaned fish in a serving dish or platter with a high rim, and pour the stock over it. Refrigerate for two hours or until the jelly sets completely. Serve cold.
Flampoyntes
• Pastry dough for 2 nine-inch pie crusts
• 1 pound ground human
• 2 C grated, mild cheese
• 3/4 C sugar
• 1 tsp each, cinnamon and powdered ginger
• 1/8 tsp each mace and cloves
• Butter for sautéing
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Line a pie pan with pastry dough.
3. In a frying pan, brown the ground human.
4. In a bowl, combine human, grated cheese, sugar, and spices. Fill the pie crust with this mixture. Bake for half an hour. Remove and allow to cool.
5. Roll out the dough for the second crust, and, with a sharp knife, cut it into little diamonds, about an inch and a half long.
6. In a frying pan, over low heat, melt butter and fry the pastry diamonds until they are golden brown. Take care they do not burn.
7. With a table knife, make incisions in the top of the pie, about three quarters of an inch deep, and laid out in an interesting pattern. Insert the pastry diamonds halfway into these incisions, so that a pattern of little points is made.
Serves eight to twelve.
Mincemeat
2 pounds lean meat (human or reptile)
1-1/2 cups fat
4 cups apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
2-1/2 cups raisins
1-1/2 cups currants, chopped
2-1/2 cups sugar
3 cups pie cherries, pitted
1-1/2 pints strong cold coffee
1 pint cider
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
6 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1 Tablespoon mace
1 Tablespoon allspice
Cook meat until tender. In large pan, add all ingredients except meat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add meat and stir well. Makes: 4 quarts.
Mortreus de Chare
• Minced human - this should be meat from a roast, or chops, etc., which has been boiled until done, and then very finely minced ar ground by passing through a meat grinder or a food processor.
• Unseasoned bread crumbs
• Broth - use of the strained broth the human was boiled in
• Ale - slightly flat.
• Egg yolks
• Ginger
• Salt
DIRECTIONS:
Combine the human, bread crumbs, broth & ale in a pot - the mixture should be thick to very thick. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Beat in egg yolks - use enough to thicken the mixture to a stiff pudding-like or paté-like consistency; season with ginger and salt. Place in serving dishes. Sprinkle on a little ginger.
Tongue Hash
• Boil and blanch the tongues, and slice.
• Boil again with raisins, mace, almonds, and wine
• Add butter, verjuice, and a touch of sugar
• Strain some of the liquid and beat with 2-3 egg yolks
• Pour as sauce over the tongue
Turtle Soup
• 1 1/2 sticks butter
• 2 1/2 pounds turtle meat, cut into medium dice*
• Salt and freshly cracked pepper
• 2 medium onions, cut into medium dice
• 6 stalks celery, cut into medium dice
• 30 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 bell peppers, cut into medium dice
• 1 tablespoon dried thyme, ground
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano, ground
• 4 bay leaves
• 2 quarts veal stock
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 26 ounces dry sherry (750-ml bottle)
• 1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 2 large lemons, juiced
• 3 cups peeled, chopped, and seeded tomatoes
• 10 ounces fresh spinach, stems removed, washed 3 times, and roughly chopped
• 6 medium hard-boiled eggs, chopped into large pieces
In a large soup pot over medium to high heat, melt 1/2 stick butter.
Add turtle meat and brown. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
Cook for about 18 to 20 minutes or until liquid is almost dry.
Add onions,celery, garlic, and peppers, constantly stirring.
Add thyme, oregano, and bay leaves and saute for about 22 minutes.
Add stock, bring to a boil, andsimmer for 30 minutes. Skim any fat that comes to the top.
While stock is simmering, make the roux. In a small saucepan, melt remaining butter over medium heat. Slowly add flour, a little at a time, constantly stirring with a wooden spoon. Be careful not to burn.
After all of the flour has been added, cook until roux smells nutty, is pale in color, and has a consistency of wet sand, about 3 minutes. Set aside to let cool until soup is ready (roux should be cool when adding to hot soup).
Using a whisk, stir the roux into the stock vigorously, adding a little at a time to prevent lumping.
Simmer for about 25 minutes.
Stir to prevent sticking on bottom.
Add sherry and bring to a boil.
Add hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce.
Simmer and skim any fat or foam that comes to top.
Add lemon juice and tomatoes and return to a simmer.
Add spinach and eggs, return to a simmer and adjust seasoning.
Spiced Alligator
• 3 egg whites, beaten
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• 10 to 12 alligator fillets
• Olive oil, for sauteing
• Salt
In a large bowl, thoroughly combine the beaten egg whites, garlic, lemon juice, and red chili powder. Using a meat tenderizer, pound all of the alligator fillets until they are tender. Marinate the alligator in the egg white mixture for about 20 minutes.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Remove the alligator fillets from the marinade and sprinkle them with salt. Carefully place the alligator fillets in the pan, and saute them until browned. Work in batches as necessary. Flip the fillets with tongs or with a spatula, and cook until browned on the other side, and the meat is cooked through.
Alligator Stew
1/2 c. of cooking oil
1 qt. of alligator meat, cut in small pieces about 1/2 inch thick
1/2 c. chopped onions
1/2 c. chopped green onions
1/2 c. chopped bell peppers or banana peppers
1/2 c. chopped celery
2 tbsp. minced parsley
1 (10 oz.) can of Rotel tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
Put oil and alligator meat in pot and brown lightly; add chopped vegetables, minced parsley and Rotel tomatoes and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Cover pot and cook over medium heat for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Fried Snake
• 1 snake, obtained from a trusted source or familiar environment; avoid the risk of eating a snake that has eaten a poisoned rodent
• 1 box of cornbread mix
• 1/2 c egg whites
• Splash black pepper
• 1/2" oil (depends on pan size)
Skin the snake. Cut off the head, strip off the skin, and remove the guts of the dead snake.
Rinse the meat, and cut it into pieces with a sharp knife or poultry shears. Make the cuts between and at the same angle as the ribs to avoid cutting the ribs. If the ribs are severed, they may be difficult to remove from the meat after it is cooked. Some people prefer to soak the ready-to-cook snake pieces in saltwater for a day or two to remove any remaining blood or "gaminess" from the meat.
Dip the segments in a bit of egg white (milk would also do) before dredging them in a pepper and sweet cornmeal mix (or cornbread mix with some extra black pepper). Shake off the excess.
Heat about 3/4" (2cm) of canola, vegetable, or peanut oil in a heavy frying pan until quite hot. Add the snake pieces one at a time to avoid from dropping the temperature in the pan too quickly. Use tongs to keep your fingers away from the sizzling hot oil, watch for dangerous splatters, and use a screen if necessary to prevent a mess. Turn the snake pieces just as the batter begins to turn golden - by the time it starts to brown the snake will be overcooked. There's not much meat on the bones, and the muscles are thin and lean.
Drain and cool. Remove the snake pieces before they're quite done - they'll continue to cook after removal from the pan - and set them on paper towels to drain and cool.
Eat the snake meat. There should be a line of muscle along either side of the spine; this is the thickest piece of meat on the snake's body. The ribs are quite firmly attached to the spine, so scrape your teeth over them firmly to remove the rest of the meat from the ribs.
Spiced Grill Rattlesnake
1 rattler per person
1/2 c. tomato chow chow
1 tbsp. chili powder
1 tbsp. oil
1 tbsp. molasses
2 tbsp. finely grated green pepper
Salt & pepper to taste
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp. Worcestershire
Wash, dry and cut snake into 4 inch pieces. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and allow meat to marinate for 2 hours. Lay snake on grill and cook slowly, basting frequently. Serve when tender.
Roasted Snake
Cut snake into 2 inch pieces. Place pieces on a skewer and roast over glowing coals, keeping the skewer constantly turning. When the meat quits sizzling, it is done.
Baked Cream Snake Casserole
1 rattlesnake carcass
1 cup half n half or milk
1/2 lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 limes, sliced thin
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. rosemary
Cut snake into 3-inch sections and place in a large baking dish. Cover with cream or milk and add the mushrooms, limes, basil, pepper, and rosemary. Cover tightly.
Bake in 300 degree oven for 60-70 minutes or until done.
***
-Recipes courtesy of Molly Rabe