The time to relax … The time to hunt some game?

Since most of us live in the city, today we’ve donned our hunting caps and gone off in pursuit of some recipes! Here are some of the juiciest samplings from our bounty. Feel free to go “wild” with this collection. And, if you are “game” for some more fun and food, be sure stop by the Archives next week for our historic potluck!

Poyha

From Treats with Venison, Ext. Bulletin 800, April 1975

(A different meatloaf recipe handed down to us by the Cherokee Indians.)

• 1 pound ground venison
• 1 No. 303 can whole kernel corn
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup corn meal
• ½ cup water

1. Measure the cornmeal and place in a small bowl.
2. Add the water and stir to mix.
3. Allow to stand.
4. Brown the venison in fat.
5. When meat is thoroughly cooked, add the corn and onion.
6. Cook 10 minutes.
7. Add the salt, egg, and cornmeal, stir well.
8. Cook another 15 minutes.
9. Put in greased loaf pan and bake 30-45 minutes at 350°.
10. Serve with gravy, cheese sauce, or mushroom soup.

Baked Rabbit Special

From Rabbit Production for Meat, Station Circular 155, June 1943

1. Cut rabbit into pieces, sprinkle with salt and pepper, dip in flour, then in beaten egg batter diluted with 1 tablespoonful water and bread crumbs.
2. Place in well-greased pan and bake 40 minutes, basting frequently with bacon fat.
3. Serve with white sauce.

Rabbit Pie

From Rabbit Production for Meat, Station Circular 155, June 1943

1. Cut rabbit into pieces; put in stew pan and cover with boiling water.
2. Simmer until tender.
3. Remove from broth and separate meat from bones.
4. Add 1 tablespoonful of flour to each cup of broth.
5. Return meat to broth and salt and pepper.
6. Line sides of a baking dish with crust, add meat and broth mixture, cover with crust, and bake in hot oven 30 minutes.
7. This is a good method of cooking a rabbit that is too tough for baking or frying.

Spiced Crayfish

From Catching and Cooking Crayfish, May 1963

1. Kill in hot water.
2. Clean crayfish by removing the intestinal tract by twisting off middle tail flipper and pulling.
3. Cook whole or break off claws and tail as desired.

• 5 dozen crayfish
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 8 oz. salt
• 2 tsp. allspice
• 1 med. onion, diced
• tsp. Cayenne
• 3 tbsp. Worcestershire or cup Burgundy wine
• 3 bay leaves substitute juice of two
• 1 clove garlic, diced lemons
• 1 tsp. whole cloves

1. Put spices in a bag or tie in cheesecloth.
2. Add water to cover and bring to boil.
3. Add crayfish.
4. Bring to boil again and time for 3 to 5 minutes.
5. Do not overcook.
6. Take crayfish out and spray or dunk in cold water for 2 minutes (this is important to stop the cooking process and prevent meat from sticking to shell).
7. Chill before serving.

Barbecuing

Ava Milam Clark offers this tasty, complimentary sauce for any game in Camp Cookery, May 1913.

To barbecue is to roast an animal whole and baste it often with the following dressing.

• 1 pint vinegar
• ½ can tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon of red pepper
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 2 teaspoons of black pepper
• 2 tablespoons lard

1. Stir together until it is completely mixed.
2. Tie a piece of clean cloth on a stick and keep the meat well basted with the dressing as long as it is on the fire.