Hello,
I was hoping to get through to Anthony, but I think this blog will be much more helpful. Let me start by saying that I shoot only target rifle. I read the Target rifle blogs daily. I am sickened by the few who insist upon killing "Varmints" just for the hell of it. I would love for anyone who has any recipes or ideas for the preparation of Squirrels, ground hogs,or rabbits to post them here. I will choose the best ones and bombard the knuckle-heads with them until they actually start to cook what they shoot. After all, there is nothing wrong with hunting, but there is everything wrong with killing.
Thanks all, tim

Hi Tim,
I have a couple of rabbit recipes I'd like to share. My roots are in Arizona and New Mexico, but I'm of Spanish heritage. The recipes I have are native to those places.

The first recipe was a specialty of my nan, who was born and raised in New Mexico. I can't give particular step-by-step details as I've never executed the task myself, but I have spent countless times alongside dear ol' nan in the kitchen as she put together this fantastic dish.

You will need dried red Hatch chili, which can be obtained here:
http://www.nmchili.com/

I suggest getting the sacks of the dried pods, as hot as you can get them (getting the chile in this form, it sometimes comes out milder than expected).
Check all the pods thoroughly for signs of mold, and discard any that are moldy. I suggest ordering a few sacks.

Fill up a blender full of the pods. You can deseed it if you wish to decrease the heat. Personally, I leave them in.

Fill the blender halfway with water, and bung some garlic cloves in there. Puree the mixture 'til it's nice and smooth (no seed remnants).
You may want to start out with less water, you can always add more. The mixture should be semi-thin, but not terribly watery. You don't want it too thick, either.

Now, you take oil and flour and make a roux. Make sure it's nice and golden brown before you add the blended chile. Here's where you add the salt. I also add a pinch of Mexican oregano. This is a must, in my opinion.

Simmer and still frequently for about 20 minutes.

Now, you take your conejo/rabbit, all nice and skinned and washed up, and pour the chili mixture over it (in a baking dish). Nan preferred to let this marinate overnight. I've had it both marinated and non-marinated, and prefer it marinated... the chile really sinks in.

Preheat oven to 350, cover well with tin foil. Nan cooked hers for about four hours. I would check it periodically and add water to the pan if needed, to prevent burning.

That's it, it's plain and simple, and tastes great served alone with good ol' flour tortillas.

Here's the Spanish recipe I have...
It's a slightly updated version of classic Mediterranean rabbit stews. 'Salmorejo' indicates that the recipe contains bread, pulverised garlic and vinegar. It's the wine in the recipe that is the modern touch.

Conejo Salmorejo

1.5 lb, rabbit, jointed
1 1/4 c dry white wine
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
several oregano sprigs
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
6 tbsp olive oil
6 oz pearl onions, peeled and left whole
4 garlic cloves, sliced
2/3 c chicken stock
1 dried chile, seeded and finely chopped
2 tsp paprika (I recommend the traditional smoky Spanish paprika)
salt and ground pepper
fresh flat leaf parsley sprigs (garnish)

1. Place rabbit in bown. Add wine, vinegar, oregano and bay leaves. Toss together. Marinate several hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

2. Drain rabbit, reserving the marinade, pat dry with kitchen paper. Season the flour and use to dust the marinated rabbit.

3. Heat the oil in a large, wide flameproof casserole or frying pan. Fry the rabbit pieces until golden on all sides. Remove and set aside. Fry the onions until they are beginning to colour, then reserve on a separate plate.

4. Ass garlic to the pan and fry, then add the strained marinade with the chicken stock, chile and paprika.

5. Return the rabbit and reserved onions to the pan. Bring to a simmer, then cover and simmer gently for about 45 minutes until the rabbit is tender. Check the seasoning, adding more vinegar and paprika if necessary. Serve the dish garnished with a few sprigs of flat leaf parsley, if desired.

If wished, rather than cooking on the stove, transfer the stew to an ovenproof dish and bake in the oven at 350 for about four hours and 50 minutes.

My Grand-daddy was a rural Missouri boy (in the 1920's and 30's) and one of his lasting favorites (which he inflicted on my mom, though by the tim eI was born he had stopped hunting) was squirrel's brains-n-eggs. I've never had the...a-hem...pleasure of tasting them, but he apparently loved the stuff. Missouri escargot.

Here's the family legend: (You'll have to fill in the details from your own imagination)
- Hunt up a batch of squirrels.
- Use most of them in a stew or whatever you're gonna' do with 'em.
- Clean the heads of skin and eyes (eeeew. Here's where you lose me. I admit it - I like my meat on a styrofoam tray.)
- Refrigerate overnight, and enjoy your stew for dinner. If you want you can soak them in milk overnight.
- When you wake up in the morning - hungry from your paltry feast the night before - pull out the skillet, load it up with bacon grease, and sautee those little noggins until they steam. Add whipped eggs. Scramble the lot until done. Salt and pepper to taste.
- add a dab of tabasco and scoop the brains out. Accompany each mouthful with a bit of egg and a swig of cowboy coffee.

It's much - um - earthier fare than I can stomach on a Saturday morning, but Grand-daddy loved it. He was a funny, smart, long-lived man so he must have been doing something right.

Good luck to you.....

(PS - I don't mean for my tone here to deride anything but my own squeamishness...I love meat but could not, other than in a time of starvation, kill and butcher an animal. I know I'm living in a dream world, but there it is. I have a weird sort of grudging respect for folks who have the cojones to hint and prepare their own meat. At least you guys are taking responsibility for the whole thing - so bravo.)