Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Food, Cooking, and Game Preparation Squirrel? What to do?

I don't like cooking squirrel. I have pan fried, and deep fried it. I don't care for the taste of it myself. Daughter told some boys at church that she liked squirrel, and next week, two large greys were coming home from church with us. (At least I didn't have to clean them), but I'm gonna have to keep an eye on those boys 😉. I'm not much for following recipes, but I was thinking, peeled apple stuffed in the body cavity, wrap the whole thing up in bacon, throw it on the grill. ??? Should I marinate it in something first? Ideas? Thanks!

It's too tough and stringy for grilling. Low and slow smoked - maybe? I've never tried it. Low and slow braise is more like it as it's too lean for fat to render to keep it juicy. Crock pot/insta pot/dutch oven with veggies, tomato paste or canned tomatos, chicken stock. Serve over noodles. Pretty classic dish and usually turns out great.

I make stew with them. Or wrap in bacon and smoke. But if you smoke them, you need to complete encapsulate the meat in bacon. You can grill it too, but it's far better on a skewer over an open fire.

Cut the squirrel up, then boil it in mainly water and salt and pepper. Add in some other spices if you want but salt and pepper is required. When it gets tender strain out the liquid and save it. Let the squirrel cool and pull the meat off of the bones. Take the saved liquid and either make dumplings or buy frozen ones. Please don't used canned bisquits as a substitute. When the dumplings get close to done add the boned squirrel back into the pot. The dumplings should have thickened up the liquid, but if not take a small amount of flour and cold water, in a pint jar or such, and shake it to mix, make damn sure the water is cold. Add that in the pot so the new flour/water will cook and thicken things. Then enjoy. miles

^^^^
I haven't had squirrel for years but all the squirrel I've ate was fried. I always thought it would be good boned and cooked in a stew.

Fried squirrel,biscuits and gravy is the standard,but you need young squirrel, and if you don,t or just don't know, then you make squirrel and dumplings. miles

Pressure cooker is your friend, 30 min or so will help make em tender then you can brown them and make gravy and biscuits

🤔 dumplings, biscuits & gravy, stew???? Well the boss (girl who procured the squirrels) heard dumplings and says make em like chicken and dumplings. Our version of that is like a soup. Broth not gravy. Grampa taught me his version of dumplings. Dough rolled out and cut into squares. Says it's polish cooking, don't know if I should believe him or not. 😉. But it's good, so I think we'll give it a try, maybe invole the instapot to tender up them squirrel. Thanks for all the great ideas! Much appreciated!

Braise in a liquid. Dumplings and Stew will work.

As others ^ ^ have posted
Dumplings, stews, soups. Brunswick, etc.

I accidentally discovered squirrel and ramens
some years ago. Pretty good stuff after a hunt

Plus Mepps fishing lure company still buys
the tails IIRC

Wabbits and squirrels are a good food

Cook the fuggers with some beer, peppers and onion in a crockpot until the meat falls off the bone, then debone, transfer back to the crockpot, and douse with a bottle of cheap barbecue sauce. Heat everything up, salt to taste, then serve on buns with pickles. Pulled squirrel bbq sandwiches.

Several recipes out there on the net. Pick one and play around with it. Pretty good cooked this way. Would probably be good in a smoker too.

I make it just as I would chicken and dumplings as well. Turns out great.

Let us know how I turned out

My son and I really like "squirrel pops":

Quartered and cooked in either the pressure cooker or crock pot with some chicken broth and the seasonings we happen to grab. When it's tender we pull the meat. Then the meant is gently mixed with some cream cheese and chopped onions and peppers.
Next we lay out 2 crescent rolls (square shaped this way) and drop a scoop of the meat mix. Wrap the corners up to make sort of a dumpling and in the oven until brown.

Damn fine.

Good addition to an etoufee or jambalaya.

Or you Can fry them (and make gravy) and change out the cream of chicken for cream of mushroom, add some onions sweet peppers, carrots in the crock pot, biscuits when they are done. Fried potatoes in the skillet and put gravy over them if you don’t want biscuits.

Yep talked myself into making some this week

Toss in the garbage

Order a pizza

Call it a win

Pressure cooked, picked and pan seared in your preferred taco/Mexican seasoning makes a damn good taco. Also a great addition to gumbo.

Mepps still buys tails. Double the value if you use for lure credit. Sent them a 100+ tails a year or so ago and restocked my spinner box quite well.

Squirrel is good. Cook them slow 3 hours in a gravy