Chef Michael's Wild Game Demo

On September 23rd, Michae Cali performed a wild game cooking demo and food preperation class. The recipes featured were all taste tested by members that attended the event. Special thanks to Chef Cali for donating his time and sharing his talent.

Basic Dry Rub for Jerky

A good way to start your batch of jerky. A little sweet, a little spicy.
For 2 lbs of meat

2 teaspoons Kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Combine ingredients. Coat meat slices on both sides, cover and refrigerate for 12 - 24 hours before drying.

Homemade Sausage Seasoning Blend

A dry herb blend for giving any ground meat a sausage flavoring. Try this not only with ground pork, but also ground turkey, beef, venison, or chicken. Recipe can be doubled, tripled, etc as needed. Each batch is enough to season 1 pound of meat. Leave out the crushed red pepper flakes for milder. Makes 3 Tbsp

1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 1/2 teaspoons paprika
2/3 teaspoon garlic granules or garlic powder
1/3 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, for spicy (optional)

Salmon Gravlax

Preparing this cured salmon delicacy is remarkably easy, but it takes a few days. Play around with the recipe by adding your own blend of herbs, garlic, onions, pepper, spices and citrus fruits. Once cured, the salmon can be refrigerated for a week or two or tightly wrapped and frozen. Use it on salads, benedicts or as a great appetizer with some mustard sauce and crackers. If you have ever purchased lox-style or gravlax salmon, you will appreciate how thinly it is sliced before packaging. Commercial processors use a multi-bladed instrument to do the slicing. Do not feel bad if your home version is a little rough around the edges. Lox-style salmon is actually cold smoked, but the smoky flavor is much more subtle than traditional American hot-smoked salmon. Gravlax is historically prepared with salt, sugar and dill.

1 2 - 4 pound filleted salmon side, skin removed
1/4 cup Kosher salt
1/4 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons cracked black pepper
1 bunch fresh herbs (dill, tarragon, basil, parsley or mix), chopped
2 each lemon and lime, thinly sliced

Combine salt, sugar and pepper and herbs. Spread one-half of the salt, sugar and herb mixture over the bottom of a glass, plastic or ceramic baking dish. Place the salmon side on top of the mixture. Distribute the remaining mixture evenly over the top of the salmon. Arrange lemon and lime slices over mixture. Cover with a double layer of foil. Put a board on top and about 4 pounds of cans or bricks on the board. Leave in the refrigerator for 3 days, turning the salmon and basting with the juices twice daily. After 3 days, pour off the juices and pat the fish gently with paper towels.

Vodka Glazed Salmon.

4 servings

4 6 to 8 ounce salmon fillets or steaks
1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/3 cup Vodka
1/4 cup soy sauce
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup orange juice
1 lemon, juice only
1/4 cup olive oil

Combine pepper, sugar, vodka, soy, garlic, orange juice and lemon juice in a medium bowl and whisk to blend. While whisking, add oil in a thin stream to emulsify. Place salmon in a glass or plastic container or large zipper lock bag. Pour marinade over salmon and refrigerate 4 to 8 hours. Remove salmon from marinade, pat fish dry with paper towels and air-dry in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Grill fish over medium-hot coals until just-cooked.

Cooking Tip: For a little more flavor, heat the marinade in a saucepan over medium heat until liquid is reduced by one-half. Baste fish with reduced marinade just before removing from the grill.

RABBIT SUPREME

2 (2 lb. each) ready-to-cook wild rabbits, marsh rabbits, or 1 (4-5 lb.) domestic rabbit

All-purpose flour
1/4 cup salad oil
2 tbsp. butter or margarine
1 cup chopped onions
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 cup milk
1 cup sour cream

About 2 hours before serving: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On waxed paper, coat rabbit pieces with about 1/2 cup flour. In oven-proof 10-inch skillet over med.-high heat, cook rabbit in hot oil and butter or margarine, until browned on all sides. Remove pieces to platter as they are browned.

In drippings, cook onions and garlic until tender (med. heat) -- about 5 minutes. Stir in 1 tbsp. flour, salt, and pepper until blended; gradually stir in milk and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens. Return rabbit pieces to skillet; spoon sauce over pieces. Cover and bake 1 hour and 10 minutes or until rabbit is fork-tender. Remove pieces to warm platter. Stir sour cream into gravy; heat, stirring constantly (do not boil). Serve gravy over rabbit. Makes 8 servings.

Duck or Goose and Wild Rice Casserole

6-8 servings

2 large wild ducks, cleaned
3 stalks celery, cut into 2-inch pieces'
1 onion, halved
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 (6 ounce) package long grain and wild rice blend
1 (4 ounce) can sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup melted margarine
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups half-and-half
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup slivered almonds (Optional)

1. Combine the first 5 ingredients in a large pot; cover with water, and bring to a boil.
2. Lower heat; cover and simmer 1 hour or until ducks are tender.
3. Remove ducks from stock; strain stock and reserve.
4. When ducks are cool enough to handle, remove meat from bones; cut into bite-sized pieces and set aside.
5. Cook rice by following the package directions.
6. Drain mushrooms, reserving the liquid.
7. Add enough duck broth to the mushroom liquid to make 1 1/2 cups.
8. Saute chopped onion in the melted margarine until tender.
9. Add in flour, stirring until smooth.
10. Add in mushrooms; cook/stir constantly for 1 minute.
11. Gradually stir in mushroom liquid/broth mixture; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly.
12. Stir in duck, rice, half-and-half, and parsley.
13. Spoon into a greased 2-quart shallow casserole dish.
14. Sprinkle almonds over the top.
15. Cover and bake in a 350 degrees oven for 15-20 minutes; uncover and bake 5-10 more minutes or until thoroughly heated.


Bass Cakes

1 pound raw chopped bass fillets 6 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 cup green onions
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 Adobo seasoning
3 eggs
1 teaspoons Tabasco Sauce
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
2/3 cups flour
1/4 cup water

Heat 1/2 of oil over high heat. Saute onions, , salt, and pepper for about a minute. Add green onions, garlic, Adobo seasoning and cook for another minute. Remove and put in bowl. Cool mixture for a few minutes. Stir in 2 eggs, Tabasco, 1/4 cup of bread crumbs. Then add bass meat depending on size of crappie cake. Gently mix the mixture and form into bass cakes. First dip both sides in flour, and bread crumbs then fry about 2 minutes on each side over medium heat

Wild Turkey Do's and Dont's
1. Cool it, clean it and refrigerate or freeze it ASAP. Do not drive it around in your truck to show you pals. Take a picture!
2. Do not stuff it. It does not do anything to the flavor and prolongs cooking time.
3. Do not baste it. It does not work either, but it will make the skin crispier.
4. When plucked, carefully separate the skin from the meat. Starting at the neck, work your fingers between the skin and breast. Cut up some partially-cooked bacon, onion, garlic and herbs and place between the skin and breast.
5. If you are going to roast the whole bird, roast it breast side down. Cut up some wedges of apple, onion and/or potato to keep it from falling over.
6. Do cook the breast to an internal temperature of 150 degrees. Overcooking will dry out the breast.
7. Cook turkey breasts and legs and thighs separately. Legs and thighs take a couple of hours to cook, preferably with liquid to help loosen them up. Breasts cook very quickly.
8. When stir-frying sliced turkey breast, first remove the fibrous membrane within the breast. It can be tough and chewy.
9. Use the turkey carcass and drumsticks to make a flavorful stock. Roast them in a large pan with celery, carrots and onions until brown. Then toss into a large stock pot and cover with cold water. Add some herbs, garlic and peppercorns and simmer for several hours. Strain through a colander for turkey stock.
10. A tough old bird may need a little more work. The Jake is the better eating bird, but I know you are going to shoot the big boy. If the bird is especially tough, try braising or slicing lightly pounding the breasts before cooking.
Country-Fried Beaver Steak
Ingredients:

1 to 1 1/2 pounds Beaver, boneless
2 eggs
Dash lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs
1/4 cup flour
vegetable oil

Preparation:

Trim excess fat from steak; pound to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut steak into serving size pieces. Whisk eggs with lemon zest, and juice, salt, and pepper. Combine bread crumbs and flour. Dip steak into crumbs then egg mixture; dredge in crumb mixture. Cook steaks in a heavy skillet in hot oil until browned and cooked through, turning once. Serves 4.
Venison Roast
(Use sirloin tip or round)

For a really tasty, tender roast, bake only to the point of being rare or medium. More than this could cause the roast to be a little dry or tough. The best way to judge the doneness is with a meat thermometer. Rare 130-135; medium rare 135-140; medium 140-145 degrees.

First brown the roast on all sides in a little hot oil. Season the roast with a combination of celery salt, coarse ground pepper and garlic powder.

Place the roast on a rack in a baking pan. Lay several thin strips of bacon or fresh side over the top. Roast at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes per pound of meat. (Do not cover or meat will become tough)
Venison Pot Roast
3-pound venison roast
oil
1 1/2 cups beef broth
1/2 cup dry white or red wine
5 carrots, cut in 2-inch pieces
3 celery stalks, cut in 3-inch pieces
2 Leeks sliced into 3-inch pieces
3 potatoes, quartered then halved
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix 1/3 cup flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder and 1 teaspoon parsley. Coat meat with the flour mixture and place in a Dutch oven. Brown it on all sides in a little oil. Add the broth, wine and any remaining flour mixture and stir. Cover and bake the roast for about 1 1/2 hours. Add the vegetables and bake for another hour.

Venison Ribs

Venison Ribs Many people discard ribs, throwing away one of the best parts of the deer. Venison ribs don't have as much meat as pork or beef, but are delicious, the same too can be said for beaver.

Cut ribs (about 3 to 4-pound slab) into serving size pieces. Parboil in a large Dutch oven in mixture of the following:
3 cups water,
1 1/2 cups beer, (Honey Apricot and Blueberry Ales both work nicely)
5 peppercorns,
2 cloves garlic and
1 quartered onion.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place ribs on a rack in a large roasting pan. Brush with sauce (recipe follows). Bake for about 45 minutes to an hour, turning several times and basting with sauce.

BBQ Sauce:
1 cup tomato sauce,
1/3 cup water,
1/3 cup olive oil,
1/4 cup lemon juice,
2 tablespoons brown sugar,
1/2 cup finely diced onion,
1/4 cup chili sauce,
1 teaspoon salt,
1/2 teaspoon pepper,
2 tablespoons honey,
1 teaspoon paprika,
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard and
1 teaspoon Liquid Smoke.

Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan. Heat to almost boiling then simmer for 20 minutes.
You can also substitute you own favorite BBQ sauce!