Game On!
During hunting season this fall, women will be on target not only in the fields and streams, but in the kitchen. They will carry fly rods, bows or guns, and make fashion statements quietly with camouflage or vividly with brilliant orange couture. They will lure their bounty with hand-tied flies, callers or buglers, but in all cases, it will be silence and patience that will ultimately secure the meat that they will cook and share with their family and friends. We caught up with a few avid hunters and raided their recipe boxes to see how they prepare their feasts after they hunt and gather it.
FOR ADDITIONAL GAME RECIPES, Check out our feature Game On in the October/November issue. Read it on pg. ____ or click on the link to read on-line.
Aluminum Wrapped Whole Trout contributed by Darla Jones
Serves: 4 as an appetizer
Darla fished with her father when she was a little girl. Today she owns his fly tying vises and silk threads. She has fished the lakes of Eastern Oregon, Soda Butte, and Lamar Valley and has been spotted whipping up the waters of the Big Horn and Madison Rivers. These days Darla believes fly-fishing is “best accompanied by a guide and girlfriends!”
INGREDIENTS
1 whole trout, cleaned and dried
Salt and ground black pepper
½ yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 lemon, thinly sliced
1 T olive oil
DIRECTIONS
Prepare grill for direct-heat cooking over medium-hot coals (medium-high for gas) or a campfire with hot embers. Tear one large sheets of aluminum foil to generously wrap fish. Using a knife, score the fish on 1 side by cutting slits into the flesh just until you feel bone. Season trout with salt and pepper. Spread onion on bottom of foil. Place fish on top, scored side up. Place lemon slices on top and then drizzle with olive oil. Fold foil over fish. Place package on grill or in embers of a campfire. Cook for about 10 minutes, flip and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes.
Chicken Fried Wild Game contributed by Kathy Irwin
Serves: 4 to 6
“I first started hunting with my parents when I was very young, as the official game spotter.” Kathy began shooting when she was 6 years old and started hunting when she turned 12. Kathy has been a Hunter Education instructor for 21 years, serving as a Chief county instructor in both Big Horn and Fergus county over the years. Along with Twana Bourke she teaches for the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks program Becoming an Outdoor Woman (BOW).
Kathy's recipe can be used for game birds as well as red game meat. It is the ultimate comfort food to begin a day’s hunt or to end one especially with Kathy’s suggestion of using the remaining oil to make gravy to serve with mashed potatoes. Try this dish with flour mixed with grated Parmesan cheese or with the addition of garlic powder and cayenne pepper.
INGREDIENTS
4 boneless breasts or filet of meat (pounded to about 1/2-inch thick)
Salt and ground black pepper
2 large eggs
½ c. milk
1 c. flour
1 ½ c. vegetable oil
DIRECTIONS
Season meat with salt and pepper. Set aside. In a shallow dish, whisk together eggs with milk. Place flour in another shallow pan and season with a little salt. Dredge meat in flour mixture and then in egg/milk mixture. Dredge again in flour mixture. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Fry meat in hot oil for 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
