Passport to Texas

Lily Raff McCallou, photo courtesy www.oregonlive.com

Lily Pulls the Trigger Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

When you grow up in a hunting family, you learn to appreciate the tradition.

It was so different from what I grew up with and from anything I knew, that I wanted to know more about it.

Lily Raff McCaulou moved from NYC to Bend Oregon to write for a small newspaper, her readers included anglers and hunters. To connect with them and her food, Lily learned to hunt.

You know, the locavore movement was starting to take hold, and I’d been a meat eater my whole life, and was wondering: do I really have what it takes to hunt and kill my own meat. And wanting to know what I could get from that experience — and that closeness to my food. So, it was a combination of all these different factors that made me decide this is something that I want to try.

After hunter education and learning to shoot, she attended a Becoming an Outdoors Woman Workshop, which included a pheasant hunt. She thought she might not have the nerve to pull the trigger.

All the other women in my group had shot a bird, and I just started feeling like, ‘Hey, I’ve come all this way and it’s been a year in the making, and I want to take a shot, too.’ Eventually, all the stars aligned and the dog that I was with sniffed out a bird and held it on point [and when it flushed] , and I got it; I took the shot and the bird fell immediately. Rather than feeling all the guilt and remorse, I felt empowered.

Lily Raff McCaulou wrote a book about her experience entitled: Call of the Mild.

The Wildlife Restoration program supports our series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

More women are becoming hunters to spend time in the outdoors and to put fresh nature-raised meat on the table.

How a Non-Hunter Changed Her Tune Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

When Lily Raff McCaulou moved from NYC to Bend, Oregon to pursue a career in journalism, her beat covered a large rural area.

I was there hoping to write about stories that mattered to them and their community.

Something that mattered to the community was hunting.

I didn’t know any hunters growing up – and this was just so far from what I was used to. And there was a little bit of a danger element. These were people who knew how to use guns. People who owned guns. There was something kind of scary bout that to me.

It didn’t take long for Lily to appreciate how hunting and land stewardship went hand-in-hand, or that her new neighbors were committed conservationists who had great compassion for the lives of the animals they harvested.

So, when I was meeting these hunters, I realized a huge part of hunting for them was being out in the environment and interacting with the natural world. And that, as hard as it was to understand, and hard as it is to explain, they actually had a huge amount of love for the animals that they hunted. There was not hate – it was actually the opposite of that – it was love and respect for these animals.

Tomorrow – Lily pulls the trigger.

That’s our show for today… Funding provided in part by Ram Trucks. Guts. Glory. Ram

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Hunger in Texas is real, and the problem is growing.

SB 1978 Will Help Feed Hungry Texans Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Last legislative session, SB1978 passed into law, which is good news for hungry Texans. Justin Halvorsen, Parks and Wildlife Revenue director explains.

SB 1978 is a legislatively mandated bill that mandates that Parks and Wildlife allow a hunter to opt-in to donate to the Feeding Texas nonprofit, when they purchase a hunting license. And that money would go to that nonprofit, and to their program Hunters for the Hungry.

Halvorsen and Feeding Texas are working out the details of the program, including how much hunters may donate.

This would be at the time of purchase at the very end of the transaction. Either online or through any of our license agents—they will ask would you like to make a donation. It’s almost like when you check out at the super market and they ask if you want to chip in a couple of bucks.

Currently hunters pay a fee to processors when they donate an animal. Processors grind, package and then distribute the meat to local hunger relief agencies. Celia Cole is Executive Director at Feeding Texas.

And right now, typically, when a hunter donates a deer, they pay up to $40 to cover the processing. So, we hope ultimately we’ll have enough revenue to be able to offset some of those costs, which also, I think, will increase the donations.

Last year Texas hunters donated more than 100,000 pounds of healthy, lean venison to Hunters for the Hungry. Learn how to help at feedingtexas.org.

The Wildlife Restoration program supports our series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Feeding Texans by Sharing the Harvest Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Hunters in Texas harvested close to 600,000 deer, and donated more than 100,000 pounds of venison to Hunters for the Hungry last season.

This comes to us at a very low cost. We estimate it costs only about a dollar per pound to process and distribute this meat throughout our network.

Hunters for the Hungry is a program of Feeding Texas—a statewide association that represents Texas food banks. Celia Cole is the non-profit’s CEO.

We estimate, since its inception two decades ago, that hunters have donated over two-million pounds of meat to feed hungry Texans.

Hunters pay a modest fee to drop off legally harvested, tagged and field dressed animals at participating processors. Processors grind and package the meat and distribute it to local feeding programs.

We’d like to see more hunters and processors involved everywhere. Obviously hunting is more prevalent in certain areas of the state than in others. So, we’re focusing on those areas where there are lots of opportunities.

Help get healthy protein to deserving Texans.

If listeners want to learn more about the program…if they want to find out how to sign up as a processor, find out how to donate, they can come to our website feedingtexas.org. Increasing the number of processors around the state who are enrolled in the program is the key to us being able to grow it in the way that we want to.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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South Texas Antelope, chipotle risotto, grilled okra, espresso red wine reduction; photo courtesy Alcalde Grill, Gonzales, Texas

Scroll down to find a seasonal game recipe from Chef Austin Brown.

Learning to "Play the Game" Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Hunters are beginning to fill their freezers with venison.

07—Most people will make stew out of it or they’ll grind up what’s left over and they’ll make sausage out of it.

Those traditional preparations are tasty, but Chef Austin Brown, owner of the Alcalde Grill in Gonzales challenges home cooks to get out of their comfort zones. And that means not using this common culinary crutch.

15— Get away from the Italian dressings and use brines. A heavily salted water with some sort of acid—maybe a little flavored vinegar in it—lemon juice, lime juices. Those things do the exact same thing as a marinade.

He says home cooks default to stews and sausages because those recipes mask the meat’s perceived gamy flavor. But Chef Brown says a properly cooked venison back strap or leg filet, for example, is sublime.

20— I would brine it in salt water and cut it into individual steaks; season it with just salt and pepper…a little bit of garlic and a little bit of butter, and grill it on the grill. Or sear it in a pan, cooking it to about medium rare and eating it that way. Some of the best deer that you can eat is just seasoned with salt and pepper and seared in a pan.

Find a recipe from Chef Austin Brown at passporttotexas.org.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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Sea Salt Quail, Chef Austin Brown

CRISPY SEA SALT QUAIL with Roasted Red pepper aioli

For the Aioli

• 2 egg yolks
• 4 cups of oil (use a neutral oil like canola or grapeseed)
• 1 cup of ice water
• 2 red peppers
• 1 smashed garlic clove

Over an open flame, roast the peppers until black on all sides. Place them in a Ziploc bag for about ten minutes to steam. Remove from back and peel off burn skin, and remove seeds.

In a blender combine egg yolks, peppers, 2 tablespoons of water and the garlic clove. Blend until smooth. slowly add the oil in a fine stream until a thin mayonnaise consistency is reached. More or less of the oil can be used. Once thickened, season with salt and pepper.

For the Quail

• 20 quail legs skin on
• 5 cups of flour
• Sea salt
• Cracked pepper
• Cilantro bunch( optional)
• 1 quart of canola oil
• Heavily season the flour with salt and pepper.

Wash quail to remove any leftover feathers. Pat dry with a paper towel and toss in flour to coat.

Over medium heat, heat about a 3/8 of an inch of canola oil in the bottom of a cast iron skillet.

Fry the legs turning only once to a golden brown. Be sure to not over crowd the pan, the name of the game is cooking these guys over really high heat so they are still juicy on the inside.

The hotter the oil, the crispier they turn out. Once finished place quail on a paper towel to soak up any remaining oil and season again with sea salt and cracked pepper

Serve with the red pepper aioli and garnish with cilantro.