Passport to Texas

Image courtesy of http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/

Hunting: An Expression of New World Independence Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

This week we commemorate the first Thanksgiving. While our turkeys come from the store, Pilgrims hunted for theirs. Did you know that prior to the Pilgrim’s arrival in 1620 few of them had ever hunted wild game?

10—The first people to come over wouldn’t have been able to hunt [in England] because the land was owned by the rich and that’s where you hunted. So, when they came to America and were able to hunt anywhere, it was actually a real expression of their new lives.

Simon Majumdar is a hunter, food writer and judge on Food Network TV competitions. He says along with being deeply rooted in the American identity, hunting puts good food on the table.

13—I’m a great believer if you hunt for food that you’re going to eat some really amazing dishes. I mean, I’ve hunted many times in the UK: deer, wild birds…rabbit. I do a lot of rabbit hunting in the United Kingdom. And I think the food often just tastes better.

Plus, he says, you know its origins. Simon Majumdar, author of Fed, White and Blue: Finding America with My Fork says despite our long history with hunting and eating wild game, some Americans remain reticent.

10—I always blame Walt Disney. Walt Disney has a lot to answer for because everyone thinks of like Bambi and Thumper. And they’re really just sources of food. So, I’m very unsentimental with it.

Be sentimental when giving thanks this season, and pass the turkey.

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

Simon Majumdar. Image courtesy http://www.simonmajumdar.com/

Putting "English" on Hunting in America Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Simon Majumdar is an author, food writer, and judge on Food Network TV cooking competitions. This British born food lover also hunts and eats wild game.

12—I love hunting. And hunting really speaks to the American identity, because without the first Pilgrims coming here and being taught how to hunt by the Native Americans, the Wampanoags, America wouldn’t exist.

Based on personal invitations, Majumdar traveled the US exploring regional food traditions for his latest book Fed, White and Blue: Finding America with My Fork.

11—I did actually do a little bit of hunting in Mississippi; I went out into the delta, and it was dove hunting season. We did some wild hog hunting. We didn’t catch much. I say, no animals were harmed during the making of my book.

For Majumdar, hunting is about putting meat on the table.

14—I would never go hunting just for sport. But if it’s to put food on the table… And actually, during the economic downturn, I have friends all over the country who used hunting to fill their families stomachs. And again, that proves it is part of the American identity.

I asked Food Network TV’s Simon Majumdar if he would ever hunt in Texas.

09—Well, I go wherever I’m invited. So, if people invite me, then I’ll go. I’m not claiming to be any good. But I’m safe. And I love doing it. I love the companionship of hunting.

Simon Majumdar is great company in the field and in the kitchen.

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

Evin Cooper’s Cottontail Carnitas.

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This is Passport to Texas

In 1980, when word spread that author and celebrity chef, Julia Child, planned to prepare rabbit and leek pie on her PBS TV series, the public protested. Their reaction has since been termed: Easter Bunny Syndrome…it’s when we decide which animals not to eat based on their perceived cuteness.

As writer, cook and mom, Evin Cooper tells us, rabbits are as delicious as they are cute, and even better than pork in carnitas. She says her first attempt using cottontails was a success, and began with two rabbits in a slow cooker.

45—And, I stewed them all day with some beer and some homemade salsa, and let them cook and cook and cook. And then, let them cool—and then I deboned the meat. Then, I let the meat sit in the fridge overnight, and the next day I seasoned it up a little bit more with chili powder and cumin and all those wonderful Mexican spices. And I fried them in some hot oil—just the shredded meat—almost like hash browns. It got really crispy on the bottom, and I flipped it over and got it crispy on the other side—almost to the point of burnt. Then, I put it in warm corn tortillas with avocado slices and lime juice. It was so good. I mean, I’ve given up pork for my carnitas. And I want to use almost entirely cottontail now. It’s just delicious.

Find Evin Cooper’s Cottontail Carnitas recipe at passporttotexas.org.

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

Evin Cooper says to make this flavorful dish is a two-day process, and well worth the effort.

Day One

• 2-3* good size jackrabbits/cottontails, skinned and cleaned
• 1 cup salsa
• 1 beer

Day Two

• Corn or canola oil
• taco seasoning**
• prepared rabbit meat
• corn tortillas
• cilantro
• diced onion
• avocado
• lime

For the meat:

The day before you want to serve the tacos, wash the rabbits and pat dry. In a crockpot or a large stock pot, add the rabbits, salsa and beer. Use both your favorite salsa and beer. (Stick with a lighter beer. Dark beers will overpower the flavor of the meat.) Cook the rabbits until they are fall-off-the-bone tender (3-4 hours on the stove, 4-6 hours in a crockpot) and allow to cool a bit. When you can handle the rabbits, pull the meat off the bone and discard the bones. Add the juices from the pot to the shredded meat and refrigerate overnight.

To prepare the tacos:

Heat about ½ inch of oil in a shallow, wide skillet. Toss the cold meat with the taco seasoning and the reserved juices until well combined – use your hands for even distribution. When the oil shimmers, grab a handful of the shredded rabbit and squeeze out most of the juice and put it into the hot oil. Repeat the squeezing process until there is an even layer of meat in the pan, and press down with a spatula once, then leave it alone. Let the bottom get crispy, then toss the meat and press the non-crispy side into the pan to crisp. When crispy, remove from the pan and drain, and repeat with the rest of the meat until all the rabbit has had a turn in the hot oil.

Meanwhile warm corn tortillas on a comal (or in a heavy skillet), dice red onions, chop cilantro, slice limes and cube some avocado, crumble some cotija cheese (optional)

Top a warm corn tortilla with about ¼ cup of the crispy meat, and the toppings of your choice.

*I got about 8 tacos per rabbit, but it really depends on the size of your kill and how stuffed you like your tacos!

**Please don’t use a packet from the grocery store! If you don’t already have a taco mix recipe that you love, find one! Or, you can just season to taste with salt, pepper, garlic, cumin, Mexican oregano and chile.

Evin’s son, Tristan, with cottontail he harvested.

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Evin Cooper is a writer, cook and mom. She’s a city girl who shares her life with Steven—a country boy who hunts. Their family eats what Steven brings home.

07—I had to learn to deal with it. I had to figure out how to cook all the random stuff that he brought home.

To Evin, meat had always come wrapped in plastic from the market. That changed when Steven challenged her perceptions about meat and her culinary skills with an unusual wild protein.

27—He brought me a raccoon. And, he’s like figure out how to cook it. So, I Googled, and read to soak it in milk for a day before you cook it. So, I soaked it in milk overnight. And then I opened the fridge, and I looked at it and I was like: ‘Ah, one more night will do it good.’ I soaked in milk for more night. And then I thought a third night would be great. I soaked it for so long it went bad.

Do you think that might have been a subconscious thing of not really wanting to eat a raccoon?

I don’t even think it was subconscious. I think it was entirely conscious.

Since then, Evin has consciously and happily prepared a wide variety of wild game, including cottontails.

05—Cottontail’s a very lean meat. And you have to cook it for a long time to really get the best quality out of it.

Tomorrow: Evin Cooper shares her simple and delicious recipe for cottontail carnitas.

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.

Hunting during the “Golden Hour.”

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Difficulties in social interaction, anxiety, verbal and nonverbal communication are characteristic of individuals on the autism spectrum. Robin Bradberry lives with this condition.

06— You always know deep down, you know you don’t quite fit in, but you really want to, but you never will.

Robin, who is married to Steve, finds spending time hunting together calms her. Meet the couple in a segment on the Texas Parks and Wildlife TV series on PBS as they hunt deer on public land.

19— I like it, I’ve never hunted in any place quite this open before so I’m curious to see what shows up and how they move! Just getting settled in adjusting the blind windows, I think we’ve got it positioned where we can just ease the gun out there. Steve calls is nesting.

Robin does better away from the high energy, high stress world, which makes a quiet hunt on public land good medicine.

23—This is almost like therapy for me. It [autism] doesn’t exist out here. It’s more serene out here. You don’t have all of the movement of people, and distractions. You come out here and you can focus on your surroundings more. And listen. And you can listen. Exactly. There’s nothing. There’s wind. There’s crickets…

View the segment with Robin and Steve Bradberry on the Texas Parks and Wildlife TV Series on PBS the week of November 29.

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