Anyone have any good recipes for cooking snapping turtle? Once I cooked one and it didn't turn out very good. I always set some trotlines for catfish around Labor day, and hook a snapper occasionally. What about turtle soup? I heard it was good.
We always put them in a stock a tank with clean water and some corn for food for about a week. Then fry the pieces it just like chicken.
I cut them up into small pieces; put them on sticks and barbecue them with a slathering of barbecue sauce. I once made some at a gathering including anti-hunters; and they wanted more !
Seems like every muscle on a snapping turtle tastes like a different type of meat. One like beef; one like chicken; one like fish...
Quite a treat!
When I was a kid we had a nieghbor that would keep his tutles in a 55 gal drum,I dont know if he was cleanin them out or waitin till he had enuff for a mess but it tasted purty good, second time someone else fixed it in a soup, nasy stuff, tasted like mud.
I saw a big one the other day when going bowhunting. I stepped in a flooded area and that turtle started coming after my foot! LOL He's lucky I was hunting or he might have made the fry pan.
I agree with 4 point... Put em' in a small tank or barrel and clean em out first, then butcher and prepare however you like. My Dad always used to make a really great stew, similar to beef stew but replace beef with turtle.
If taken from muddy or "strong" water, cleaning out in a tank of clean water seems to help a lot.
I don't remember the exact recipe for the chowder we used to make, but I think any fish/seafood chowder recipe would work fine.
I know we first browned the meat in a skillet, added a little chopped onion when it was near done - perhaps garlic, Old Bay, and salt and pepper would be good here too. Then put it in a stock pot with tomato juice, chopped celery, carrots, diced potatoes, salt and pepper. I think a little parsley and chopped anaheim or jalapeno would add greatly to it. If you like you can add corn, though the starch of the potato be too much.
I've ate several over the years.All were fried,some were good and some were not.I shot a 15 pounder a couple years ago while shooting carp. I'm not sure if I cooked him or an old boot as tough as it was.LOL Ben
Cut 'em apart at the joints, if a big one, par boil, or pressure cook, then fry. If a young (little) one, fry slow, or smoke on grill, low heat for 6-10 hours. Good, good eating.
They're all very good in a stew/soup, you can cook them as long as you need to, to make them fall off the bone. Spices are left to your personal preference. Jim
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