My new favorite rodent to eat.

Crazy Carl

are ya freakin' kidding me?
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Nutria. Holy cow. I mean, I grew up eating tree rats & I've been eyeballing that fat groundhog that lives down by the end our street for a while now, but man, that was delicious. Basically just grilled swamp rat kebobs, but OMG good. Tender, yummy, texture similar to flank steak.

Big shout out to @lasttombstone for the tip on NCSU's annual Wild Foods dinner. Me & the girl child rolled out to the VFW hall in Cary earlier tonight, 'cos the student wildlife club puts on a wild game feed every year. $15/adult, which was supper & 2 beers. Set up covered-dish style. 1/2 a dozen venison & feral hog dishes each. Fried bobcat nuggets. Bear Bourgogne. Both beaver & raccoon barbacoa. Pheasant. Even moose. Wild vegetable dishes. Home made deserts.

The bobcat was interesting, but overcooked. I'd try it again. The beaver was rich & had a little more intense flavor, reminded me of bison. The fancy bear stew was awesome, as was the beaver. If they hadn't been labeled, I wouldn't have known it wasn't beef. Feral hog shepherd's pie was great, though I didn't try the lasagne.

Didn't even attempt to try everything. Seriously, the choices were almost overwhelming. Plus, the whole time before supper started, students were roaming around with trays heaping with bacon wrapped dove, duck, goose or venison poppers & a few different varieties of deer jerky. There was a table with contest entries on it that I never even noticed, so I missed out on the moose & cajun smothered nutria.

I mentioned 2 beers came with all this, right?

But that swamp rat? I'm tellin' you, that stuff was good. Might just be my new favorite wild critter to eat. Cajuns mighta started eatin' 'em 'cos they were hungry, but they kept eatin' 'em 'cos they're tasty as all get out. Nutria kebabs were the bomb & I hate I missed that other nutria dish.

The student wildlife club puts it on to help fund their attending conferences/field trip kinda stuff & does an outstanding job. I always loved these wildlife feeds as a kid- my uncle belonged to a Rod & Gun club that did one every every year between Thanksgiving & Christmas. Nice to find one here & it supports a great cause.

'N $15 bucks to feed yer inner redneck & wash it down a couple nice brown ales, while a nice bluegrass combo plays? No brainer. Big kudos to those kids. Had a great time & will definitely be back next year.
 
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Who says that CFF members don't provide the most accurate and informative reviews on the planet ??? Huh ??

Where else in this galaxy could anyone find a follow up review on a university Wild Foods Dinner complete with...………...NUTRIA ?

And @Crazy Carl has offered an idea for adding another unique sub-forum section to the site: "Feed Yer Inner Redneck".

We're so much more than a firearms forum and the best internet hangout going these days. This thread is proof of it. We're a "One Stop Shop" if you will.
 
What? How did I not hear about this? Why is it not on every billboard on the beltline?

You're a Charter Life Member......you should know to come to CFF to get your information...…..you'll never have accurate information chasing billboards sir.
 
I've never had nutria but I've had beaver (the rodent) several times. It was delicious and very much like stew beef. It reminded me of a bear roast that was boiled good to get the greasy fat out of it.

I'd love to try the bobcat. I've heard mountain lion backstrap is to die for.

Glad you and the little lady had a good time.
 
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I'd love to try the bobcat. I've heard mountain lion backstrap is to die for.

Until you can try the authentic bobcat dish you'll have to do like me and settle for our local version...…….. "Siamese Sirloin" on the interstate service road...……..lol
 
Did they say what part of the cat they used.....or how they prepared it?

They did not say which part. Just breaded & fried, but over cooked. Kinda like overdone fast food fried chicken. I'd heard mountain lion was tasty & if I ever spy & can take a bobcat while out after deer, you can bet I'ma skin it out & cook it up.

You described the beaver perfectly. Very good stew meat at that.

Swamp rat absolutely blew me away, though. If you can get onto some of them, they are definitely worth the effort. "Average" weight of a nutria is 14lbs, so a nice little chunk of meat. Mine was very tender, with just a little pink on the inside. Definitely a game meat you'd be doing a huge disservice to to overcook.

'N mountain oysters? Damned tasty if they're cooked right.
 
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Carl...... wish I had known to look for you. Your report is spot on and should be enough to encourage a number more to attend next year. I usually get a copy of the flyer from the faculty sponsor each year that I share with another forum. We were the "older" group at the first table next to the food. Years of attending have taught me to get there early and save seats for my crowd at the table that goes first.

Great eats and some interesting items on the silent auction table. I failed to score at the auction but was able to finagle a couple of jars of the honeysuckle jelly and muscadine jelly from the lady that makes it.

Hopefully we'll meet up at next years dinner.
 
I must have missed that thread... Someone should have PM'd me...
Carl...... wish I had known to look for you. Your report is spot on and should be enough to encourage a number more to attend next year. I usually get a copy of the flyer from the faculty sponsor each year that I share with another forum. We were the "older" group at the first table next to the food. Years of attending have taught me to get there early and save seats for my crowd at the table that goes first.

Great eats and some interesting items on the silent auction table. I failed to score at the auction but was able to finagle a couple of jars of the honeysuckle jelly and muscadine jelly from the lady that makes it.

Hopefully we'll meet up at next years dinner.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^
@bigfelipe

Here's your man for the time to be there or be square next year bro.
 
They did not say which part. Just breaded & fried, but over cooked. Kinda like overdone fast food fried chicken. I'd heard mountain lion was tasty & if I ever spy & can take a bobcat while out after deer, you can bet I'ma skin it out & cook it up.

You described the beaver perfectly. Very good stew meat at that.

Swamp rat absolutely blew me away, though. If you can get onto some of them, they are definitely worth the effort. "Average" weight of a nutria is 14lbs, so a nice little chunk of meat. Mine was very tender, with just a little pink on the inside. Definitely a game meat you'd be doing a huge disservice to to overcook.

'N mountain oysters? Damned tasty if they're cooked right.
We see several bobcats every year it seems. This might make me pull the trigger one one. Maybe chunk some up and soak overnight in buttermilk?

Some friends of mine have duck hunted Mattamuskeet in Hyde Co and seen some nutria there. That's the only place I know of that have em around these parts.
 
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Carl...... wish I had known to look for you. Your report is spot on and should be enough to encourage a number more to attend next year. I usually get a copy of the flyer from the faculty sponsor each year that I share with another forum. We were the "older" group at the first table next to the food. Years of attending have taught me to get there early and save seats for my crowd at the table that goes first.

Great eats and some interesting items on the silent auction table. I failed to score at the auction but was able to finagle a couple of jars of the honeysuckle jelly and muscadine jelly from the lady that makes it.

Hopefully we'll meet up at next years dinner.

Honeysuckle jelly sounds yum.

I was the stocky, shaved head n goatee guy, all tatted up in the Monty Python t-shirt.
 
I've only once encountered a Nutria in the wild. I dispatched it with my NAA Mini Revolver in .22LR from about 6' in high grass. Didn't consider field dressing it for the table. Maybe next time I will.

CD
 
The nutria interestingly are not native to Cajun country. They were imported from South America and are considered an invasive species. They were brought to Louisiana to eat the water hyacinth another South American invasive species.

The water hyacinth were in a exhibit at the 1884 World Fair in New Orleans. The wives tale is that they got into the water system and the double or triple in size every week or so. They have become freeze resistant.

It turned out the Nutria ate everything but the water hyacinth.
 
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Saw a show once about the nutria. They were letting people cruise around the canals and swamps and shoot as many as they could. Mostly night shooting with spotlights. I think street vendors also sell the meat on food carts in New Orleans and LA.
 
Well, Carl......... I don't remember seeing you, however the wife does so you must have made an impression. I don't remember much of anything except the overabundance of co-eds running around. Maybe next year we can combine the 2 forums at one table. I seem to have made a good contact this time and might get some "special dispensation" next year as I normally account for 10-15 folks and have to get there super early to grab enough seats for all together.

I will say, for your benefit, the overall crowd seemed off this year. Last year all the seats were taken and people were sitting on the edge of the stage and standing or waiting for someone to finish their meal and offer them the seat, ergo, why I'm always early. Also there were 2 full tables of food with 2 tables of desserts last year. But after I finished stuffing myself they were still bring out squirrel, swan, crappie and more bobcat. One person with the club was encouraging folks to make take-outs to get rid of all the extra food.
 
Saw a show once about the nutria. They were letting people cruise around the canals and swamps and shoot as many as they could. Mostly night shooting with spotlights. I think street vendors also sell the meat on food carts in New Orleans and LA.

They also tried to market the fur for coats and hats at one time.

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If yall want to kill nutria Cape Lookout used to be full of them. We would kill 3 for every rabbitt we jumped when we used to used the Park.
 
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