MyDish.co.uk

With a cull of grey squirrels underway in Scotland, Walkers punting out new ‘Cajun Squirrel’ crisps as part of their ‘Do us a Flavour‘ campaign and everyone looking to save money on food, there’s only one question on our lips at MyDish.co.uk: should we be eating more squirrel?

Often maligned as ‘rats with PR agents’, a quick look around the net has revealed plenty of great ideas. BushCraftUK has recipes for fricasse squirrel, barbeque squirrel and also invlaubale tips on skinning and gutting the blighters.

Last year, the Observer profiled Rupert Mitford, the 6th Baron Redesdale, and Paul Parker a pest controller who together form the ‘The Red Squirrel Protection Partnership’. Part of protecting the red squirrel is culling the grey one. The red squirrel is native to the British Isles and endangered, so if you fancy some squirrel stew you’d be breaking the law if you went for a red. In any case, grey squirrels are bigger, with more meat. In the article, David Ridley of Ridley’s Fish and Game in Northumberland described the flavour of squirrel: ‘They have no fat on them and they live mostly on berries and nuts so the flesh is sweet. I’ve roasted them. I’ve flash-fried them with fresh thyme.’ Ridley sells squirrel in his shop and apparently each has to be labelled: ‘May contain nuts’.

Have you got any great squirrel recipes? Should we be eating more squirrel? Would you even try it it? Let us know!