Cranberry Raccoon

[Ksnake]

Cranberry Raccoon

2.5 to 3 pounds raccoon pieces, fat and glands removed
1 cup finely chopped cranberries (I used jellied cranberry sauce)
1 cup apple cider (I use apple juice)
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon grated orange peel (I left this out)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Place raccoon pieces in large saucepan. In small mixing bowl, combine remaining ingredients; mix well. Pour over raccoon pieces. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat; cover. Simmer until raccoon is tender, 2 to 3 hours, stirring once or twice.

Cranberry Raccoon in Crockpot
Follow recipe above, using crockpot instead of saucepan. Cover and cook on low heat until raccoon is tender, 9 to 10 hours.

(I did the crockpot method, awesome!)

[Tanana]

Interesting! Does an average sized raccoon yield the 2.5 to 3 lbs called for in the recipe?

[Ksnake]

Yes, some coons are quite large. But note that it doesn’t matter if you don’t have enough meat. It only matters if you have too much. You want the sauce to cover the meat when cooking. So if need be, double the batch.

Funny note: People think it's chicken… until they realize that they don't recognize the bones they just gnawed on. /images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/eek.gif

[Woods Walker]

I can't do it Knsake. Raise two little baby coons when I was a kid. They came back to the house for years. Spooked people when I would walk out the door and sit by two so called Wild racoons. But I hate squirrels more than most things in life. Could I make any wild critter substitutions. Like rabbit etc.

[Ksnake]

WW,

If you don't want to kill a raccoon, but still want to try it, try shopping for one on the side of the road. /images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif

As for substitutions, have at it. But keep in mind that raccoon is a dark meat. Not sure if that makes a difference. So squirrels would probably be just as good. Not sure about rabbit since it's a white meat. But the sauce is tasty, so I'd bet it's worth a try.

[Tanana]

How 'bout 'possum?

[Ksnake]

Maybe not, but have you ever tried pickled possum jowls? They go great with catfish and apricot gumbo soup, and southern fried muskrat.