re: Turtles Two Thousand & Thirteen (2013)

Buddy just called me with the location of two more snappers, hopefully I can get them tomorrow!

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Seems like hundreds of redears but I've never seen a softshell or snapper. How do I know if they're in there or not?

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Softshells love to float at the top of the water. You'll see them if they're there. I hear sometimes snappers sun but have only seen it once- then I'm not 100% sure it was.

Those red-ears are good to eat too, it's just you have to clean a heap to have a mess. I brought a guy 6 BIG ones today.

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Recipes? Gonna be trotlining next weekend. Odds are we'll get a couple nice ones at least.

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Here's mine. It's a big hit around where I live.



Ingredients
5 pounds turtle meat
T Boys Seasoning or Slap Ya Mama
2 tbs Worcestershire sauce
Guidry’s Fresh Cuts (includes onions, bell peppers, parsley) OR
1 medium onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup green onion tops, chopped
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
3-5 cloves garlic, chopped

1 can (14 oz) diced stewed tomatoes
1 can (10 oz) Rotel diced tomatoes & green chilies
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
2 tbs roux (optional)


Add a small amount of grease or margarine to a heavy walled cast iron or aluminum pot. Heat the pot. When hot, add the turtle meat and brown over high heat until deep brown and until some of the browning sticks to the bottom of the pot. Stir constantly.

Sauté Vegetables:
After the meat is browned, remove from the pot.
Add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic, and sauté until wilted in the brownings.

Smother:
Add the meat back to the mixture.
Add the Worcestershire sauce, stewed tomatoes, Rotel, and tomato sauce. If needed, add water to cover the meat.

Optional Roux: "Sauce piquante" means to cook in a tomato base. I do not like a strong, distinctive "tomato saucy" taste, so I like to add a couple of tablespoons of roux to enrich the tomato base flavor.

To make your own roux, add 2 tbs flour and 2 tbs oil to a heavy pan. Place on medium heat, and stir constantly until a chocolate brown roux is obtained. This takes awhile. Its hard to make a small batch of roux, so I recommend you use store bought roux.

Cook with the pot covered under low heat so the mixture simmers (lightly boils). Keep adding water so the meat stays barely covered. You need to simmer long enough so the distinctive "tomato saucy" taste is cooked down to a smooth tomato base flavor, and the meat is tender.
Taste and add more cajun seasoning (or salt and pepper) to taste.

Add the garnish:
When almost done, add the chopped green onion tops and parsley.

Serving:
Serve turtle meat and sauce piquante over cooked white rice.

Bookmarked. Sounds gooood!

das a monster!

yall are frickin cray. my daddy found one in the woods one day while he was deer hunting and didn't want to scare his deer off so he hauled it through the woods with him. that bastard ended up biting onto a huge branch and wouldn't let it go.. he was cursing his arse off



geaux, I would LOVE to go turtle hunting with you ne day. Is that what you call it, or is it more like fishing? Im serious too!!!!

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We let this one go. It's the biggest I've ever come across.

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I've seen turtles in zoos and shite that were supposed to be over a hundred fifty years old that weren't even close to as big as this fricker that came up by my boat a few times last year. It was astonishing how wide that head was. Just fricking enormous.

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Why don't you bring some by.

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I don't have any nets.

I use a trot line method.


Also, like SS wrote, whoever is letting these guys walk are freaking crazy.

I was sick for a couple of days after losing my first big one off a line.

I almost jumped in after him.

Almost.

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geaux, I would LOVE to go turtle hunting with you ne day. Is that what you call it, or is it more like fishing? Im serious too!!!!

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Would love to take you. Problem with it all is, like today for example, I went pick up a hoop net I put in a friend's pond to catch some river bait but I had a snapping turtle too. 4th one this year and every one was dumb luck cause they were what I was targeting, exactly. I'm always "targeting" them cause there's nothing I rather catch/eat.

Fin and I were supposed to go to his land. I know there have to be a lot there. It's adjacent to a State Park that I know they catch some big ones in. I'm just not familiar with Fin's place so it would be just taking a shot in the pile.