Hello folks,

I just returned from a week's vacation in northern Quebec, where I hung
out with my Cree relatives. I figure my eating experiences may be of
interest, so here's a list of what was served at the many feasts I
attended this holiday season. Beware - a lot of these dishes are not
wholly paleo, but it is an honest look at how we modern h/g's eat our wild
meat:

Beaver was very popular, and was prepared in 2 ways. 1) The fur is singed
off, the meat is cut into chunks, and then boiled in a large pot filled
with water. The meat is much greasier this way, and took me a bit of
getting used to. My relatives seemed to favor this method, since it is the
only way to cook a beaver with its fatty skin still on. I ate beaver tail
prepared this way, and it was delish!  2) The beaver is skinned, then tied
to a rope at one end (which is attached to a ceiling pole)  and 'spun'
over a spit. Less greasy this way.
Beaver is eaten with mustard, or vast quantities of salt, or even peanut
butter (!).  One of my cousins claims that beaver is eaten with these
garnishes to help prevent heartburn.  Sounds iffy to me.

I also ate moose head, but I'm not sure if it was roasted or boiled. The
tongue was cut into rounds and was so tender & YUMMY!

Rabbits are skinned and cleaned, but the blood is not allowed to drain
from the carcass. My aunt made it into a stew, boiling it up with salted
water and flour. The stew was served with moist steamed flour dumplings
that we call "siibai". Rabbit stew is also often made by cooking it in
porridge.

Geese was roasted over a spit (this method of prep is called "shugabaan")
and eated with goose grease and salt.

The typical Cree holiday feast also includes lukewarm strong black tea,
some kind of macaroni or potato salad, a domestic turkey, and cake.

My relatives sent me home with 4 rabbits and a large (10 lbs) chunk of
caribou meat. Time to make room in my freezer! I plan to cook a small
portion of the caribou meat in the Montaignais style (that's a tribe
related to the Crees, in NE Quebec). They like to saute it in a sauce made
of strong black tea and flour. I'll skip the flour.


Cheers,

Cheyenne




BTW, thankyou to Maurice and others who spoke out against the rather
disturbing rabbi story. You were very clear on why it was so
inappropriate...