Grouse is on the menu

[270quest]

Took my son up for the bear opener here in Idaho - didn’t find any bears but found the grouse! Son was able to take 6 in two days of hunting. So much fun and great eating!

 

[jmez]

I've never eaten the blue or spruce grouse. Are they dark meat like sharptial and chickens?

 

[Chris in TN]

This is awesome. A couple years ago I shot a blue grouse on one of the days we were waiting for elk meat to be processed. Cleaned it, froze it, brought it home, fried it like chicken and it was delicious. I'd love to have more.

To answer the poster above - grouse are galliforms just like chickens, turkeys, quail, etc. White breast meat due to aerobic respiration in the muscles designed for short-range bursts of fast flight. Darker but still light colored meat everywhere else. No different than a chicken.

 

[KurtR]

This is awesome. A couple years ago I shot a blue grouse on one of the days we were waiting for elk meat to be processed. Cleaned it, froze it, brought it home, fried it like chicken and it was delicious. I'd love to have more.

To answer the poster above - grouse are galliforms just like chickens, turkeys, quail, etc. White breast meat due to aerobic respiration in the muscles designed for short-range bursts of fast flight. Darker but still light colored meat everywhere else. No different than a chicken.

Not sharptails they are as dark as ducks and geese and why alot of people dont like eating them. Only cleaned a few thousand of them in my guiding days

 

[n816kc]

Had grouse for the first time last week, excellent flavor! I'll be packing a 22 in grouse country point forward. Reminded me of chicken thighs, but better.

 

[justinspicher]

Our season just opened, so I’m ready to get after some grouse!

 

[Chris in TN]

Not sharptails they are as dark as ducks and geese and why alot of people dont like eating them. Only cleaned a few thousand of them in my guiding days

He was asking about blue grouse. I should have been more specific.

 

[270quest]

Not sure you would be able to tell the difference between cooked grouse and chicken. We cut these up into chucks and made Chicken Fettucinni Alfredo - good eating!!!

 

[Q_Sertorius]

If you cannot taste the difference between a roasted grouse and a roasted chicken, then you probably should trade me frozen birds one for one.

I’ve never understood cooks who put game into heavy sauces, unless it is something you eat every day (like venison).


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[MarlinMark]

I've eaten a lot of grouse and the quality varies greatly. Ruffed grouse are by far the best. Some Blue (dusky) have been very tough and plain in flavor. While some are succulent and almost as good as Ruffs. I think the age of the Blues is the big deciding factor. The biggest Blue I ever killed was tough as heck. I cooked it in a dutch oven in camp with the cornish game hens we had thawed out. We were so excited to try them side by side. The blue was so tough. I wouldn't have believed that it was cooked side by side with the cornish hens if I hadn't done it myself. Lessen learned. I only harvest Blues anymore if the dog finds them.... then I pressure cook them.

 

[Chris in TN]

I've eaten a lot of grouse and the quality varies greatly. Ruffed grouse are by far the best. Some Blue (dusky) have been very tough and plain in flavor. While some are succulent and almost as good as Ruffs. I think the age of the Blues is the big deciding factor. The biggest Blue I ever killed was tough as heck. I cooked it in a dutch oven in camp with the cornish game hens we had thawed out. We were so excited to try them side by side. The blue was so tough. I wouldn't have believed that it was cooked side by side with the cornish hens if I hadn't done it myself. Lessen learned. I only harvest Blues anymore if the dog finds them.... then I pressure cook them.

I can tell you with a great deal of confidence that domestic chickens and turkeys are the same way. Age equals toughness. A chicken that has lived a few weeks growing quickly will be tender. An old hen that has outlived her egg-laying days will make good soup but you have to cook her a long time.

Also, wild turkey legs from a mature gobbler shouldn't be eaten. Their best use would be if someone developed a way to turn them into commercial truck tires. They'd easily last a million miles.

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

I’ve never understood cooks who put game into heavy sauces, unless it is something you eat every day (like venison).

Something tells me you haven't had to do a lot of cooking for kids?

 

[Q_Sertorius]

Something tells me you haven't had to do a lot of cooking for kids?

I cook for my daughter almost every day. The only days I don’t is when she is at her mother’s house.

Wild turkey legs, wings, skin, and carcass make an excellent soup.


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[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

I cook for my daughter almost every day. The only days I don’t is when she is at her mother’s house.

Wild turkey legs, wings, skin, and carcass make an excellent soup.


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KidS not kid, lol. Damn things never agree on anything (unless its pure carbs it seems).

 

[Q_Sertorius]

KidS not kid, lol. Damn things never agree on anything (unless its pure carbs it seems).

To be sure, left to her own devices, she would live on macaroni and cheese. But properly killed, cleaned, processed, and cooked game is as good as it gets. And every kid for whom I have cooked has eaten it without issue. My eight nieces and nephews live on it.


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[thinhorn_AK]

I feed spruce grouse to my dogs. I always shoot a few when I see them. Dogs love it, I can't stand it.

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

To be sure, left to her own devices, she would live on macaroni and cheese. But properly killed, cleaned, processed, and cooked game is as good as it gets. And every kid for whom I have cooked has eaten it without issue. My eight nieces and nephews live on it.


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Yeah most all our red meat is game (I get lazy and buy burger patties at times) but with the kid factor we go through notably more ground meat than whole cuts/steak. Its just funny/annoying at times, seems 1 has an issue with something, its not hard to please 1 versus 3 (in my case). One will eat smoked salmon grumbles about cooked salmon, will eat cornmeal fried fish, halibut in alfredo but mostly complains on fish otherwise. Another is against salmon all around, generally fine with halibut/cod/rockfish. The other just complains in general on fish. One day a grilled and sliced piece of game gets eaten up the next its grumbles. One is tired of tacos the others crave them. Another bitches about lasagna the others love it. Marina meat sauce is a complaint but meatballs are a win... I could go on haha.

Point being I'd totally see myself frustrated and putting grouse into alfredo eventually. I mean I do it with halibut already sometimes.

 

[neandth]

Quick and easy in camp is to fry in butter, with onions and whatever veggies you have on hand. If you want to get fancy, you can add some white wine and simmer to tenderize.

 

[Macintosh]

Also, wild turkey legs from a mature gobbler shouldn't be eaten. Their best use would be if someone developed a way to turn them into commercial truck tires. They'd easily last a million miles.

Oh man, this is funny but so wrong. Braise those suckers for a few hours, strain the solids out, pull the meat off the bone (at least the meat that hasnt already fallen off), get the weird gristly fibery bones out, and use that meat for soup, stew, posole, tacos, whatever. Thats some of the best tasting meat on a turkey! Dont forget to use the broth too.

 

[UPThunderbolt]

I've never eaten the blue or spruce grouse. Are they dark meat like sharptial and chickens?

Spruce grouse are a dark meat (a little darker than sharptail). They feed primarily on short-needled conifer species such as Jack pine and spruce needles. As such, they have a stronger taste. I’ve shot them in Canada and cooked them in a teriyaki marinade.

Blue grouse also feed on conifer needles, but if you can find them in the right habitat they can be quite tasty. The only Blues I’ve eaten were birds we shot in a habitat where the ground flora was dominated by wortleberry. The birds were full of these berries and, although darker meat than the ruffed grouse, they had a sweet taste to them.

All of these birds will be tough as leather if they are over cooked.