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The National Outdoor Show The Call of the Wild. The Realities of the Pantry.
Earlier this year, we visited the National Outdoor Show in Dorchester County, Maryland,
in search of the wily muskrat. Okay, they’re not so wily. But they’re hard to find. Cooked, that is. You sure can find a rather red, skinned, long-toothed, ready-to-plop-in-the-pan muskrat at a number of seafood and even grocery stores. But cooked? That’s tough. Fortunately, the National Outdoor Show was scheduled for not only a Muskrat
cooking contest, but also Muskrat served in the cafeteria, and a chef on the premises who was demonstrating how to cook ‘rat.
It didn’t work out for me. The line at the cafeteria didn’t budge for a half-an-hour. I had
to bail. Had to leave before the cooking contest. And I tracked down the chef. “The guy who usually cooks has been very
sick this year,” I was told. But a lady at the Pampered Chef booth was standing in as a substitute and had her muskrat
cooking away in the microwave in her dutch oven, which she said would be done “in just 18 minutes!” I waited for
the ding of the microwave, and then discovered there were no samples to be had – it was being submitted as
a cooking contest entry. Rats. Her muskrat, however, was very fragrant.
“I used cloves and cinnamon,” said the chef. “Is this how you normally cook it?” I asked. “Oh,
no,” she said. “I never cook it. Can’t stand it.”
Our friend and outdoor cooking pro, Gunner Roe, also attended the event and met with more success.
His takeaway? “I talked to the ladies in the kitchen about the muskrat they served, which was better, I thought, than
the contest entries. As far as the contest entries went, I still think simple was better, although there were some interesting
twists.
“I have tried to cook muskrat,” says Gunner, “But I’m not doing something right. I may attempt it again after talking with the ladies in the kitchen. May even consider entering the contest next year!” I await the day. Gunner can cook. In the meantime, I did score the National Outdoor Show Cookbook II, which has some pretty fun stuff that reflects life on the edge of the marsh and the Bay. Recipes include Cheesy BBQ Muskrat appetizer, Stuffed Duck, Orange Deer Steaks, and Pintails in Red Wine Roux. But just as often, the recipes reveal the reality of reaching into the pantry — even with an abundance
of crabs or game — and getting the food on the table. Recipes with cans of crushed pineapple, cream of mushroom soup,
a bottle of teriyaki sauce. Older recipes call for fatback and Dexo. Newer recipes mention a box of Mac and Cheese and a microwave.
Classics take beef bouillon cubes and a jar of Italian dressing.
From the Cookbook Forensic cookbook reading is interesting. After a while, stars emerge. When a really good ‘from scratch’ recipe pops up, I’m not surprised to see it attributed to Joan, or Peggy, or Virginia, or Nancy or even Buddy. Buddy Oberender is listed in the credits as Co-Chairman of the National Outdoor Foundation. Virginia Todd is the Secretary. Are they in this cookbook because they’re on the committee or because they’re good cooks? The recipes will let you be the judge:
NOTE: Currently, we await approval from the publisher to post these recipes. Please
check back soon for:
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