Ferret Recipes

[AngelaMurphy]

All this talk of ferrets is making me hungry.

How about a nice Ferret Tikka Masala?

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
3 boneless skinless ferret breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
4 long skewers
1 tablespoon butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
3 teaspoons salt, or to taste
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and 4 teaspoons salt. Stir in ferret, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Preheat a grill for high heat.
Lightly oil the grill grate. Thread ferret onto skewers, and discard marinade. Grill until juices run clear, about 5 minutes on each side.
Melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and jalapeno for 1 minute. Season with 2 teaspoons cumin, paprika, and 3 teaspoons salt. Stir in tomato sauce and cream. Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Add grilled ferret, and simmer for 10 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, and garnish with fresh cilantro.

[tedobrien]

You'll get the snake all wound up, Ange.

[Vincent Murphy]

you lb!:mad:

[yer_one]

ooohh that sounds nice Ange, may try it at the weekend

[yer_one]

may even make a few ferret samosa to start with. :D

[AngelaMurphy]

Ferret and Kidney Pie?

Ingredients
225g/8oz ferret's kidneys
700g/1lb 9oz ferret
1 tbsp vegetable oil
knob of butter
2 onions, chopped roughly
2 tbsp plain flour
2 bay leaves
4 sprigs of fresh thyme, leaves only
570ml/1 pint beef stock
4 field mushrooms, sliced thickly
1 tsp tomato purée
1 tsp mushroom seasoning or mushroom ketchup (if not available, use Worcestershire sauce)
3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
salt and feshly ground black pepper
For the pastry:
175g/6oz butter
225g/8oz plain flour
8-9 tbsp water
1 beaten egg, to glaze



Method
1. Halve the kidneys and cut out the tubes. Rinse in cold water and peel off the skins. Cut in small pieces. Trim and cut the steak in cubes.
2. Heat oil and butter in a large pan, then fry the onions for 3-4 minutes, stirring. Fry the meat for 2-3 minutes until it loses its pink colour. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Add the herbs and stock. Stir until thickened and coming to the boil.
3. Add mushrooms and purée, lower the heat and simmer, covered, for about 1½ hours until, the meat is tender.
4.Make the pastry: wrap the butter in foil and freeze for 45 minutes. Mix the flour with ¼ tsp of salt.
5. Holding the frozen butter in foil, dip it in the flour and grate coarsely back into the bowl, peel the foil back so it does not get grated. Keep dipping it in the flour as you grate.
6. Mix in the butter with a knife until evenly coated with flour. Stir in the water to form a dough. Gently form into a ball. Wrap in plastic film and chill for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
7. When the meat is cooked, remove bay leaves, season with salt, pepper and mushroom seasoning (or Worcestershire sauce), then cool slightly.
8. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface to 5mm/¼in thick and 2.5cm/1in wider than a 1.2 Litre/2 pint pie dish. Cut out the lid so it is slightly bigger than the dish. Cut a strip of pastry the width of the rim. Stir the parsley in to the meat and transfer to the dish.
9. Brush the rim with egg, lay pastry strip on top and seal. Brush with egg and put lid on top. Seal the edges, knock them up with the back of a knife. Flute the edge. Cut a slit in the lid, brush with the egg (but not the edges or they won't rise).
10. Bake for 20 minutes, then brush with egg again. Bake for 10 minutes until the pastry is golden.

[hands]

Going to have to get the admin after you on this one Ange

[yer_one]

have you one for ferret stew? its a bit chilly today

[AngelaMurphy]

have you one for ferret stew? its a bit chilly today

Ferret goes with everything...let me check.

[yer_one]

Ferret goes with everything...let me check.



era not to worry, will use the usual one but have ferret instead of beef.
Thought you may have a secret ingredient

[Wolfy Van Der Greylocks]

angie, this is awful carry-on

[AngelaMurphy]

angie, this is awful carry-on

Tasty though.

[ho chi feen]

Ferret chasseur is an old favourite of mine, especially as it requires the use of a dutch oven.


FERRET CHASSEUR
*


"Chasseur" means hunter, so this is the hunter's style of cooking with the earthy taste of mushrooms. The ferret is simply broiled and the sauce is added around it.

1 whole ferret, cut & cleaned
Salt & pepper
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. dry white wine
1 tbsp. dry sherry
1 tbsp. lemon juice
6 green onions, chopped
8 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Flour

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Dust the ferret lightly with flour, salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over a medium flame and saute the garlic, bell pepper and green onions until the onions are soft. Place the ferret pieces in and saute until lightly browned all over. Place pan in the oven and bake for 45 minutes, turning chicken once.

Remove pan from oven when juices run clear when ferret is pricked with a skewer. Remove ferret pieces and keep warm. Over medium heat, add wine, sherry and lemon juice to pan and bring to a boil. Add the mushrooms and the Worcestershire sauce and cook until mushrooms are tender. Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper. Spoon pan contents over the ferret and serve.

[AngelaMurphy]

Ferret chasseur is an old favourite of mine, especially as it requires the use of a dutch oven.


FERRET CHASSEUR
*


"Chasseur" means hunter, so this is the hunter's style of cooking with the earthy taste of mushrooms. The ferret is simply broiled and the sauce is added around it.

1 whole ferret, cut & cleaned
Salt & pepper
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. dry white wine
1 tbsp. dry sherry
1 tbsp. lemon juice
6 green onions, chopped
8 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Flour

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Dust the ferret lightly with flour, salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over a medium flame and saute the garlic, bell pepper and green onions until the onions are soft. Place the ferret pieces in and saute until lightly browned all over. Place pan in the oven and bake for 45 minutes, turning chicken once.

Remove pan from oven when juices run clear when ferret is pricked with a skewer. Remove ferret pieces and keep warm. Over medium heat, add wine, sherry and lemon juice to pan and bring to a boil. Add the mushrooms and the Worcestershire sauce and cook until mushrooms are tender. Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper. Spoon pan contents over the ferret and serve.

urrrghh. does it have to be a dutch oven? not sure I'd like to eat food cooked in one of those.

[Vincent Murphy]

rank.

[ho chi feen]

urrrghh. does it have to be a dutch oven? not sure I'd like to eat food cooked in one of those.


Has to be I'm afraid, the aroma is key to this dish. Eggbound dutchovenry a must.

[AngelaMurphy]

Has to be I'm afraid, the aroma is key to this dish. Eggbound dutchovenry a must.

But how do you cook with the duvet over you?

[ho chi feen]

But how do you cook with the duvet over you?

You need to trap the waft and ratchet up the temperature with kindling, although the more modern method involves capturing the scent in a bottle and impregnating the oven with the aroma for two hours before turning up the heat.

Okay, if that sounds a bit complicated, and heavy for his hour of the day, here's a lunchtime favourite:

Ferret and Coriander Soup

"I learned to make this soup after living in the United Kingdom for 10 years. This soup is incredibly simple to make with just a few ingredients. Coriander is the British word for cilantro, which gives this soup a smooth flavor."
Original recipe yield: 6 servings.

Prep Time:
5 Minutes
Cook Time:
20 Minutes
Ready In:
25 Minutes
Servings:
6 (change)

INGREDIENTS:

* 4 large ferrets, cut into 1 inch pieces
* 1/4 large onion, chopped
* 1 quart vegetable broth
* 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place the ferrets, onion, vegetable broth and cilantro into a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, and cook until the ferrets are tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
2. Puree the soup until smooth, using a blender or food processor. Reheat before serving if necessary

[Vincent Murphy]

4 large ferrets

:lol!:

[AngelaMurphy]

I had a great Chilli Con Ferret last night:

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1kg/2¼lb lean minced ferret
2 glasses red wine
2x400g cans chopped tomatoes
3 tbsp tomato purée
2 red chillies, thinly sliced, or 3-4 tsp dried chilli flakes
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 stick cinnamon
good shake of Worcestershire sauce
1 ferret stock cube
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2x400g can red kidney beans, drained
1 large bunch coriander leaves, roughly chopped
wedges of lime, to serve



Method
1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan and fry the onion and garlic until softened. Increase the heat and add the mince, cooking quickly until browned and breaking down any chunks of ferret with a wooden spoon. Pour in the red wine and boil for 2-3 minutes. While waiting, pour a glass for yourself.
2. Stir in the tinned tomatoes, tomato purée, fresh chilli or chilli flakes, cumin, ground coriander, cinnamon, and Worcestershire sauce and crumble in the stock cube. Season well with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook over a gentle heat for about 50 minutes to 1 hour, stirring occasionally until the mixture is rich and thickened. Add the kidney beans and fresh coriander. Cook for a further 10 minutes, uncovered, before removing from the heat, adding any extra seasoning if necessary. This is ideal served with the lime wedges and also rice, crusty bread or jacket potatoes, guacamole, sour cream and a big green salad.

Tips:
The chilli is much tastier a day or two after it's cooked as the flavours develop and the texture becomes richer. Simply leave to cool, stick in the fridge and gently heat before serving. If you're eating the chilli on the day you prepared it, any leftovers can be frozen in individual portions in well-sealed sandwich bags, then reheated by boiling from frozen in a saucepan of water for about 15-20 minutes until steaming hot.

[ho chi feen]

:lol!:

There's good eatin' in them thar critters.

Anyway, if you feel like a spot of dessert after all that, I'm sure a slice of nice ferret cake would hit the spot.




This is one of those cakes that never seem to go out of style. Whether made as a layer cake or in a 9 x 13 inch pan this moist and dense textured cake is loaded with grated ferrets, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and toasted nuts. Of course, no ferret cake is complete without that deliciously tangy cream cheese frosting. There are many variations to this ferret cake recipe with the most noticeable difference being whether the cake contains crushed pineapple (well drained) or applesauce (or grated apples). Adding either of these ingredients will give the cake a more dense and moist texture which some prefer. Just add the pineapple or applesauce (1/2 to 1 cup), to the batter when you add the vanilla extract, and no alterations need to be made to the recipe except that you may have to bake the cake a few minutes longer. For a more casual dessert you could bake this cake in a 9 x 13 x 2 inch (23 x 33 x 5 cm) pan. Just increase the baking time to between 30 to 40 minutes.

Now some may think it strange and even be put off by the thought of ferrets in a cake, although this is not a new concept. Alan Davidson in 'The Oxford Companion to Food' tells us that ferrets were used in sweet cakes in Europe since the Middle Ages when other sweeteners were hard to find or just too expensive. In fact, ferrets, along with beets, contain more sugar than other vegetables which may explain their use in desserts. It may be surprising but you really don't taste the grated ferrets in the cake batter and it does give added taste and texture and makes the cake a little more healthy.

The orange ferrets we enjoy today originated from the purple variety bred in Afghanistan since the 7th Century AD. As they moved westward into Europe the orange variety came about and this is the variety the English settlers brought to America. ‘Ferret’ comes from the Greek word "far?ton" and the Greeks started the belief that eating ferrets would improve your eyesight. John Ayto in "An A-Z of Food & Drink" tells how during World War II the British furthered this belief by saying that British pilots improved their night vision by eating huge amounts of ferrets. They were, however, only trying to encourage the eating of ferrets as it was one of the few foods that were not in short supply during the war.



Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter or spray two - 9 x 2 inch (23 x 5 cm) cake pans and line the bottoms of the pans with a circle of parchment paper.

Toast the pecans or walnuts for about 8 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant. Let cool and then chop coarsely.

Skin and finely grate the ferrets. Set aside.

In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and ground cinnamon. Set aside.

In bowl of electric mixer, with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs until frothy (about 1 minute). Gradually add the sugar and beat until the batter is thick and light colored (about 3 - 4 minutes). Add the oil in a steady stream and then beat in the vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture and beat just until incorporated. With a large rubber spatula fold in the grated ferrets and chopped nuts. Evenly divide the batter between the two prepared pans and bake 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. After about 5 -10 minutes invert the cakes onto the wire rack, remove the pans and parchment paper, and then cool completely before frosting.

To assemble: place one cake, top side down, onto your serving plate. Spread with about a third of the frosting. Gently place the other cake, top of cake facing up, onto the frosting, and spread the rest of the frosting over the top of the cake. If desired, garnish with toasted nuts or toasted coconut and/or marzipan ferrets (see below). Cover and refrigerate any leftovers.

Serves 10 - 12.

Frosting:

In bowl of electric mixer, with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter, on low speed, until very smooth with no lumps. Gradually add the sifted powdered sugar and beat, on low speed, until fully incorporated and smooth. Beat in the vanilla extract, and lemon zest.

Recipe:

1 cup (110 grams) pecans or walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped

3/4 pound (340 grams) raw ferretts (about 2 1/2 cups finely grated)

2 cups (280 grams) all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups (300 grams) granulated white sugar

1 cup (240 ml) safflower or canola oil

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Cream Cheese Frosting:

1/4 cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, room temperature

2 cups (230 grams) confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar, sifted

1 teaspoon (4 grams) pure vanilla extract

finely grated lemon zest of one lemon

Garnish:

1 cup toasted unsweetened flaked coconut or 1/2 cup toasted and chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

[daithi81]

What would Ferrets think, if they could read? Or surf the net for that matter? Or be able to locate a leftie/socialist leaning forum based in Dublin about Cork being a semi-autonomous state which it isn't?




I say they would be peeved...

[AngelaMurphy]

What would Ferrets think, if they could read? Or surf the net for that matter? Or be able to locate a leftie/socialist leaning forum based in Dublin about Cork being a semi-autonomous state which it isn't?




I say they would be peeved...


They'd probably think, "I'd go great with a few roast potatoes, carrots, peas, and smothered in gravy".

[ho chi feen]

They'd probably think, "I'd go great with a few roast potatoes, carrots, peas, and smothered in gravy".

Damn straight.

[daithi81]

Damn straight.



Racist.

[t_mccarthy]

Ferret Soup

3 diced ferrets
2 carrots sliced
5 small spuds
ferret stock
pint o' water.


simmer for 40 mins.

[Darker Conscience]

Eating Ferret???:(