Under this bridge you often find road kill.
We found a badger and, whist it is very sad that it had been hit by a car and is a big loss to the local populaton, it was a good opportunity to show the children a close up very large British mammal.
As this is part of our food for free series we include a recipe for Badger stew as used by Arthur Boyt the king of road kill recipes. This recipe is also inside the cache and you can photograph it if you wish but please leave it there for others. There is room for small swops.
Roadkill health warning...
People who eat roadkill are confident about identifying how fresh a carcass is and if it is diseased or healthy. They then cook the meat for a long time at a high temperature and say this ensures it is safe to eat. There is a great deal of information on the internet about cooking and eating roadkill, however, as with other subjects on the internet, not all the information is necessarily reliable. So before embarking upon a gastronomic roadkill adventure, be very sure you know what you're doing!
ARTHUR BOYT'S RECIPE FOR ROADKILL BADGER CASSEROLE
Ingredients
- Two badger hams, potatoes, broccoli, a big onion, sliced carrot, cooking oil, parsnip, flour, salt, pepper, spices, tomatoes
Mr Boyt's recipe involves skinning a badger and cooking its body parts with tomatoes, carrots and wine among other things
'Skin the badger in the garage as this stops the fleas getting all round the house.
'Take off the hind legs with as much back muscle as possible and this will give you two good hams weighing around 3lbs.
'The hams will have a good covering of fat and this will serve to baste the meat during cooking. If you are having a big crowd to dinner, add the forelegs, shoulder and, if need be, the neck as well.
'Dredge the hams in seasoned flour, put a little oil into a casserole dish and lightly fry the meat on both sides. Remove the meat and fry the onion until it is golden.
'Slice the spuds and parsnip, put them on the onion and chuck in the tomatoes.
'Put the meat on top and pour on a cup of cider/wine/stock with the remains of the seasoned flour. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for five minutes.
'Place in a hot oven for an hour to an hour and a half. Alternatively you can put it in a slow oven or in the bottom of the AGA for 3hrs and go out for a good walk to work up an appetite.
'Add the chopped up carrots and put it back in the oven for half an hour.
'Boil a pan of broccoli (or greens of your choice) for five minutes.'
Spoon off any fat or oil from the casserole and serve the meat on the bone with the sauce.
** Keep safe.