Colonial Williamsburg Brunswick Stew
 

I’ve been wanting to try making the Williamsburg Brunswick Stew for a bunch of years now . However I want to use the original meat tree rats (squirrels) instead of the preferred meat of most makers these days (chicken) . Saturday is out last day of deer season so the following Wednesday and or Thursday I’ll see if I can’t pop right or nine tree rats .

If the Brunswick Stew comes out palatable there’s another recipe in the Williamsburg cookbook I’ve wanted to try for quite a few years and have actually had it at “Christiana Campbell’s Tavern” in Colonial Williamsburg all be it thirty or so years ago , the “Colonial Game Pie” . This one says use venison , rabbit and duck . See if I can’t enlist a couple friends to let me go with them next month after little furry bunnies . Shouldn’t need more than three bun buns . Might have to go to Williamsburg one day before I try making this and eat it at the Tavern just to refresh the taste buds as to how it tastes when they make it . Although I’m sure all the venison , hares and ducks they use are farm raised .

Hey, Craig, Brunswick stew is on my day-off-from-quail-hunting list for this year before the squirrel season ends, and I may use your recipe. BTW, Williamsburg is my home town...and, for those of our colleagues from Georgia (this will get a rise, no doubt), Brunswick stew is a Virginia original, not from Georgia.:) But, hey, if you grew up in Virginia, you learned all of this in school.:whistle:

Many many churches fire departments etc in Virginia make their own versions of Brunswick Stew and use them to raise money . I’ve never had one that was bad but I’ve also never had it made with tree rats . Intresting to know you grew up in Williamsburg ! My mom loved the beach and my pop would get sun sickness at the beach after a day or two . My pop was also a big historian which may explain my taste in furniture art etc . Anyway when they took a weeks vacation we’d usually do four days at Colonial Williamsburg and three days at Virginia Beach . Everyone was happy and my pop usually came out in flying colors . Funny story one year we were there and I think we were at Kings Tavern having lunch think I was in the 8-11 range . Anyway I ordered Orange sherbet and iced coffee . The waiter looked at my mother and said bring it with half a glass of milk and of course there was sugar on the table . The waiter stood and watched while I mixed it the way my maternal grandmother did it was about 50-50 coffee and milk with a spoonful of sugar . After that strangely enough they never questioned it again .

Assuming we are fairly close in age, I'm sure I was probably wandering about Williamsburg when you were making your exotic treat. It was interesting growing up there. Many of my friends parents worked for what we called, "The Restoration" (Colonial Williamsburg), and I recall one friend's father who came home from work dressed like a blacksmith. At that time if you lived in the area, you got free guest passes (also to Jamestown and Yorktown) and could use the buses and enter the various buildings for free. It was a great place to grow up...and the town cleared out in the winter, making it even more appealing. We belonged to a hunt club (a poor man's version) that had about 400 acres adjacent to the Colonial Parkway. We had deer stands along the route and when you heard a car slow down, you knew a deer was crossing and needed to be ready to shoot. On "stand" was to sit atop a Revolutionary War embankment -- my favorite. I also hunted on land that is now Busch Gardens. Things change (and seldom for the best).

BTW, do you put butterbeans in your stew? It's the only thing I won't put in mine...ever(!) Squirrel, however, was a staple for dinner at our house growing up.

I hope you'll post a photo of your stew like you often do for you "lunches at the shop."

I'm going to wait for this Craig. I have a hankering to drop a few skwerells (the spelling I think I saw in "Undaunted Courage" with my 16g Trojan. As a kid I could never make the damn things taste good. Regarding pot pie, I make a pheasant pot pie that is just great, although have mixed in Chukar as well, wonder how it would work with squirrel. One pie will feed 5-6 people.

I’ve never tried making Brunswick stew so I’ll most likely put Lima beans . My great grandmother used to fry squirrels for me if I killed them . I’ve never been a big fan of tree rats to eat but I wanna try . I turned 60 this year .

PPP
 

Andy,
how about sharing your recipe for the Pheasant Pot Pie?
I grew up on crock pot squirrel stew! With moms biscuits, mmmmmmmgood!

A young pup you are! But, I was living in Williamsburg when you were 8-10. Come to think of it, I do recall scuttle about some kid who mixed an odd coffee drink at one of the taverns in town. I think it made the famous Virginia Gazette.:whistle::rotf::bigbye:

2 cups chicken broth
1 pound pheasant cut into bite size pieces
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup sliced mushrooms (optional)
some garlic
Half yellow onion chopped
1 stick carrot chopped
1 bag frozen peas
1/3 cup salted butter
2/3 cup whole milk
Salt and black pepper
1 t dried rosemary
1/2 t dried sage
1/2 t ground celery seed
1 beaten egg white
1 refrigerated pie crust

Preheat oven to 400
Sautee pheasant, mushroom and onion in some oil for 10 minutes, add 1 clove of mashed garlic for flavor and remove it when done. You can remove the onion if you don't like it in your pie. Reserve the drippings and pheasant/mushroom bites (I use just breast from two birds)
Boil the broth and add carrots and celery for 10 minutes, add peas for one or two minutes. Drain and RESERVE THE BROTH, adding the carrots/celery to the pheasant bites
Melt the butter in a saucepan for 5 minutes, medium heat
Stir in the flour continuously, you want a blonde roux here
Pour reserved broth and milk into the flour mixture, stirring constantly
Add pepper, rosemary, sage and celery seed and salt to taste, bringing slowly to a boil and then back to a simmer and stir and watch until it's thickened
Press your pie crust into a pie plate and brush with egg white. Put this in the oven for a few minutes until it just starts to firm up and turn color.
Remove from the oven, and turn heat to 375
Scoop 1/4 of the pheasant/mushroom/veggie mix into the pie plate, then mix the remaining pheasant/mushroom mix into your flour/broth/spice roux.
Pour this into the plate last, cover with the other half of the pie crust, crimp the edges, cut to vent and bake until golden brown all over about 35-45 minutes
Remove, let rest for 20 minutes.
*here's one before I covered it, I like it better with mushrooms

Andy I’m not going to make any bones about it ! I hate skinning squirrels . But I just googled it and watched this video . I actually think they might know of what they speak . I’ll be trying this technique in the next ten days . https://www.themeateater.com/hunt/sm...el-in-1-minute

Dude, this way (never did it but it looks quicker) : )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrjuOsJIIHY

That’s the same way my grandfather did it . He never got hair on them , I never could accomplish that . I could get it done but always got hair on them .

Craig, is a "Virginia Brunswick Stew" close enough? From one of my favorite cooks, just came in the email yesterday while I was hunting with Mike Koneski:

https://honest-food.net/brunswick-stew-recipe/

My wife makes a killer pot pie. Has to have two crusts or it's not a legit pot pie!! Just substitute pheasant, chukar, grouse, etc for chicken and run with it. My Dutchie relatives don't use crust. I call that soup!!

Heven't shot tree-rats in what seems forever. Used to sit in my pappy's oak stand by some huge boulders with the single shot Winchester .22 LR bolt and pick them off as they tried to retrieve acorns. Used to take a bag full home and my mom would quarter them and brown them in butter. Nix besser!!

Last line, I said "BEFORE I COVERED IT" Of course there are TWO crusts :banghead::banghead::banghead: I think it would be bad without it.

Wouldn't be bad, but it wouldn't be as GOOD!! :)

As for skinning them, do it ASAP and you'll have no problems. I'd keep a plastic bag in my pouch for the skinned squirrels. I'd do the same for rabbits too. Last few times I hunted rabbits they were covered with fleas/lice. That's not going into my coat!!

I’m not that up on them to give an educated answer . I just figeured the CW recipe a good place to start. I was however looking at a thirty minute pheasant curry recipe from the same place as your link . And having just returned from the Food Kitty I brought home some Thai Curry and coconut milk . I can see the Pheasent curry happening this weekend .

Shouldn't that be My Co-editor?





.

That would be correct sir!!! 😂😂

Yes, you said two crusts. I was merely commenting on the need for two crusts. Some only use a top crust, some use a bottom, some use no crusts. Just sayin’.

Gotcha' Mike. I like Hank Shaw's cooking a LOT. His Ethiopian venison stew is just great. But I looked up your guy and he's amazing too, Mike Robinson, so I will have to start watching all his stuff. I love cooking wild game.

My mother loved buying cookbooks at auction sales . And being in Virginia a good many she acquire are for recipes from the Old South . She’s been gone now for thirteen years , but I started reading some of them twenty plus years ago especially those dealing with Cajun creole quisine . I also recently had an epiphany that just because it called for a specific domestic meat didn’t mean something similar in a game bird or animal couldn’t be used instead :cool:

Craig and Andy, try this for squirrel.....

https://youtu.be/qFitQn0W-Ns

That’s pretty much the way my grandfather showed me to do it . And he could keep them perfectly hair free , where as I on the other was not so fortunate . My grandfather also would say cut the scent glands out from under the arm pits .

I've seen this video before. Now gotta shoot a squirrel : )

Craig what shot size are you using for squirrels, #4s are my favorite as they pass through leaves/tree branches better than when I used 7.5s.

I've been skinning squirrels by the "de-pantsing" method since I was Pop's squirrel holder at age 6. Pop was methodical, but fast, and had great disdain for any hair that might stick to the skinned squirrel.

I always used #4 shot and a .410 for squirrels, but Pop liked his J. C. Higgins (the Ted Williams model) auto .22. He liked short hollow points, and only would shoot if he could get a head shot. As his "squirrel dog," my job was to create movement on the other side of the tree so the squirrel would present him a shot. He always mounted a high powered rifle scope on his .22 rifle. I was always mystified, as a 6-year old often is, by Pop's ability to see squirrels hiding in the tops of trees, and marveled when, finally, the small sound of the shot came and the squirrel fell from the top of the tree. I still love the sound of the short .22.

If our bird hunting ever dries up completely, I'll turn back to squirrels. We have lots of them here in Missouri, and the season runs from the end of May to the middle of February...and I've never seen another squirrel hunter here in North Missouri.

Elaine has agreed to make real (a.k.a. Virginia) Brunswick Stew for us this winter after the bird season is over. I will leave out the disgusting butter (lima) beans, however.

22 LR to the head . Or atleast that was the only choice when my grandfather was taking me . I’ve got a greatly changed Ruger 10/22 with a Whistle Pig barrel a enhanced trigger , regrouped headspace , a suppressor and a decent scope . This little rifle shoots Norma TAC 22 LR in very tiny five shot groups at 25 and 50 yards . But if the inclination for a shotgun kicks in I suspect a 28 or 20 with 6’s oughtta be okay .

I’m no big fan of Lima’s but I figure I’ll give it a try atleast the first time . I’m planning on making some Pheasent curry this weekend and it calls for peas , I’ve never been a great fan of peas but I’m gonna include them atleast once . To be honest the recipe calls for snow peas but if unavailable any peas etc . And yesterday there were no snow peas to be found in the local Food Kitty .

Oooooh, pheasant curry!! Now you're talking!

Craig, are you doing Hank Shaws recipe? I've done that one, fantastic. Look up his Ethiopian Venison Stew, that's a sure winner and a favorite of mine. I'm hungry now.

Yes it is as a matter of fact .

https://honest-food.net/green-curry-pheasant-recipe/

I'll give the Ethipoian deer a look see .

Cooking to me is based on SIMPLICITY first and quickness second unless of course the cooking can be done via crockpot then the speed aspect is no longer that important .

You might wanna pass on the Ethiopian venison then Craig. It's some substantial work, but worth it. I like simple too, but then again it's been 20 years since I put pheasant breasts in cream of mushroom soup.

I wanna try the curry this weekend and maybe get some treerats next week for Brunswick stew very shortly thereafter .

A cousin was in the shop today telling me he had planned on inviting me today for a rabbit hunt but the snow this week kinda messed that up . So if he gets back to me in the next couple weeks and I can get a couple rabbits I wanna try them venison and duck breasts in the Colonial Williamsburg game pie .

https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/m...ms-tavern.html

Guys are killing me here!! Looks like we have to add a recipe page to Parker Pages. "If you can shoot it with a Parker, the recipe can go here...."

DUDE, I do believe that was MY IDEA :banghead: No venison stew for you!!!

For our New Year's Eve dinner, I made pheasant tikka masala, with a side of saag paneer & brown rice. Washed down with a good beer, it was a nice ending to 2021.