Posted: 4/10/2011 7:14:10 AM EDT
I've had a pretty good sized snapping turtle (common snapper not alligator snapper.....common snapper is not protected in TX) terrorizing my catfishing. I had hooked him about 1/2 dozen times with several broken lines. So yesterday I had my Glock 26 on me and I decided to put him down. It took four shots........3 through the shell and 1 through the head. None of the three through the shell exited the turtle. I wish I hadn't damaged the shell, but wasn't really thinking about that at the time with my fishing pole in one hand and my pistol in the other. Anyway, here he is...
I've always heard how tasty these are so I cleaned him. I'd never done one before, and it took me the better part of an hour to skin and carve out the 4 leg quarters and neck. I've read that boiling the turtle might aide skinning, but I went the hard way... I soaked the meat in salt water / garlic for 6 hours....then rubbed it down and basted with bbq sauce. Here they are grilling.... 
My buddy and I ate it, but we both agreed that it wasn't exactly awesome eating. There was probably a better way to prepare it, but it was chewy.....and what little flavor it had was odd. |
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Awesome! I love to see people eating what they kill, no matter how weird it may be.
And I think you should still clean the shell up. If you have a chance to get another one, try not to shoot it in the head and then send me the head and I'll clean up the skull for you. I've never cleaned a turtle before. |
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Quoted:
Awesome! I love to see people eating what they kill, no matter how weird it may be. And I think you should still clean the shell up. If you have a chance to get another one, try not to shoot it in the head and then send me the head and I'll clean up the skull for you. I've never cleaned a turtle before. Thanks Rizzo. I have the shell hanging up in a tree right now to dry out. Would I be better off putting it on a red ant mound? I'd just have to find a way to protect it from coyotes, my dogs, etc. Though it won't be pretty, I've kept the head too......it's mounted on a beer bottle. This thing could have easily taken a person's fingers or toes. |
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Common Snapper's are definitely a problem for fish and waterfowl. Removing them is a good idea and they are not endangered.
I would have a problem with killing off Alligator Snappers since they are fishermen themselves and don't take baits. They have a worm tongue they use to lure their prey in. It's actually pretty cool. I've seen them in action in an aquarium. |
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My FIL cooks a few every summer. He catches them and leaves them in a tank of fresh water. He says it takes some of the nastiness out of the taste. He always fries it during fish frys. It doesn't taste too bad done that way. Yeah, the people I know that eat them do this. They keep them in a horse watering tank of fresh water for several days. It takes the "muddy" taste out. I have no idea how they cook it, though. |