Search Feature

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Dove hunting and my favorite shotgun...

Dove season marks the beginning of hunting season for me. I like to go out in the evening when the air is cool. The little windmill pond is the perfect location.
I'll admit, I spend most of my time admiring the moon or just enjoying the sound of coyotes yipping in the distance. :)





Sometimes I start out slow..... taking 2 shots (or more) to get one bird.



but usually get my limit or close to it by the end of the evening..



My favorite shotgun.... an old 20 gauge. It's the gun I use for bird hunting and the first thing I grab when investigating strange noises outside after dark. :)



Dove season has been pretty good this year and I've managed to put a few in the freezer. It's a good feeling to know there will be food on the table this winter. :)

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've not hunted for doves, but for grouse... not in many years...

LindaG said...

Look forward to hearing how you fix them.
Congratulations! :)

zjaybird said...

Oh my Goodness....how dare you kill poor innocent animals like that...if you wanted them just for the meat why don't you just go to the store that made them....The Grocery Store...that is where animals come from don't you know.

If I had the number for PETA I would call them

cowgirl said...

Madge that's great! I've not hunted grouse but hear they are good eatin' too.
Thanks for stopping by. :)

cowgirl said...

Thanks Linda! Not sure how I will fix them..chickenfried with smooshed tatoes and gravy isn't half bad. :)
Hope you had a nice weekend!

cowgirl said...

lol Jay!! Thanks for the laugh! lol Good to see ya, hope you are keeping out of trouble. :)

Kevin L. said...

I'm envious! I can't afford to eat Dove. At a rate of a box of shells per bird, it's too rich for me.
Seems the price is much better in your world. Good going hot shot! I do love me some bacon wrapped, grilled dove.
God bless,K.

Anonymous said...

Just found your site and it looks great, but I also read your disclaimer. Does that mean if I see a good recipe I can't copy or share on Facebook?

Big Dude said...

Kitty went dove hunting yesterday and I discovered the results in my pantry this AM. Unlike we breast eating humans, she ate just the head - I guess she left the breasts for me but I declined. It looked like it still had it's feathers, but the floor was still covered - they must have a bazillion of them.

Old Smoke said...

I only remember 2 things about hunting doves:
By the time my kill ratio got to 1/5 the season was over :)
AND they are gooooooood eating when ya get enough for a meal.
Nice shotgun, I agee they are a great deterrent for strange noises in the night...

Have a good week.

Marc van der Wouw said...

Wow looks fun to do...It's not allowed here to shoot wild..
I'm curious what you do with the bird on live fire..
looking forward to see some birds on your grill..

Rueben said...

Cowgirl, I've always liked your style. I will be waiting for a campfire recipe for your doves. Among all you cooking styles, I am still amazed at what you can do with a campfire. No one does it like you. I stil think a campfire cookbook is in order. One by Cowgirl Jeannie would be a huge hit. I know it.

Anyway, keep em' coming.

Your friend on Guam,
-Rueben- (:{

lisa said...

Fantastic, blog! The hubby was looking for smokehouse plans and happened upon your blog and made sure he called me and told me about it.

cowgirl said...

hahaha Kevin.. I know what you mean! It can get pretty expensive. Thanks friend. :)

cowgirl said...

Hi Wolfdancer, nice to meet you! Feel free to link to facebook and try the recipes too. Thanks for stopping by! :)

cowgirl said...

lol Larry, sounds like she was providing food for her family. That is sweet! :)
Thanks!

cowgirl said...

Rick they are quick little buggers aren't they! Thanks!! :)

cowgirl said...

Marc they are pretty tasty. I like them grilled, or chicken fried, or made into sausage, or just about any way. :)
Thanks!

cowgirl said...

Rueben you are so kind. Thank you friend! :)

cowgirl said...

Hi Lisa! It's nice to meet you! :)
Hope the smokehouse pics help, let me know if you have any questions.
I have used the heck out of mine, they are really handy to have.
Thanks for stopping by! :)

Anonymous said...

@Marc, there's no free hunting here, indeed. If you have a Jachtakte, (hunting license gained following an written and practical exam) dove is one of the few species that may be shot year round. At least that's what I found when I was looking for info online.

Of course you'll need to have a place to hunt.

Bigger game like deer requires an additional license from the provincial government, issuance based on the population count in the area, to manage the population.

@Kevin, can't afford it either. Even just the initial outlay for a Gun would take ages to recover.

I wouldn't want the local copper to invade my home either to check if I store it in a gunsave, and keep the ammo seperate.

Pavlovian reaction is too strong a qualification, but when I hear gunshots, I do think of food, LOL.

Jeanie, is there any meat on such small birds? Do they pluck easily, or are you only skinning those tiny breasts?

Encountered something called Duck Wax this weekend on Youtube, it seemed pretty effective, but still required a lot of plucking prior to waxing.

cowgirl said...

Hi Donald! Thanks for the info. :)
There is quite a bit of meat on the breasts but that's about it. I usually have 2 or 3 in one meal.
I use the breasts and sometimes the gibblets. The barn cats get the remainder.

Thank again!

Choppersgoodeats said...

Here's one for ya!

Since the usable meat on a single dove is just a couple of onces, this sausage is more of a appetizer rather than a meal.

1 pound fresh dove meat (8-10 dove)
1/4 pound chicken fat
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried sage
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

Freeze the dove meat & chicken fat for 15 minutes.

Grind the meat & fat through a fine disk meat grinder.

In a medium sized bowl, combine the meat, salt, ginger, pepper, sage and thyme. Mix well using your hands.

Grind the seasoned mixture through a fine disk of the grinder

Wet your hands with cold water. Taking about 1 tablespoon of meat at a time, form little rolls of sausage.

Refrigerate the links until firm, about 30 minutes.

Pan fry and enjoy!

cowgirl said...

Thank you D.Guth!! Sounds really tasty! I will give this a try. :)