Author: Ray McCune

EASY VENISON CASSEROLE
1 lb. deer burger
4 oz. uncooked elbow macaroni
1 (10 3/4 oz.) can cream of mushroom or cream of celery soup
3/4 cup milk
¾ cup ketchup
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/3 cup green bell pepper . . . 

SUCCESS AT
SALAMONIE RESERVOIR
It was just a week before opening day of Deer Season 2010 when Summer Volunteers Patrick McCune and Brian Jensen got the “OK” from Marvin McNew, (Interpretive Specialist for the Upper Wabash Interpretive . . . 

PATRICK T. MCCUNE’S WILD SOUTH TEXAS BBQ SUGAR BEANS

(Serve as a side dish.)

1/2 lb deerburger (broken up)

1/2 onion (chopped)

1/2 tbsp garlic powder

6 slices of bacon

1/4 cup syrup or brown sugar

1/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup salsa (chunky)

1/2 bottle BBQ . . . 

EVER FEEL LIKE YOU’VE BEEN RIPPED OFF?

Recently I killed a legal deer during deer season, and the 9-point buck weighed in at around 200 pounds before field dressing. I took it to a well-known butcher shop here in Fort Wayne to be processed into roasts . . . 

HOT DANG THAT’S A WILD CASSEROLE

(You can use tame meat but it won’t taste the same.)

1/2 lb. venison (moose, elk, deer, buffalo, reindeer) burger

1/2 lb. hot pork sausage

1 medium onion chopped

1 large (12 oz.) bag of wide noodles

1 (30 oz.) family . . . 

WHAT HAS HAPPENED?

(Things have changed since I was a boy.)

Things have changed quite a lot and I must say some of them are not for the better. When I was growing up, every boy carried a pocketknife or jackknife, as we often called them. It was usually . . . 

DEER SWISS HEMMINGHOUSE

(Modified recipe from a book Brother Of The Woods by R. J. Davis)

A thick cut of deer round steak

Salt and pepper to taste

Garlic powder to taste

All purpose flour (not self-rising)

1/4 inch of cooking oil in bottom of a Dutch oven

1 . . . 

ONCE AND FOR ALL

HOW TO USE/TREAT/SEASON CAST IRON COOKING WARE

(Someone told me they hate cooking in a cast iron skillet because the food sticks.)

My reply to this was and always will be:

“Never, never, never wash cast iron in soapy water.”

Food in . . . 

LEARNING TO COOK OUTSIDE

To learn to cook outside, first learn to cook inside. I know; I know; you want to go right outside, build a fire or fire up the ol’ charcoal grill and get to cookin’ something exotic. Well it isn’t that simple but then . . . 

There is a part of the deer that is sometimes neglected, trashed, given to the neighbors, or to the dogs. I consider it one of the better parts of a deer and I hate to see anyone just throw it away. No, it isn’t the tongue, the kidneys, the liver, . . . 

RAY’S OWN SMOKY GARLIC WILD MEAT MARINADE

(Also good for ‘tame’ meat)

1 cup (8 oz.) ketchup or catsup (go cheap; save money)

1 cup (8 oz.) cooking oil (I like to use olive oil or Canola oil)

1 cup (8 oz.) soy sauce (Lite Soy Sauce has less . . . 

FIRE STARTERS

Do’s and Don’ts of

makin’ ‘em

Everyone laughs when I tell them I teach Boy Scouts the secret to making a campfire using two sticks of wood, is to make sure one of them is a match. It gets a lot of laughs at most parties and frowns . . . 

DEERBURGER SOUP

(Use moose burger, elk burger, or regular hamburger if you’re out of deerburger)

2 lbs. deerburger

1 medium to large onion (diced)

1 lump of margarine (about the size of a walnut)

 . . . 

BRUNSWICK STEW

(In less sophisticated circles this is called Squirrel Stew – & the season is in.)

2 squirrels (skinned, gutted, quartered)

2 tsp. salt

Water

#12 Dutch oven

1 (15 oz.) can lima beans

1 (10 oz.) can condensed tomato soup

1 (15 oz.) can . . . 

MENUS

I’ve been asked what foods to take on camping trips and all I can answer is, “It depends.” It depends on a lot of things like the weather (rainy, sunny, windy, snowy), the time of year (spring, summer, fall, winter), and the likes and dislikes . . . 

Crawfish – Crawcrabs –

Crayfish –  Mud bugs

(My favorite way to eat ‘em!)

Wash the live crawfish in fresh water (just like lobster-make sure they are alive). Plunge them into boiling water that has been seasoned with Crab Boil or a . . . 

PROPERNESS

(It must be a word; my mother used to use it.)

This is sort of a continuation of AROUND THE KAMPFIRE in the last issue of THE WAYNEDALE NEWS’ outdoor page. I spoke of Scouts not knowing how to handle eating utensils and improper . . . 

Up north here you see lots of ‘possums and raccoons killed on the highway. Down south you’ll probably see more armadillos than ‘possums or raccoons. People will drive by and say, “What a waste; that could have fed a family.” Believe it or . . . 

I should direct this to all parents and not just the parents of Boy Scouts. I mention Boy Scouts because this is where I first noticed the problem of boys not eating properly; it was at summer camp. I’m not talking about the menu; I’m talking about . . . 

I’ve gone to Boy Scout summer camps, watched boys camp on weekend outings, and noticed them at other times trying to perform a simple task of peeling an orange. Now this isn’t a rocket science math problem; it’s just that, well, I’ve found . . . 

A few years back, Boy Scout Troop #38, sponsored by Calvary United Methodist Church and Troop #349 from Aldersgate UMC made a trip to South Dakota to help restore a Native American graveyard. They enjoyed the strange land and the outdoor cooked meals . . . 

BE PREPARED

(This is a partial list; your own personal needs may vary)

Before heading off into the woods you should have a pack with some essentials in it. You can make it a shoulder bag, a large purse, a fanny pack, a lightweight ruck sack (backpack) . . . 

BAKED, STUFFED CARP

(They are good to eat, no kiddin’ (if caught in fresh water)

1 (6 lb.) carp (head, guts, tail, fins, skin, scales, and mud vein removed)

STUFFING

1 qt. bread crumbs or cubes

2 tsp. ground sage

3/4 tsp. pepper

6 tbsp. hot . . . 

NATURE’S PINK LEMONADE –

HOW TO MAKE IT

(Caution – try just a little at a time. Make sure you aren’t allergic to this plant.)

It was in the month of July and Troop 44 was at summer camp at Camp Chief Little Turtle on the Anthony Wayne Area . . . 

Kwick Foods To Fix At The Kabin Or Kookin’

When You Don’t Wanna Waste A Lot Of Time

Boy Scouts don’t have a lot of patience. I know some grown men who don’t have a lot of patience either, like taking the time to cook right or taking the time . . . 

SOMETHING I’VE LEARNED OVER MANY YEARS OF KAMPIN’
(One of the things anyway.)
When you do things enough times you learn where the short cuts are and how to incorporate them to make camp life easier and you’ll find that the way you are . . . 

3 – SOUP

(Eat with a fork or add more water and eat with a spoon)

1 lb. deer burger, moose burger, elk burger, buffalo burger, groundhog burger, squirrel burger, raccoon burger, or plain hamburger but not ‘possum burger (brown and reserve).

1 . . . 

LET’S EASE INTO KAMPFIRE KOOKIN’ GRADUALLY

The long winter is over and past; let’s get ready to hit the campgrounds a runnin’. What should we pack to eat? Roast pheasant? Haunch of buffalo? Whole roasted hog? Should we have a seven-course dinner . . .