Say What Saturday: “Away down South in the land of traitors, rattlesnakes and alligators”

Absolutely !

It's not that difficult to prepare gator.

My preferred method:

A long 24 hour soak in buttermilk is the fist step.
Then a bath in one's favorite marinade for a few hours.
After that, "pat dry" and prepare like chicken fried steak.
(egg wash and flour)

Deep fry until golden brown . . . (about three minutes per side).

Alligator has a bad reputation because most people attempting to cook it,
are too impatient to wait for the 24 hour buttermilk part.

And no, gator does not taste like chicken.

Yes, the tail cuts do have a similar texture, but such portions taste more like a blend of deep fried shrimp and frog legs.

Only some casual observations.

:smoke:




That's a great explanation of how you cook it and also what it might taste like. "Gator does not taste like chicken" :laugh:

What do you ask for? 'Gator steak or tail? And is it expensive?

Where do they go to prepare them, and is their skin still used as well as their flesh?

I suddenly realized I have so many questions about alligators!
 
That's a great explanation of how you cook it and also what it might taste like. "Gator does not taste like chicken" :laugh:

What do you ask for? 'Gator steak or tail?

It's pretty much all tail meat.

Usually appearing similar to fried chicken tenders or nuggets.
However, there are multiple ways to prepare gator ... stews, gumbo, sauce piquante, smoked, baked, fried ... to name a few methods.

I would not say it's inexpensive, but prices vary depending upon location and preparation.
(fresh, frozen, cooked, restaurant item or from a grocery).

In addition to the wild gators, there are also farm raised alligators.

Where do they go to prepare them, and is their skin still used
The gators are processed in facilities much like any other animal ... cattle, pork, seafood and such.

Their "skin" is an entirely different industry.
It becomes leather.

Alligator boots, belts, handbags, shoes, wallets and many other items.

Here's a link that provides a lot more info:
https://bigpopslagator.com . . .
 
In my research I read that alligator skins became a popular fashion statement especially after the civil war.

“In the late 1800's and early 1900's, commercial tanning processes began in New York, New Jersey and Europe. Because this process made the alligator skins soft, durable and more pliable, the demand for alligator leather increased dramatically. By the mid 1900's Louisiana’s alligator population had been significantly reduced. In 1962 the alligator hunting season was closed statewide due to low numbers. The reduction in numbers was a result of non-regulated harvests. Detrimental harvest practices included overharvesting (today harvest quotas are set annually for each property currently hunted), non-selection of sexes which often resulted in overharvesting females (males currently comprise approximately 70% of adult alligators harvested) and no closed season, allowing hunting to coincide with nesting, which resulted in the harvest of future populations by harvesting females before they could release hatchlings from the nest or even begin nesting (current seasons are conducted in September after nesting). In 1967, the alligator was put on the endangered species list. By 1971, when the Crocodile Specialist Group began, all 23 species of crocodilian were endangered or threatened.” {*}

*https://www.panamleathers.com/blog/bid/249454/the-history-of-alligator-skin-tanning
 
In my research I read that alligator skins became a popular fashion statement especially after the civil war.

“In the late 1800's and early 1900's, commercial tanning processes began in New York, New Jersey and Europe. Because this process made the alligator skins soft, durable and more pliable, the demand for alligator leather increased dramatically. By the mid 1900's Louisiana’s alligator population had been significantly reduced. In 1962 the alligator hunting season was closed statewide due to low numbers. The reduction in numbers was a result of non-regulated harvests. Detrimental harvest practices included overharvesting (today harvest quotas are set annually for each property currently hunted), non-selection of sexes which often resulted in overharvesting females (males currently comprise approximately 70% of adult alligators harvested) and no closed season, allowing hunting to coincide with nesting, which resulted in the harvest of future populations by harvesting females before they could release hatchlings from the nest or even begin nesting (current seasons are conducted in September after nesting). In 1967, the alligator was put on the endangered species list. By 1971, when the Crocodile Specialist Group began, all 23 species of crocodilian were endangered or threatened.” {*}

*https://www.panamleathers.com/blog/bid/249454/the-history-of-alligator-skin-tanning
There's always a balance to be achieved it seems. Sometimes it has to be cull, other times different species need to be protected.

Thanks for more interesting information @DBF .
 
Because I know lots of useless information :giggle: The University of Florida did a study on alligators about 40-years-ago and the reason they respond to marshmallows so readily is because they are slightly deficient in sugar in their bodies. There. Now you know as much as I do about alligators.:whistling:
 
Because I know lots of useless information :giggle: The University of Florida did a study on alligators about 40-years-ago and the reason they respond to marshmallows so readily is because they are slightly deficient in sugar in their bodies. There. Now you know as much as I do about alligators.:whistling:
Haha, @NH Civil War Gal . I'm seeking it out!

That's so interesting about their sugar deficiency. Adds another layer to the alligator-marshmallow story :wub:
 
Here's a link that provides a lot more info:
https://bigpopslagator.com . . .
Thanks for that link and all the info, @7th Mississippi Infantry . You've filled me in on all I wanted to know :smile:

I can't believe they serve it up whole with it's head still fully intact ... but it's proof you're eating alligator!

Seems alligators and crocs have a lot in common when it comes to their uses. Crocs are also farmed and ...
news to me, we apparently eat crocodile meat in Australia :unsure: Our North is much like your South it seems :smile coffee:
 
I'm not that hungry or desperate for food.
I think sometimes that's what it comes down to. I know I read of the inhabitants of Vicksburg eating rats during the siege.

In some ways it's too awful to imagine, being reduced to that. Somewhere else in the world they might consider it a delicacy.

I don't think that's the case with snake, though I've never eaten it. It's the poison that would put me off.
 
You've filled me in on all I wanted to know :smile:
LOL.

Yeah, I realized it may have been "too much information" ... a few seconds after I "hit" the reply icon.
(Raw gator is not the most appetizing visual).

Sorry bout' that .

Here's an interesting clip from Down Under re: crocodiles and culls:

https://www.abc.net.au/btn/classroom/croc-cull/10533098

There are no alligators in Australia. But here's a story to baffle:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/science...ligator-Australia-leaves-experts-baffled.html

Now that is strange !

A gator and crock are almost siblings, but are more like very close cousins.

I agree with the Aussie wildlife experts.

I bet it was an illegal pet that grew too large ... and was abandon by it's owners.
(
we have a similar problem in Florida with people getting tired of their exotic pets and "dumping" these animals into the Florida Everglades).

Now, many of these species are thriving in that environment ... and intruding upon the native animals.

:frown:
 
I've tried eating rattlesnake once, I had this mental image of a snake swallowing a rat. Each chew got bigger than the one before. No thank you, I'm not that hungry or desperate for food.
Same here.

I've been around it a few times over the years.
(Especially in Texas)

But there is no way I'm going to eat a snake.

I'm sure they are cleaner than a chicken . . . and probably taste like a chicken.
It matters not.

I ain't eating no snake !

:laugh:
 
I realized it may have been "too much information" ... a few seconds after I "hit" the reply icon.
(Raw gator is not the most appetizing visual).

Sorry bout' that .
Not at all, and I'm generally not squeamish, but the visual on the raw 'gator I was not expecting :eek:

No need to apologize.

I bet it was an illegal pet that grew too large ... and was abandon by it's owners.
I expect that's what it was as there's no other way it could have turned up :unsure:

But i understand the problems that could occur when it comes to the impact on native species, like in Florida.

Nature can have such a delicate balance.
 
Oh my @DBF this is fantastic! Being from the deep south, I have to admit that my favorite part and IMHO the most accurate part of Lieut. John G. Earnest 79th TN's account was the part about the mosquitos.

If you've never been in AL, GA, LA, MS or TX in the summertime, you may have never experienced anything like this:


But believe me when I say -- and I think @MS2623 will back me up --- it could happen! :D:frantic:
Southern mosquitos are known to carry on conversations.
First mosquito:"Should we eat him here or carry him back to the swamp?"
Second mosquito: "We better eat him here. If we carry him back to the swamp, the big ones will take him."
I used to live in the Philippines for a few years and the 'skeeters there are similar. The memory of the size of some of those swarms (not to mention the things themselves) still makes my skin crawl, not to mention what Dengue Fever can do to you.
 
I have had alligator and it was very good . I would never eat a snake because I like snakes and there can't be much meat on them anyhow . Back in the 1970s I was on a 3 week college biology class trip to Florida . Every night all 15 of us had to check for ticks . You could see them crawling on the ground on parts of the Ocala trail. We tended to stay and hike and study in remote areas . The mosquitoes weren't too bad in May until we got to Flamingo near the Everglades . We had planned on staying 3 nights but left after one day because the salt marsh mosquitoes were terrible . Still it was a great trip. Seeing a gator wasn't common back then and we only saw a few small ones .
 
I have read an account of a Confederate deserter during the seige of Port Hudson, La. being killed and at least partially eaten by an alligator.
“Our men (Federals) confined in Port Hudson continue to escape. They are confined mostly in the rifle pits and escape by digging out and running across Thompsons Creek. A day or two since three of our men and as many Rebs who were confined in the same hole for trying to desert, got out and in crossing the Creek a big alligator catched one of the Rebs and pulled him under. Our men said he yelled so loud that it brought the guard to the spot who fired at the rest across the creek but all had got clear except the one caught by the alligator.”
 
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