Jackrabbit.

boom

WKR
Joined
Sep 11, 2013
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3,185
Okay. Curiosity, experiment whatever you want to call it.

We quail hunted last weekend in NM. Got birds.

And a big jackrabbit. My brother asked,”I wonder what it taste like”. So I butchered it. Only one way to be sure.

Chicken fried the backstrap after a soak in milk. Bleeck! Very livery.

The hinds, my brother braised in an Indian curry. Curry hides a lot. I didn’t get to try it. It was reported as, “maybe we should stop shooting jacks”. Haha.

Anyone?
 
Joined
Aug 10, 2015
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I shot one a couple of years ago with the dog while pheasant hunting. I was amazed at the amount of blood in that thing! The quantity of meat was also surprising.

I cut mine into 6 pieces and threw it in the crock pot with some onions and stock. Then, pulled the bones out and shredded the meat.

I didn't find it off-putting at all as far as taste, texture, or aroma. I did ,however, get tired of eating it by the time I was finished.

The first meal or two was meat with roasted vegetables. After that, tacos were made with the leftovers.

I haven't shot anymore since then but I would certainly eat another.
 

dmoto

Lil-Rokslider
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May 22, 2017
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AZ
I see a ton of them all the time hunting quail out here in the desert. They scare the crap out of me when they jump out of a bush right next to you. Hahaha. But ya. Shot one, ate it and that will be the last one. Wear gloves when you're skinning them....tularemia is nothing to mess with.
 

Felix40

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Jul 27, 2015
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A buddy and I made a huge batch of them into poppers for a party. I think we killed 9 or 10 of them. Everyone liked them And didnt believe what they really were. They have a strong taste but no more so than duck and I think they are a lot more tender. Plus they have a ton of meat. Definitely worth the trouble in my opinion.
 

TristanJH

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Mar 2, 2018
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I've had great success with Jacks and Snowshoe Hare, but Slow-cooking is my go-to method for both. Try braising them and picking the meat.

Probably my favorite thing is Hare Rillettes; It ends up tasting like really good creamy/fatty/salty leftover pot roast. Awesome on toast or crackers and makes for a nice party spread or boat/river snack.
 

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Fitzwho

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Midland, TX
Apparently there’s a difference between blacktail jacks and antelope jacks. I have had buddies pull backstraps and say they were pretty good, these were jacks coming off of agricultural areas in the Texas panhandle. New Mexico sage jacks may be a different story, but I bet that getting them chilled quickly would help. I would bet a lot of the off-putting flavor is the part where it likely rode around whole for a couple hours.
 

jspradley

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Mar 16, 2016
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League City, TX
Rabbit meat goes downhill pretty quick... and its super easy to contaminate them with gut nastiness too.

Ive had one jackrabbit and it was delicious, cooked it with a porcupine and called it Rodent Roulette. Although to be fair the crockpot makes everything delicious...
 

KJH

WKR
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May 10, 2016
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I don't shoot rabbits of any type because I don't like cleaning them... but I have a close friend who shoots every one he can (cottontails and Jacks). He soaks them a couple of hours in 7Up in a cooler first and smokes them low and slow. Then pulls the meat mixes with his homemade BBQ sauce and makes BBQ sandwiches that are really amazing and as good as any you've ever had. Its more like BBQ pork than anything. He usually waits until he has 10+before smoking them so he gets enough meat for a good sized batch.
 

Trial153

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Oct 28, 2014
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I make sausage every year from Snowshoes that we run. I bone it all out then mince it with a cleaver. I mix a pound to 4oz of bacon and 2oz of pork fat back. Salt, pepper, fresh parsley, and hard parmesan Romano cheese. I then stuff in sheep casings to make a pin wheel.
 
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Rich M

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Jun 14, 2017
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Never shot a jack but used to hunt snow shoe hares a lot. The meat was always white or pink and ate pretty good. We'd pop a hare or two (grouse too) while up deer hunting and add it to the crock pot's never ending meal every night - add water and meat, the existing stock will keep recreating itself... (we put the bowls in the fridge so didn't have to wash em but once too).

I hear a lot of folks complaining about cleaning rabbit and I can't quite figure out why - remember, I never shot a jack but cottontails and snow shoes can be cleaned the following way:

Clip the non-meaty parts of the legs & feet off with pruning sheers
Grab 2 handfuls of skin on the back
pull your hands apart and the skin will tear and come off like a sock
Any left over pieces can be pulled off
Do the gutless method with them - quarter it and takes the straps if there is anything there

For cooking - crock pot is the way to go, just cause it is easy
 
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