Spruce Grouse Sprucey Taste

[stevetekk]

Thought I would share this tidbit...

I find the taste of Spruce Grouse to be very strong and at times repulsive. My wife and I tried many things to improve the taste and reduce the sprucey taste from much research on the internet..Nothing seemed to work.

Last year my wife suggested that as soon as we get a Sprucey we clean it as usual but also wash the meat with a little water. Voila that seemed to do the trick. Now we carry extra water with us and we clean and wash all birds we get.

The strong smell and taste are gone.

[RugDoctor]

Thanks for the tip….I’ve eaten a lot of grouse over the years and haven’t disliked a single one, but if this takes them to the next level I’m in for a try.

[Husky7mm]

Dana put out a good one years ago. Grouse poppers. Beer batter and deep fry, dip them in a homemade sauce. Strong flavour is gone. My wife makes a ginger sauce and I can’t get enough of them, would never know you’re eating spruce grouse. Too deep frying is not that healthy for you.

[ACB]

Sometimes late season birds start to taste like what they eat. Years ago my dad came home with a bunch of Blue Grouse from higher elevation close to the East Kettle, they tasted like those Pine Tree car air fresheners, you couldn't eat them, he said their crops were full of pine needles. Sometimes the old hens or cocks can be strong flavoured.

[goatdancer]

Soak the breasts in milk overnight. That's what we did to remove the tree taste.

[elch jager]

What a novel idea.... wash the meat and pat dry before using in your favourite recipe...??

Really? Isn't that standard practice with all game to at least clean any dust and dirt??

I actually prefer spruce over ruffed and it is precisely for their distinct flavour. Pan fried on a cast iron skillet in olive oil with a sprinkle of salt, pepper and a little hot smoked paprika... heavenly.

[maze]

Brines are the best thing I've learned about since I started hunting.

[walks with deer]

Trick to grouse and all other meat is clean them immeidiatly wipe them down and chilled.

[hawk-i]

Spruce grouse goes good in Butter Chicken :)

[REMINGTON JIM]

only Willow Grouse are worth eating unless your starving ! :razz: JMO RJ

[mikek blacktail]

I make mine into meatballs and add bacon to the mix, turn out amazing.

[stevetekk]

I read some of the posts and guess I wasn’t as clear as I should have been in my post, so I will try to clarify.
To me Spruce Grouse have their own unique taste but can have a very strong spruce smell and taste.

In the past tried many solutions such as soaking in milk, buttermilk, vinegar, red wine or salt water…did not matter how long... We tried cooking the grouse with many types of mixtures of spices and sauces. Unfortunately as I said before none of it worked for me. Even made jerky out of these grouse. Was very frustrating and knew there must be a solution out there to at least reduce the spruce.

Finally, what did work for me was to immediately clean them after getting, removing breast and legs then washing inside and outside breast and legs with water. Its not a thorough wash and scrub but a light wash. Sometimes carry old ice cream bucket, pour some water in it and swish the meat around, then pat dry.

In my original post I also forgot to mention that we then place grouse in a plastic bag and in a small cooler with ice packs. And of course leave one wing attached for identification.

Now we cook in slow cooker as a stew and still make grouse jerky but the taste is completely different.

[Redthies]

It seems there are different levels of gamey taste tolerance. I’ve had spruce grouse in the past that were nearly inedible, but the two I shot near Elkheart on Saturday were amazing in the cacciatore on polenta the wife made tonight. The ruffed was more tender, but the much darker spruce were delicious too. The acid of the tomato base of the cacciatore helps break down the meat. It was super tender.

[Treed]

Grouse cacciatore sounds great! I made a cacciatore with two snowshoe hares and it was to die for. Great way to tenderize tough meat.

[Redthies]

Grouse cacciatore sounds great! I made a cacciatore with two snowshoe hares and it was to die for. Great way to tenderize tough meat.

Apparently the two hares agreed it was to die for! :lol:

[hawk-i]

I've come to the realization I'd sooner eat Spruce grouse than Ruffed grouse.

They are 2 to 3 times more tender and taste mild in the early season.

Clean them as soon as you shoot them, remove breast meat and slice across grain in 1/4" strips.

Season with garlic salt.

Fry only until they turn colour (they cook very quickly) in a little olive oil, with some butter and a bit of bacon fat.

Everyones tastes vary but we really enjoy them YMMV :)

[Treed]

Apparently the two hares agreed it was to die for! :lol:

Ha! Hope we all make some to die for meals this season!

[250 sav]

I leave them for kids to hunt or as survival food for those that are lost and hungry

[mastercaster]

Not a fan of adult spruce grouse but they work well when combined with some pork belly when making hot Italian sausage. I tend to make dog treats out of them since my dog retrieved them all or if I have enough meat for treats I just pass on them. I find the younger birds with have much lighter breast meat to taste just fine because they’re still on a diet if berries and small leaves instead of pine needles.

Heard that cooking them in a skillet with orange marmalade is a good option,,,,, may have to try that.