Snake Meat...Umm, Umm Good!

F

FF

Joined
Mar 17, 2001
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152
" Ah, gross...you are not going to eat that thing are you ?" I looked the guy straight in the eye and told him I would show him how to prepare it if he promised to follow the golden rule concerning the snake's head. He shifted the plug of tobacco from one cheek to the other, took a spit and promised.

We remeoved the head, dug a 4"-6" deep hole and put the head..fangs down..into the hole. I packed the dirt tight on top and then came the fun part. I asked him if he promised to do this the right way. He said sure again. I put a rock in his hand, pulled open my pant zipper and urinated on top of the grave. I told him to put the rock on top of the grave. He looked at me sort of funny-like, so I zipped-up my pants. He put the rock on the grave. I figured that by now he had reason to be grossed-out and that cleaning and eatging the snake would be all down hill for him. I know it was for me the first time I went through this promise. Of course no other animal has a chance to easily eat the snake head when it's 6" under ground with a strong human oder guarding the grave spot; No chance they would ingest the snake's poision or get a fang or two stuck in thier mouth.

I told the man the best way to take rattler and copperhead snakeskins away from their owners is like ladies used to remove stockings....just roll them off from the top and then gut the carcass. We spread the meat on some crackers and ate away. He like it and I like snake meat too.

Does anyone have recipes for snake meat? I would enjoy trying any you favor!!
 
I prepared rattlesnake meat once using just enough mayo and relish to "wet" the meat. Then it was stirred-up into a fine mixture, like tuna salad, and spread on saltine crackers. I liked it so much that I have never tired other ingredients. Some people like cotton mouth meat and calim it is the very best tasting snake you could ever eat.

A Mr. Ken Warner told me once about a gentleman named Hal Swiggett who kept a lady rattlesnake (named Madame Queen) in his basement breeding her for venom donors for 29 years, and finally when he gave up that pastime, took her out to the right part of the YO Ranch and turned her loose. That must be some kind of a record for contributions from a snake.

 
I could see killing snakes for some sort of survival scenario, but not if other food is available. They play an important part in keeping mouse, rat and other rodent populations in check, which if not controlled can lead to virulent disease outbreaks, including the deadly hantavirus. Uncontrolled suburban sprawl and development is also affecting their numbers. I prefer to leave them be.
 
You guys must be finding a very different type of rattler than I have. The snakes that I have skinned were very lean and muscular. The meat is thin and stretched over a zillion rib bones. The taste is ok, but as a cut of meat it reminds me of a chicken back that is stretched several feet long. It was one of the toughest meats I've dealt with even after marinating.

So what varieties have you tried. I think my couple were Southern Pacific and a Red Rattlesnake.
 
That is a great description of a skinned snake. I agree they are tough eating, and next to octopus meat, snake might be the"chewest" meat around. This works for me to soften the meal ( non-survival preperation ): After skinning I coil the carcus and put it into a bowl. Add lemon or lime juice to the bowl, taking care to cover the meat completely. I use bottled juice, not the whole friut, that you get at the grocery store. I leave it set for several hours...at least 6hrs. and longer if possible. The citric acid helps to soften the meat and break-down the small "bones." Next, I wash off the juice and seperate the meat as best as I can from the "skeleton." The meat is put onto a wooden chopping block and I use my wife's plastic meat tenderizer ( like a hammer with diamond-studs at the end) to smash or soften the meat. Along the way I cut, hit, cut and smash somemore until I get a consistency of ..say tuna meat or finer. Add your own spices and enjoy. I use mayo. and sweet relish, a pinch of garlic and that's it. I have eaten the meat from cans you can buy and at wildlife dinner parties. There appears to be a wide variety of ways to fix it, I just know of one.

I am perhaps the worlds worst identifer of snakes, especially the varieties of rattlesnake. A native American, state of New Mexico, was kind enought to teach me how to prepare snake while I was at the Philmont National Boy Scout Ranch. The snake we ate was a diamond-back, and I can identify it along with a copperhead, black snake, a few varieties of garden snakes and the racer snake. After that, I'm lost. During my freshman and junior years in college, I worked for the state road commission clearing and cleaning right-of-ways, often in country settings. Every week the crew would needlesly kill a snake(s), and rather than let it go to waste (so to speak) I took it home and ate it. I have harvested and eaten snake only twice in the wilderness, once on a semi-survival basis. Those of us who know true hunger realize to what extent we will go to satisfy that feeling. (smile).

Man, unfortunate creature, is plagued with wants. He wants, among other things, love, recognition, knowledge, and the material necessities and conforts of life. We know the serpentine does not fit our image of material necessity nor do most primates want an extended knowledge and greater understanding of this ancient reptile. We fear it, we kill it with provocation. And so it bothers me to watch the needless death of this useful creature.

 
Thanks FF, that was very helpful. I guess that in the wild I'd pound the meat with a rock or make soup.

I agree about not killing snakes needlessly. I've generally killed them when they get into places that I need them out of. I don't usually try and herd them and I don't want them coming back.
 
ive always wondered about eating poisonous snakes.
looks like you can,right?
 
There may be some snakes you cannot eat, including poisonous snakes. Good question! Perhaps Doc Ron, Jeff Randall or others might give us examples if any exist.
 
I've never heard of a problem eating rattlesnake. Of course, you want to avoid the head reagion and any area that might have gotton contaminated when you killed it. Generally a snakes organs are so spread out that the safest way to kill it is to attack the head. I've typically shot them in the head and then removed the head with a knife of machete. I bury the head and look for a clean place to skin and gut the carcass.
 
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