Ruffed Grouse

[clww]

Tonight, we're baking a Ruffed Grouse for dinner. No, I didn't shoot one out of season. Saturday morning, I was driving back to the Beach from the mountains when I saw one squatted down on the road, about two miles from our cabin. I straddled it, passing over it with the truck. I couldn't tell what it was in the road. At first, I thought it was a rabbit or a small groundhog. So I put it in reverse and went back 300 yards to investigate. It was staggering, but could not fly or walk. I grabbed it and snapped its neck, to put it out of its misery. I put him in the ice cooler and brought him home. Upon further examination at the house when I cleaned him (rooster), all I could find was a broken left leg. I don't know what hit him,because I was the only vehicle that I had seen on the road there all day. We'll see how he tastes here in about 15 more minutes. House smells good at any rate!

[SwampDonkey]

After the heavy rains this week, I drove into the woods the following day and saw a couple hens on the drive through all rounded over and very wet. On the drive out that day I saw two flocks of fledglings not much bigger than thrushes take to the trees off the road.  ;D

[LOGDOG]

Ruffed Grouse are one of my favorite birds ... both in the woods and on the table. They were prized table fare when I was growing up. Enjoy!

[sandhills]

I'm not a big chicken fan but you don't get any better eating than grouse (or prairie chicken) as long as it's cooked like grandma made them 

[Magicman]

Good for you.  I have never had Ruffed Grouse, but we have put many Spruce & Blue Grouse on the smoker.  I suppose that they are about the same, GOOD.   digin1

[SwampDonkey]

MM, I have seen blue grouse and in the logging camp I worked at they hunted a few in the fall on the BC coast. They used to take marbles out of paint cans and shoot them with sling shot. The spruce grouse we have around here are not very good eating. They taste like spruce needles. We don't eat them. I suppose some might as they are easy to hunt. Don't even need a gun, just a stick. Ruffed grouse is all white meat and very good tasting in comparison. I would think up in Col. there would be some around the birch and aspen woods.

[LOGDOG]

The grouse in WI tasted great. Lots of aspen up there. They were hard to hit because normally the brush was so thick where they were usually hanging out. Every now and then you'd catch them on the ground or on a patch of clover on the trail. Then it was dinnertime. Woodcock were pretty good eating too up there. Just on the small side.

[clww]

He tasted good, but would have been much better if we'd not cooked him as long. We were trying a different recipe.
MM-The last time I hunted around Gunnison, CO, we got two Spruce Grouse with the bow, and had them for dinner. They were not nearly as wary as Mr. Ruff.

[Magicman]

OK, I Googled and did some research.  The grouse that we ate were Blue, NOT Spruce.  Do doubt about the coloration, etc.

I was the Camp Jack while everyone else was bowhunting, so I shot them with a Thompson Contender with .410 shells.