Nobody hunts hares or rabbits anymore

[HC Eye Hunter]

Thanks, I think I am going to give it a try. It should cut the mess way down and it would be nice to field dress ole bugs on the tailgate of the pickup.

[Gordie]

thats excactly what we do that I and your right with the four right guys it dont take long to clean a mess of rabbits. we also hunt all over the state and noticed along time ago if you see alot of redtail hawks in an area you will find groves with plenty of rabbits. with this weather I might have to hold off fishing one weekend and grab the shotgun for a bunny bash.

[doubleUcubed]

elwood, we've also noticed over the years if the grove is vacant and you see an owl you may as well pass that grove over. The best farm sites are the older ones (not that many left) with some form of livestock being kept on them (feed for the rabbits). We like to target the ones with lots of downed trees, shrubs, old machinery and rock piles. I personally like the groves with the thick brush line of Honeysuckle & Lilac around the perimeter which gives the rabbits a sense of security but at the same time a great running lane to target them at!!

[Gordie]

Dito! We also look for abandon farm places and have had great success. we hit one place every year that has two monster rows of lilacs around the whole perimiter of the grove and that is still our #1 spot of all and we seem to pick up a couple of ringnecks their also.

[JigginIsLife]

Well im not a big hunter except for pheasants. i dont hunt deer so im not skilled on the techniques on how to "gut" an animal much less dress it right there in the field. i have been out bunny hunting for about 45 mins and took 3. so i got a good shot and a decent area but im not sure on how to dress them or how you cook them. if anyone could expand a little on these two topics that would be great thanks!

[doubleUcubed]

Jig, kinda hard to describe on here how to dress them out but I did a quick search on Google, "field dressing a rabbit" the second site down, "hunters guide layout revised" had cleaning different critters. Scroll down to the bottom to get to the Rabbit section and they have a couple drawings that should help you a little. I would cut the back and front legs off and take the loins out of the back. Rinse several times and then let soak in a water/salt mixture for a few hours to overnight in the fridge. An easy method to prepare is take a frying pan and put about 1/2-3/4 inch of veg. oil in it, turn to high/medium high, you want the oil hot enough to fry quickly, if not the oil can saturate the meat some. I then take a plastic bag and add flour, salt, pepper and seasoning salt. I put the Rabbit pieces in there, shake a few times and remove and place in the hot oil. I let them get good and crispy on both sides, (I also add sliced onions into the pan every other batch), remove and pat the excess oil off. At this point you can probably munch on the front legs as there is not much meat on them and they are pretty much done (if the loins have been cut off the backbone they are excellent at this point also). I then take the back legs and loins and place into a small roaster/cake pan and bake/cook until tender (add water as needed). Kinda hard for me to explain in text. I usually do it once a year for the feed and it's about 30-35 Rabbits for a full roaster! Good luck!

[CANOPY SAM]

Holy Jumping Furballs Ucubed! Do I understand those numbers correctly?

200-225 rabbits for a feed at approximately 12 ounces of meat per rabbit. That roughly equals 150-170 POUNDS OF RABBIT MEAT! Do you feed the whole town? That's what I call a feed! I've been to pig roasts where the pig didn't even weigh half that much.

[doubleUcubed]

Yup, usually about 150-200 people! We have a lot of other food items but we do about 5-6 roasters full of just Rabbit!!

[Mike #1]

Anyplace near the Twin Cities metro area that might have a few bunnies? I have already tried Carlos Avery without much success. I would like to get out this weekend if possible.

[HC Eye Hunter]

Double U,

Would you care to share your recipe/s for rabbits?

Thanks,

[shawn]

Post deleted by shawn

[Lunker]

I grew up hunting in Itasca county, and there getting a hare was an added bonus to grouse hunting. Depending on the hare's cycle(similar to grouse) we might get a few each fall or not even see one. The falls that they start changing color before the snowfall are always best. I've only started hunting in the southern half of the state the last few years for pheasant, and I see very few rabbits. Actually saw two yesterday hunting pheasants on a WMA, took one tough shot and missed him.