Mexican-Style Fried Squirrel and Chanterelle Mushrooms

It’s late summer here in Kentucky. That means the traditional kickoff to fall hunting seasons begins with the squirrel opener. While the bulk of the hot-weather mushrooms are finished or winding down for the year, a nice mess of chanterelles can still be located after a rain. If your chanterelles are a bit past their prime, slice them in half and soak them in water for two to three hours to soften them back up.

A late-summer trip to the woods can yield a batch of tasty squirrel and chanterelle mushrooms.

It just so happens that those two are some of the tastiest things you can fry. For this recipe, we spice up some flour with a bit of taco seasoning for a Mexican-style slant on traditional fried squirrel and mushrooms.

Try flavoring your flour with taco seasoning before frying for a different slant on the traditional recipes.

The process is simple. Roll both in the same seasoned flour and fry until crisp and golden brown. We like to serve it up as an appetizer at squirrel camp, but if your aim is true and your mushroom luck holds, it could easily make a tasty main course. As with any fried squirrel recipe, younger specimens will be way more tender. Save those big old trophy squirrels for the soup or dumpling pot.

Stir the taco seasoning into the flour to evenly combine.

Blend your favorite taco seasoning into the flour.

Toss both the mushrooms and the squirrel in the seasoned flour to coat evenly on all surfaces. In a large skillet, add ½ inch of oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot (shoot for about 350 degrees), add the mushrooms.

Fry the mushrooms until crisp and cooked through.

Don’t overcrowd the skillet; fry in batches if necessary. Fry for 4-6 minutes per side or until the mushrooms are golden brown and crisp and just cooked through. Move the mushrooms to a warm platter and loosely tent with foil. Fry the squirrel for 4-5 minutes per side to crisp, then reduce the heat to medium and cover the pan, leaving a small vent space open along one side of the lid. Fry another 8-10 minutes. If you have the burner space, you can cook the two simultaneously in separate skillets to save time. Serve the two together.