Posted on 05/01/2026 6:24:57 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
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No hummers for me yet, but the feeders are very busy with Red Breasted Grossbeak and as of 2 days ago, the Baltimore and Orchard Orioles.
Grape jelly will be on the grocery list for a few weeks to come. :)
check Lowe’s, they often have them.
I’ve been by there (Lowes) a couple times, but, no luck yet. It is right next door to the Wal Mart.
The thing about Lowes is that their prices on most items are so high now, and the bargains so few, that I don’t just stop in “to see what’ cookin’ “ like I used to. Plus, the flyers are online, so, THOSE specials and sales I don’t need to stop in to find out about. Every once in a while something very good (sale) pops up, tho’. Last year, or maybe 2 years ago, it was garden soil, in the spring. I do still have a “Lowes” credit card that gets me 5% off in-store purchases, though the rewards arrangement has changed due to a new card provider.
Hahaha! You must have more “stab friendly” cottage cheese containers. I tried using a screwdriver a few years back, and it buckled the container. Probably a slightly thinner container, and / or a bit different grade of plastic was the difference. But hey, if it works for you, it works for you! :-)
Has anyone tried adding table salt to a marinade like apple cider vinegar or citrus soda, for the purpose of tenderizing game meat and hopefully reducing some of the “gamey” taste? Did it work well? How much salt did you add?
Having a surplus of boiled raccoon for the chickens already, I decided to butcher this last one, this morning. I’m not well practiced at butchering anything this size, so, it was a bit tedious. These suckers are built pretty tough.
The only other time we tried cooking raccoon, it was just that - sort of tough and rather gamey. But, IIRC, wifey just tried to fry it up like chicken. So, I decided to try marinating it both to tenderize it and to reduce the gamey taste. 7-up works pretty well for me as a marinade, though I prefer club soda, for catfish out of typical (decent) pond water. As it turned out, we have a 2L bottle of “Sam’s” “Twist Up” I was going to try out for that purpose — marinating catfish. So, I figured I’d give it a shot here.
I’ve also read many times of making up a salt brine to marinade game meats, but I’ve usually shied away from that as potentially causing a very salty taste. Wifey sometimes uses apple cider vinegar and a few spices, such as for chicken “adobo” style, and her pork “humba”, but that adds a very distinct flavor from the vinegar. (It is ok in moderation only, IMO.)
It dawned on me that a citrus soda like “Twist-Up” with some salt added should increase the ionic properties of the liquid. Sure enough, Brave Search turned up:
Which brings me back to my opening questions. :-)
At present I have the meat marinating in Twist-Up soda only. I can add salt when I refresh the marinade in the morning, then cook some up maybe tomorrow for supper. (Yes, I have a backup just in case... Heheh!)
Thanks, All!
Yes, adding table salt (sodium chloride) to 7-Up changes its ionic properties by significantly increasing the ionic strength and altering the activity coefficients of the dissolved ions.
Ionic Strength Increase: Table salt dissociates into sodium ($Na^+$) and chloride ($Cl^-$) ions, which increases the total concentration of ions in the solution. This change in ionic strength directly affects the activity of hydrogen ions ($H^+$), which can cause a measurable shift in the pH of the soda, typically lowering it due to changes in ion activity rather than a chemical reaction that produces acid.
Nucleation and Solubility: The added salt grains provide nucleation sites on their rough surfaces, which allows the supersaturated carbon dioxide to escape more rapidly as bubbles. While this is a physical release of gas, it alters the equilibrium of the carbonic acid system within the liquid.
Existing Composition: 7-Up already contains sodium (from sodium citrate and sodium benzoate), typically ranging from 12 to 100 milligrams per 12-ounce can. Adding table salt introduces additional chloride ions, which are not naturally present in significant amounts in most sodas, thereby changing the specific ionic profile and taste balance of the beverage.
cottage cheese containers, will post a pic as I have a few to do today.
raccoon - if its for the chickens I would just put the meat in a crock pot. No marinade needed. I have heard raccoon is tough. Hubby had an uncle who ate it and said you have to parboil it. I think a crockpot would be easier. I don’t think salt will help. If you are going to eat it I would go with spices after its been in the crockpot. Cooking on high heat will just toughen it up more, a simmer would be better. I can’t advise on salt. Live long and prosper!
‘Dark Earth’ discovered in the Amazon.
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/4378242/posts
Also, see Post #9 for lots of links on this subject!
Coon and Kraut in the Crock Pot:
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/228630/slow-cooker-pork-and-sauerkraut/
Substitute your raccoon meat in this dish after you drain and rinse it well of all the soda. You’ll be cooking it low and slow for 8 hours, so plan ahead. And, yes. I have made this before. We don’t eat much raccoon anymore, which I’m thankful for, LOL!
20+ Best Raccoon Recipes for Adventurous Wild Game Cooks
https://www.backwoodsbound.com/zracoon.html
Thanks - yes, the bigger racoon I gutted, cut off the head (which recently had a bit of lead added to it*), and dumped Rolandette the Raccoon**, major organs except the intestines, and water into a 15 qt. pot, covered it, and simmer it for 4 hours. The chickens will eat pretty much all of it except the fur and bones.
As for trying it ourselves, per Brave Search, salt does improve the tenderizing marinade’s effectiveness:
Anyway, yes, I’ve divided the meat into roughly 16 oz. portions to experiment with slow cooking - maybe I’ll try one or two ~ 8 oz. portions grilled, to see just how well the marinating worked. (I want to marinate anyway to defeat the gamey taste.) Another thing to try with slow cooked meat tidbits is raccoon chili. I’ve not decided which recipe to try. :-)
If hamburger or pork steak was still under $1 / lb. on sale, I probably would not be trying this... :-(
OTOH, I am a bit curious. :-)
*All of the .22 pellet “should” have stayed inside the skull, but I’m not keen on biting a piece of lead pellet. It’s too close to “biting the bullet” for me!
**Reference to Warren Zevon. ;-)
Interesting - thanks!
No traps were tripped last night. Progress(!), but I know the big possum must still be around.
I ate squirrel stroganoff at a friends once long ago, did spit out 3 tiny buckshot. Squirrel was delicious.
Remind me what you use these containers for, please. (And thank you!)
Sounds like you are wise to the pitfalls of pain treatment. Add prayer. I once read an essay about a woman who had fallen off a ladder while repairing the rain gutters and messed up her back. She said she prayed prayers every day of thanks to God for creating her back and for all the ways her back had held her up and helped her move thoughout her life, and then asking for healing, envisioning these things as she prayed. Eventually, healing came about.
When I had severe pinched nerve back pain from structural erosion due to aging, I tried her method, accompanied by daily hot baths followed by generous applications of IcyHot. It took two years. Dried out my skin somewhat, but that’s another story, and now my back is pain free, thanks to God. Got to start on my shoulders now...
I frequent the clearance area in the outside garden. They mark alot of stuff down this time of year to make room for the daily arrivals of new plants. I have scored some really great plants. They are not guaranteed but so what.....any competent gardener can keep them going. Alot of times they just need to be watered. I scored a gorgeous 8 gallon peony last week for %75 off.
I love this photo! That caddy is a keeper, too!
I have 7 or 8 old caddys. Nothing better for moving a bunch of plants in and out in the spring, no mess watering and carrying them to the garden.
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