There’s a long standing culinary tradition in the towns of Salem County that may seem foreign even to people in other parts of South Jersey.
It’s the yearly practice of eating muskrat, often in communal settings organized at the end of each winter by local fraternal organizations and fire houses, and often as fundraising events similar to a beef and beer.
Except instead of roast beef, the menu’s main attraction are the furry-bodied, web-footed, semi-aquatic rodents that can be found in the marshes of South Jersey.
One organization that’s currently preparing for their annual muskrat feast is the Fraternal Order of Eagles, Aerie #1966 in Salem, who will be holding their dinner on Sat., March 14
Stu Farner, a past president of the club, who was involved with prepping and planning the dinner for 15 years, said there’s always a devoted muskrat fanbase eagerly awaiting the events.
“You’d be surprised at the people that eat muskrat,” Farner said. “They’re a different breed. It’s a thing you either like or you don’t.”
Farner, who said his organization has been holding muskrat dinners for around 50 years, firmly puts himself in the first category
“I love it,” he said.
Muskrats, despite the name, are not actually rats, and Farner said more people might be willing to try the locally-harvested animals if they knew more about them.
“The biggest thing about a muskrat people don’t really realize – it’s a vegetarian,” he said, “It’s one of the cleanest animals there is. It washes everything it eats before it eats it.”
The muskrats for the dinners are provided by local trappers who seek their catch to sell them both for meat and for fur.
Muskrat season in South Jersey runs from December 1 to March 15, and Farner said organizations like his begin buying them whenever the trappers start catching.
“Whatever the trappers can supply fresh, that’s what we take and prepare,” he said.
Farner said the harvested muskrats are skinned, gutted and cleaned before a lengthy process of soaking, parting them out, soaking again, and then freezing the prepared pieces.
The day prior to the dinner, Farner said, the previously-prepped muskrats are taken out of the freezer, thawed, and then parboiled.with some seasonings. At that point they’re put back in the fridge to await the final step, when they are fried with additional seasoning and served to hungry customers on the day of the dinner.
For a typically-sized dinner of around 100 guests, Farner said the organization will prepare between 400 and 450 muskrats.
The Eagles club is organized around charitable giving, and their members volunteer to set up, cook, serve and clean up for the event.
“People helping people is our motto,” Farner said.
The muskrat dinner serves as a fundraiser for the club itself, where other events, like their cheesesteak dinner and sub sale will be carried out to benefit other specific charitable causes.
Tickets to the dinner are $40 per person, and along with the muskrats, the menu includes pepper cabbage, potato salad, green beans and desserts. We hear they are sold out already so plan early for next year.
For more information, follow the Fraternal Order of Eagles, Aerie #1966 on Facebook.
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064691798948&sk=about
Not Ready to Eat a Muskrat? How about you wear one instead?
If you aren’t quite ready to warm your belly with the freshly fried meat of a local muskrat, maybe a South Jersey Preservation shirt, where you can instead wear the likeness of the critter on the outside of it, is more your speed.
The nonprofit group sells a number of different South Jersey themed designs on merchandise as a fundraising effort to support their efforts at promoting preservation, and the muskrat shirts, hats and mugs, in particular, show a playful nod to the rodent’s place in Salem County history and culture. If you’re interested in checking out the group’s merch, muskrat related and otherwise, visit their site at www.southjerseypreservation.com.
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