alligator sauce piquant
Ingredients
2 lbs. alligator meat
½ cup butter
½ cup flour
1 medium onion, chopped
½ cup chopped celery
1 bell pepper, chopped
4 oz. tomato paste
5-6 cloves garlic, minced
1 can Rotel tomatoes
2 cups tomato sauce
1 cup Sherry
4 bay leaves
½ tsp. thyme
1 tsp. Worcestershire
3-4 cups chicken stock, more if too thick
1 lemon, sliced thin
½ cup finely chopped parsley
Tabasco sauce to taste
Steps
Prepare Alligator Meat: Get meat other than from tail if possible. To prepare, first place in boiling water for 5 minutes. The fat that gives the alligator that "fishy" taste will rise to the top. Remove meat and rinse in clean water. Trim off fat. Add a little oil to the bottom of a heavy pot such as a black iron pot and lightly brown. Remove meat and discard oil. Put meat in a food processer and chop a few turns to coarsely chop the meat. Meat is now ready for cooking.
Roux: Make roux by melting the butter then stirring in the flour. Cook stirring over medium heat until mixture browns to a milk chocolate color. Stir in the onions, celery, and bell pepper. Simmer for about 3 minutes. Add tomato paste and garlic and cook stirring until paste darkens, 2 to 3 minutes. Then stir in the Rotel tomatoes, tomato sauce, sherry, Worcestershire, bay leaves, thyme and 3 cups chicken stock; simmer 20 minutes. Season with salt, red and black pepper, Tony Cachere’s if you have it. Add meat and simmer 35 to 40 minutes. Add parsley, and lemon slice. Simmer 10 minutes and serve over rice with the Tabasco on the side.
Extra
Alligator is now legal game in Louisiana. The season normally starts during early September and runs until early October each year.
Alligators are harvested annually for their skins as well as the meat. The alligator tail meat, which is the edible part, has a very delicate flavor similar to chicken and/or veal. Alligator meat has many recipe applications such as: Sauce Piquant, Fried Alligator, Stewed Alligator, Smothered Alligator, Alligator Soup, Alligator Sausage, Barbecue Alligator, Rolled Roast, etc.
When preparing alligator meat for a recipe, pay particular attention to the cleaning methods. Wash thoroughly and strip all fat from the meat to get rid of the gamy type flavors and assure the desired delicate flavor. Alligator meat is typically prepared in recipes that can be cooked for a long period to tenderize the meat. However, you may tenderize boneless meat by pounding, or commercial meat tenderizers may be used to speed tenderization for frying or barbecuing.
