# Using Bits & Pieces



## Brook (May 27, 2009)

If you're anything like me, you've got a freezer full of bits and pieces. Fish and game that, by themselves, aren't enough to make a meal. Before the hunting seasons take off in earnest, maybe it's time to plan a small plates party to use them up.

Here's what I mean. You've got a small piece of venison hiding in the corner. Not enough to do much of anything with it by itself. But, if you grind it up it's ideal for albondagis, a Spanish tapas usually made with pork. 

Or take that single squirrel and a rabbit, and turn them into a pate. 

Many times, recipes that are otherwise used as main dishes can be shaped small and used as small plates. Kedgaree Covington, for instance, is a great way of using up leftover fish. But if you've only got a little (or want to take the time to poach that cupful of bluegill filets you didn't know what to do with), you can make the recipe, cut it in 1 inch squares, and put them out as small plate offerings. 

What are some of the ways you guys handle those bits and pieces taking up room in the freezer?


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## surfchunker (Apr 10, 2006)

*uh*

I usually don't put anything in the freezer thats less than a mess ..... but if so I'll try some kind of Kabobs

I see your from the Motherland .... what part of Ky are you from ?

I grew up in the Ashland area


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## Brook (May 27, 2009)

Madison Cty., Surfchunker, where the Bluegrass meets the mountains. 

Do you really never catch or kill less than a mess? Never just one smallish Spanish? Or a bad day in the dove fields, and you bring home only six? Or...well, you get the point.

Most outdoor enthusiasts I know do, indeed, have bits and pieces, for various reasons. Maybe they caught a bunch of bluegills, but not enough for a fish fry. No sweat. They'll freeze that lot, and fill in on another trip. But somehow or other, that trip doesn't materialize. Or they've happily eaten off that deer all year, except for the small package of chopmeat that got lost in the corner of the freezer. And, omigod! who's going to eat first off those two quail. 

There are, seems to me, two solutions to the problem. One is to have a small plates/tapas party, such as http://www.the-outdoor-sports-advisor.com/small-plate-recipes.html. Only downside to that is that you use your fish and game and have to serve as host too. That's not a problem for me, but some might object.

The other is for everyone in your group to pool their resources, as it were, and have a game dinner. You figure out what's available, everyone cooks a dish or two after combining inventories, and you have the party at a central point. 

Either way, you have some fun, use up the stuff in the freezer, and make room for the fish and game you'll be taking this fall and winter. Definately a win-win situation.


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## surfchunker (Apr 10, 2006)

only time I caught spanish I caught a bunch but it was on a boat .... if I don't have enough for a mess I just make sure I go again and get more .... lol .... but most of the time it's me and the Mrs so huge portions arn't needed ........ Todays menu is grilled tenderlions  .... some Lowery's seasoned salt and creole seasonings with a dash of barbque powder ...... ummmmmmm


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