Anyone eaten magpie?

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Anyone eaten magpie?
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Atomic Shrimp

Joined: 17 Nov 2008
Posts: 17

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 12:27 am Post subject: Anyone eaten magpie?

A friend of mine has a neighbour who traps and kills magpies - apparently they have a reputation for pecking out the eyes of lambs or something, and are much despised by country folk.

Anyway... I said I'd try eating them if he could get his neighbour to give me a couple. I imagine it's going to be dark meat and fairly gamey - people eat crows, so why not magpie? - Anyone tried it and want to comment?

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 7:26 am Post subject:
Not sure I'd want to try them having seen what they eat around here. We get loads, I counted 12 in a tree in our garden last week and I think there were a few more about as well. They also go after other birds, chicks and nests so too many are bad for other wildlife.

Lorrainelovesplants

Joined: 13 Oct 2006
Posts: 6521
Location: Dordogne

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 7:35 am Post subject:

On the islands (Lewis and such) they eat the seabirds. We have a friend who's familyhave certain rights to a part share...and they get so many of these birds (its a certain breed - cant remember if its gannets or puffins or what) which the islanders cull.

Back in the old days it used to supplement their diet...god knows why they still do it. Apparently they taste like fishy tough chicken....yeuch!
Never heard of eating magpie...

There's a guy in Camelford who eats roadkill fox and badger, but I think he's maybe not quite right. He's been on the telly.

jamanda
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 22 Oct 2006
Posts: 35057
Location: Devon

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 7:39 am Post subject:
Dpack will be your man for this one. He seems to have eaten most things.

Bulgarianlily

Joined: 01 Jun 2008
Posts: 1667
Location: South West Mountains of Bulgaria

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 7:42 am Post subject:
Rook pie is traditional, is there much difference between rooks and magpies?

Brownbear

Joined: 28 May 2007
Posts: 14929
Location: South West

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 8:01 am Post subject:

Lorrainelovesplants wrote:

I think it's the 'guga', a sort of gannet or cormorant, oily and leathery. My MiL is from Unst and remembers having to eat herring gulls when the salt fish ran out in the Winter, and the sea was too rough for weeks to go fishing. If they couldn't get gulls they had to go to sea anyway, and lose a few men doing it, or starve. She can still fry up a nifty plate of herrings over a peat fire, and claims that the greatest of human inventions are heating and indoor plumbing.

If anyone ever waxes lyrical to her about the wonders of the ascetic life she makes mincemeat out of them.

Green Rosie

Joined: 13 May 2007
Posts: 10498
Location: Calvados, France

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 8:10 am Post subject:
I've eaten rook pie. I was a very long time ago but I seem to remember you only used the breast meat. And the birds you eat are the fledglings just before the leave the nest.

cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 9:26 am Post subject:

Rookling is, I'm told, delicious.

Magpie is, I'm told, dreadful. Doesn't the name 'magpie' derive from 'maggot pie', which is meant to denote the flavour?

Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained. You may as well try.

With slightly older rooklings, once they've fledged, theres an old trick of taking the breasts off and soaking them overnight in milk. Apparently by morning the black meat has turned white and the white milk has turned black, and its meant to make them easier eating. This isn't necessary for the younger birds. Although I should add I've never done this, its all second hand information from my dad (who isn't always to be trusted

)

Lorrainelovesplants

Joined: 13 Oct 2006
Posts: 6521
Location: Dordogne

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 9:32 am Post subject:
What a mine of disgusting information we are! Is there no depths to which man has sunk Actually, bearing this thread in mind, I shouldnt tell my kids friend off when he eats the debris from his eyes (sleep)!!

crofter

Joined: 11 Feb 2007
Posts: 2252

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 9:34 am Post subject:

Brownbear wrote:

I think it's the 'guga', a sort of gannet or cormorant, oily and leathery.

Yes. Gannets. Cormorants were hunted here during the war, for the London Restaurant trade. Sold as "Shetland duck"! I have never eaten a herring gull, but their eggs are wonderful.

mark

Joined: 14 Jul 2005
Posts: 2191
Location: Leeds

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 9:58 am Post subject:

I think Magpies have rather to much carrion in their diet to want to eat them ...

I don't think its an accident that people have a tradition of eating Rook which eats insects, grubs ect etc
Rather than the similar Carrion Crow which eats, well carrion!

I think people confusing these 2 birds may lead people to think of the Rook as a carrion eater

so i don't really parallel rooks and magpies as a food source

lottie

Joined: 11 Aug 2005
Posts: 5059
Location: ceredigion

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 10:20 am Post subject:

[quote="cab"]Rookling is, I'm told, delicious.

Magpie is, I'm told, dreadful. Doesn't the name 'magpie' derive from 'maggot pie', which is meant to denote the flavour?

I think the pie in magpie refers to the fact that the bird is black and white. I have an old farmhouse cookbook with a recipe for rook pie,just using the breasts of fledgelings---think it was a recipe that went out of favour with the end of meat rationing and the growth of prosperity.

mark

Joined: 14 Jul 2005
Posts: 2191
Location: Leeds

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 11:14 am Post subject:

It is thought that the Mag bit is short for margaret.
margaret was common female name and was was used to donate the hit chat or gossip thought to be typical of women
a magge tale - was a bit of nonsese of a made up story
- so it is a "chattering pie"

so where does the pie bit come from? - probably originally the name of the bird derived from the latin
pica = magpie - this changed in english to pye in the middle ages

It appears that the description pied came olong later to mean black and white like a magpie.

chez

Joined: 13 Aug 2006
Posts: 35935
Location: The Hive of the Uberbee, Quantock Hills, Somerset

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 11:28 am Post subject:

mark wrote:

I think Magpies have rather to much carrion in their diet to want to eat them ...

Yes, that's how I feel.

My dad used to to catch rooks in the depression and sell them to people for food.

mihto

Joined: 03 Feb 2008
Posts: 3273
Location: West coast of Norway

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 09 4:57 pm Post subject:

Brownbear wrote:

Lorrainelovesplants wrote:

I have eaten cormorant. The bird is common here and sometimes hunted. The meat does not keep and must be eaten at once. The taste is oily unless put in milk over night. Fishy tough chicken is probably as good a description as any. The meat is dark. Not very nice food but an interesting experience. Needs a nice sauce with a liberal helping of sour cream.

Magpie I would try given a chance. There are plenty around; what they eat is a mystery. There is neither carrion or garbage dumps here. I have seen them feast on crap apples and they would probably go for fledglings. These are all grown up and gone south, however. The magpies love cats, but not for eating. I suppose they need a reason to laugh in the deep dark midwinter.

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