Thought I would put this together for anyone who likes Squirrel but has troubles cleaning and getting it tender with out having to parboil,pressure cook then fry. 90% of my squirrel done this way will come out tender like fried chicken. Every once in awhile there will still be a tough one but it still edible and not like 10 year old jerky

Skinning

Opening cut right at the base of the tail. Pry the tail back and cut between the joint of the bone to get through. It takes me a couple of pry’s and working with knife to pop through.



Now open the back I go about 1/3 across each hip on the back side of the leg



For those that have the tail break off this is how to keep that from happening. Take your knife and push it straight down right between the hide and back bone till you bottom out. Now work it up and down and go around the small of the back turn your knife around and do the other side.



Stand on the tail bone and peel out For those with back trouble take a piece of para cord slip knot it over the tail and pinch the cord in a bench vise and pull horz. While standing on the tail get your fingers under the belly skin and pull it over the hips. Then hang up to dress




Kitchen prep

I separate the back legs from the back. This is first step to having it pan fry chicken tender. Score the meat about every 3/8 of an inch to the bone. The 2 little pieces of meat are sides of the belly from removing the intestines. I use kitchen shears cut put a few slices in them.



This is the second step for tender
Put everything in a big bowl and cover with a salt brine. ¼ cup of salt for every quart of water mix well and get the salt dissolved. Put in fridge over night make sure everything is covered with water.

Cooking
Rinse off squirrel pat dry or drain
I roll mine with a mix of flour, pepper, onion and garlic powder The squirrel will pick up a little salt from the brine so I don’t add any to the mix.
Put in skillet with about ¼ inch hot oil, meatiest side down fry for 7 minutes flip and fry 5 more minutes
Justin

That's how I skin mine best way for keeping hair off, I fillet my hind legs open and pull the outter membrain from the back and front legs good post. Squirrel is my second favorite game too eat glade to see other enjoying such a wonderful critter!
Colt

Great tutorial Justin. An old Ohio Buckeye squirrel shooter taught me that method when I was a pup. He'd practically survived the early part of the Depression on butter beans and squirrels. It is quick and clean. When I was shooting a bunch of squirrels in my late teens I could have one skint and ready to go in 90 seconds. Nowadays.......not so much!

Great post...I love squirrel hunting...I skin mine the same way...like the knife idea..have had a few tails come off while skinning.

To make squirrels really tender just pressure cook them under 15 pounds of steam for 12 minutes. I add season salt before and sometimes eat them just like that. If you want them fried you can pressure cook them as I have said then egg wash, coat with corn meal or flour and only fry until the coating is brown.

You guys are making me hungry

Me too! And our season ain't quite in yet. I usually roll in flour and pepper after a soak. Then brown in skillet then bake in the oven covered. Very nice tutorial OP!

That’s pretty much how I skin them. Never tried putting a knife down along backbone. It always pays to have a good pair of side cuts for snipping off feet. I also use a small pair of channelock pliers to pull of the “pants”. I fry them the same as you.

Cant't wait September 15 Season in Michigan. Rather skin rabbits than squirrels thu. Thanks for sharing pics...

great way to do them, I'm with john cant wait till sept. 15

good info. My grandpa taught me to skin mine like that in late 60's

Saw a squirrel last week with a woof on its side the size of a quarter. Have these parasites up in IL.?

Yes. Wolves, warbles or bots. I have seen them on squirrels in a few states.

That's how I skin mine. I have witnessed some very difficult methods from others, LOL!
I am going to use our "Instan Pot" on some this weekend, anybody used one on squirrels before?

We always just cut a slit in the back skin perpendicular to the backbone at about the middle of the squirrel, stuck our fingers from both hands in the slit and pulled in opposite directions. Pulls right down to back feet and tail on one end and front feet and head on the other. Snip off feet and head and you are done skinning. Takes about 10 seconds. For me I have to wear rubber gloves as the squirrel skin always has poison ivy sap on it.

YUMMY !!!

Was taught that same way to skin squirrels by my father when first started hunting. Always carried a bread bag back then to put them in , use a zip lock now. I skin mine right in the woods while their still warm leave the mess there. Don't break off many tails skinning them right after shot while warm. Does seem like tail breaks are usually the real young grays or big old fox squirrels. Always little more careful with them when start pulling.
Don't shoot as many as when I was a kid at home. Wife don't care for them but I still shoot a meal or two every fall for myself.

Nice post!

Mac

We always skinned our squirrels that way. Was cleaning one as a kid and when I made the cut thru the tail I must have been perfectly in the bone joint and had a really sharp knife. Never felt any resistance on the knife and cut my left index finger pretty much to the bone. Still have that scar. It’s a constant reminder of all the fun we had as kids squirrel hunting and all the fine meals, including squirrel gravy, we ate as a result. Also makes me realize that 98% of the people in the world miss these simple pleasures. Looking at that scar always makes me smile.

Cover your eyes Rocket! LOL

My mother was the big squirrel hunter in our family she started me out in 3rd grade with a bolt action mossberg 410,she carried a JC Higgens pump 12. I hunt a little bit of everything here but squirrel is my favorite out of all of them.
And Rocket is safe from me
J