Cane toads ?

[Kindling]

Any body had a go at eating them , preparing , correct way of cutting ,etc ?
I read they eat them over seas same species in other countries.
I've also seen the reaction of people finding them tasty on youtube and read articles suggesting they're pretty impressive to eat.

On any given night I can walk out and see them .

Saw a great trap consisting of a PVC bucket with a solar cheap led light above it dug into the ground with a hinge drop trapdoor attached .

Seems such the survival option , I'd say were pretty spoilt here in aus . if I were the you tube video making type I might put such information and recipes out for others . as I'd enjoy if others had covered it.

 

[elof_alv]

With a bit of luck you can get even to small chicken legs size... what's there not to count yourself lucky?

 

[Hairyman]

Pic from Redit

 

[Kindling]

Thats a classic photo haha ,
Yes I am going to eat the back legs on one when I get back to civilisation and a freezer , for putting one to sleep first .
I will try one first, that way I'll know if the dog needs a feed in a long term survival situation I won't have to share fish or other game if there's not much to go around.
And hey who knows , it will be good to know food can be that easy to come by too.

 

[Kindling]

With a bit of luck you can get even to small chicken legs size... what's there not to count yourself lucky?

https://goo.gl/images/aWZwbG

 

[ozbushy]

Bizarre foods tv show had some toad legs cooked up in Aus (NT I think it was) and he reckoned they where nice from what i remember

 

[Kindling]

Bizarre foods tv show had some toad legs cooked up in Aus (NT I think it was) and he reckoned they where nice from what i remember

Thanks I'll check it out . I'll provide feed back on taste soon .

 

[Kindling]

Cane toad curry coming up , if you don't hear from me I've um possibly croaked it.

 

[Kindling]

https://gulpnt.com/2014/05/16/toad-legs-the-new-feral-fine-food/

 

[Kindling]

 

[Kindling]

I have to agree with what I've read ,

Firstly I can't advocate safe eating practice for cane toads , as I've only had a go myself , as there was a general lack of information out there , and I wanted to try it so as to know if it would be a viable survival option , before the need ever arose, to learn and be prepared.

I froze the toad , found the biggest one within a few steps of the door as I went out after a bit of rain came down .
There was probably about 8 within thirty meters or so.

After I'd frozen it , I put it on the chopping board and took the back legs off ,

I used a plastic bag over the holding hand like a glove in case of any poison on the skin , and separated the body immediately , then pulled the skin back on the legs, very easily it separates.

I took the feet off to as I found them a little bit weird.

I tried not to panic the toad "so it would hopefully not excrete poison from its glands on back of neck/head, also poison is contained in eggs and eyes as I read. " catching it by placing a yoghurt tub over it scooping it up and sticking the lid straight on , then straight in the freezer as quick as I could.

After butchering , which by comparison to other animals in this case apart from the initial appearance and thought of a toad is quite fuss free, washed the kegs thoroughly under the tap, and my hands scrubbed. I cooked in butter and garlic and added some capsicum to fry in a pan .
One piece I added some curry powder.

Gotta say taste wise pretty impressive , didn't share with the dog who was looking at me , second thoughts not a good idea to get the dog interested in them .

Definitely some sort of option for a survival food .

I wasn't looking forward to it really , certainly won't go out of my way to again , actually tasted nice though and found myself digging in for another bite.

Not too chewy , and almost kinda like chicken , size wise a little smaller and you'd need quite a few for a Feed .

 

[bluebush2]

I'm in Darwin and have eaten cane toad legs for the novelty of it. My advice - not worth the hassle. Yes, they are edible but it takes a lot of risk and effort to get a decent feed. Even in an extreme survival situation, there would be better tucker about. Firstly, if the toad has secreted the white poison from the glands on its back, you have to be very, very, very careful that it doesn't contaminate the legs or isn't on your hands. Cutting the legs off while the toad is alive is inhumane and almost any way of dispatching the toad first will trigger the release of poison. Bagging and freezing might work. Next is skinning the legs - normally described as pulling the skin back like a glove. In reality, that's almost impossible. Its very delicate work, especially if they were previously frozen. Next is the amount of meat you get. Some of the biggest toads I've seen were second generation after the first-invaders in far north Qld and NT. The biggest toads then got to dinner-plate size. The average toads here now are much smaller. Their two rear legs together would be about one fifth of a single skinny chicken leg. You'd need a lot of toads even for an entree. Then there's the taste. "Acquired" would be how I describe it. Not everything tastes like chicken. Needs curry. A lot. The ultimate say should go to our Indigenous brothers and sisters - if cane toad was good bush tucker, don't you reckon they would be right across it? Lastly, I have a memory of one on my Grandfather's USA magazines from the 1920s or 1930s having advertisements about farming toads/bullfrogs for profit. Obviously that never took off, at least in the USA. Somehow I don't think a cane toad farm in NT would work either. But go ahead and experiment, just do it safely.

 

[Kindling]

Seems you came to a lot of the conclusions I did.
I'm happy learning and discussing with the locals knowledge or where ever I can get it .

Seems protein sources might be more reliable finds than finding " staples" in the way of carbohydrates .


Seasonal knowledge of plants is valuable , and takes time . asking , seeking , matching information to be sure and safe .
I like to learn one food a week if I can at the moment.

Feels good to be in a location and recognise a few resources at a time, and know of local locations of
Sustainable native foods.

 

[peter.]

chatting with a friend, his son has some sort of permanent heart damage. as a joke some girls at school had put cane toads in the lunchboxes of him and his friend. being typical lads, full of bravado, they ate their lunch. both were in hospital not long after and stayed there for a few days if i remember correctly. they both have permanent nerve and heart damage from it (i think they must have had prior brain damage to do what they did).
take care with cane toads. nasty things they are

 

[Bloffy13]

Hey Kindling, that is a great idea. I have taken a shotgun approach in the past but I might adopt that. If you can recognise a good variety of food plants in all seasons, then your time in the bush can be so much more enjoyable.
I'm a bit busy at the moment but I might give that a try. I must admit it is my weakest area of knowledge and definitely needs improving.
Cheers
Bloffy