I just got back from NOLA, where I attended a medical conference (Official motto of the conference: We are not saints). While there I had the chance to drag my wife and some friends out to dinner at the Court of the Two Sisters, where I’d dined during my last visit to NOLA (in 1978). There, we all enjoyed their turtle soup. I passed on the sherry.
It’s my 3rd experience dining on turtle (the snapping variety, I was told), and it’s the 3rd time I was knocked head over heels with rapturous gustatory joy at the deliciousness of the dish. Somewhat akin to beef, yet somehow richer with many more subtle and not so subtle flavor notes, none of which were gamey or fishy. $7 worth of it vanished rapidly. Slurp! Slurp!
So why isn’t turtle out there more? Since my first experience with it, decades ago, I’ve kept a watchful eye on menus wherever I went, to see if they offered any turtle meat dishes. Yet I have seldom seen it. And too many times when I did see and order it, I was told they were out of it.
Where do others go to get their turtle fix? Must I start wandering the creeks of my property (where I’ve seen a few snappers over the years) to start harvesting my own? Or can anyone recommend top flight turtle restaurants, ranches, or grocers?
Turtle rocks. One of the best meals I ever had was homemade stewed turtle (on a visit to Peru).
I always felt the flavor was sort of a cross between beef and pork. It surprised me first time by being a red meat, was expecting it to look and taste like chicken. Was a shock.
There are some restrictions on turtle hunting down on the banks of the Ohio River, where my grandmother’s church (and I guess mine, judging by the persistence with which they send me bulletins) has held Turtle Soup Suppers annually for time out of mind. Their soup recipe is tomato-based and spicy, so it’s hard to tell what the turtle tastes like. It’s good, though.
I understand saltwater turtle is popular in the Low Country, between Charleston and Beaumont in South Carolina. It was big at one point in the Florida Keys, less so now. Schedule your next trip down there, or google around to see if they’ll ship some meat to you on ice.
(I read about Carolina turtle eating in Andrew Beahr’s book TWAIN’S FEAST. Fascinating.)
I’m told it has shown up on the menu at the cafeteria at the National Museum of the Native American (it is farmed, if I remember correctly, for the purpose by a native-run farm). The cafeteria is very seasonal in its offerings, though, so I’ve never been while it’s offered.
I too would like to see turtle (snapper) soup on more menus—it’s delicious. You shouldn’t have passed on the sherry, though. It enhances the flavor. The bestI’ve had was years ago at The Old Original Bookbinder’s restaurant in Philadelphia.
I had some roasted turtle when I was in Turks and Caicos. It tasted very much like beef but did not seem to have much fat on it which made it a little dry.
So, an excellent soup base. It will tenderize nicely and the broth won’t get overly greasy.
I’ve had grilled rabbit in southern Spain. It’s much too dry a meat for dry-cooking. But nothing beats a good slow-braised rabbit stew. Right, Mister Fudd?
It just goes to show, as soon as I move out of a city, it goes to hell. Bookbinder’s closing in Philly is just…sad.
Apparently, they opened a restaurant called, The Olde Bar, at the original Bookbinder’s location. And, apparently, they pay homage to the Old Original Bookbinder’s restaurant. And, apparently, they offer snapper soup (with a quail egg, of all things!). So, next time I visit Philly, I’ll give this Olde Bar snapper soup a try. But, I’m not getting my hopes up. I’ve been burned too many times before.
Last time I was at Bookbinder’s (back when I had hair…and erections), it was on a first date. I convinced my date to order the snapper soup. She did. When it was served, I told her the snapper was snapping *turtle *(she thought it was snapper fish).
“Eww, I don’t want to eat turtle!”
“That’s ok, baby, I’ll eat your vile soup…here, have some more bread and butter.”
Planned? I’m not sayin’. I’ll just say, I like snapper soup, and I’ll do what I have to do to eat as much as I can.
Then again, the only time I’ve had it was at my college cafeteria, and while they were actually pretty good at familiar sorts of food, their reach tended to exceed their grasp: They’d often try to make something different and exotic, and invariably botch it.
So if given the opportunity to try it again, made by someone who knew what they were doing, I’d give it a go.
Bookbinder’s had been in decline since at least the 70’s - business was still good, but they were really trading on their reputation. The Old City revival which was triggered by the bicentennial meant increased competition - Bookbinder’s became a place for tourists and old people. The restaurant renaissance which picked up steam in the 90’s and continues to the present put the final nails in the coffin - Bookbinder’s just couldn’t keep up.
It’s a shame it’s not more redily available. But then again, maybe not. The canned stuff is shit. I’ve had it once but bletch! Of course I’ve mainly had what I’ve killed.
Turtles, being reptiles, are rather slow-growing. I expect the amount of time required to get one to decent eating size is one of the obstacles to making them more available.
Snappers are plentiful in North America right now, but if turtle soup became wildly popular/widespread it is possible that market demand might decimate the species.
So, if you like turtle cuisine you might not want it to become too popular.
I watched a show on PBS years ago about turtle hunters that supplied restaurants in New Orleans with turtle meat. The turtles generally died a long, tortuous death on the way to the final destination. Nothing like the air powered bolt to the forehead that cattle get at the slaughterhouse. They are reptiles, so, who knows what they know or feel but I think of that show whenever I hear people mention turtle soup. I’ve eaten turtle stew by the way. Kind of chewy and all the seasoning seemed to be in the sauce, not the meat.