Here is the big guy after he bought the farm:
Iguanas have been breeding in the wild here in south Florida for quite a few years.
A cold spell several years ago killed many of them, but in the past few years they have come back with a vengeance.
Though they appear harmless, my wife is afraid of them and they eat the plants and leave their calling cards all over the place.
It is legal to kill them as long as you do it humanely.
Some say they taste good; chicken of the trees and bamboo chicken... Sounds like a win-win situation!
Here is the big guy after he bought the farm:
Gutted and peeling the skin. Soaking in hot water for a few minutes helps:
Wish I was in Tijuana eating barbequed iguana!
Not! This does not taste like chicken to me, even with the mango marinade.
Let him cool, freeze him, and think of plan B...
Stew is plan B. Lots of spices. Lots. To get rid of that lizard taste hopefully.
Two hours boiling away. Time to get the meat off the bones.
I don't like bones in my stew! It does come of pretty easily.
Now we're cooking! A couple cans of diced tomatoes, carrots, onions, black beans, kidney beans,
a hand full of rice, celery, some red pepper and a couple of cans of corn. Boil it some more!
Final result: edible. But it still does not taste like chicken.
I've been told this one was just too big, too old, and too tough.
Stewed with the spices, it no longer tastes like a lizard.
But it's still a bit tough with a strange texture.
Certainly worth doing, and probably worth doing again.
I'll try for a smaller one next time!
Maybe not as tough, and I won' have to make as much stew.
Nobody else in the house wanted to eat it...
