Serves 4 to 6.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 90 minutes to 2 hours
Ingredients.
•2 squirrels, cut into serving pieces
•3 tablespoons vegetable oil
•4 cloves garlic, minced
•1 stalk of lemongrass, minced (white part only)
•3 to 5 red chiles, chopped
•1 tablespoon minced galangal (optional)
•2 tablespoon minced ginger, peeled
•1 quart chicken stock
•6 lime leaves, or 1 tablespoon lime juice
•1 tablespoon fish sauce or soy sauce
•1 pound bok choy or chard, chopped
•1/4 pound snow peas
•1 teaspoon ground Sichuan peppercorns (optional)
•Salt
GARNISH
•1/2 cup chopped cilantro
•1/2 cup chopped green onion
•1/2 cup chopped mint
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1.Heat the vegetable oil in a large pot such as a Dutch oven. Pat the squirrel pieces dry and brown them over medium-high heat in the oil. Remove them as they brown and set aside.
2.Add the garlic, lemongrass, galangal, ginger and chiles and stir-fry over high heat for 90 seconds.
3.Return the squirrel to the pot and add the chicken stock, lime leaves and fish sauce. You want the broth to cover everything by about an inch. If it does not, add some water. Bring to a simmer and cook until the meat wants to fall off the bone, between 1 hour and 2 hours. Remove the meat and shred it off the bones. Return it to the pot.
4.Add the boy choy and the snow peas and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes. Add salt to taste and the ground Sichuan pepper.
5.You can serve it as-is in bowls, or over some steamed rice in a bowl. Garnish with the cilantro, green onions and mint.