Looking at that pair of legs, you just want to eat them.Photo: Barclay NixIn this week’s video, I joined some guys from Arkansas who I met on YouTube for a night of catching frogs. It was precarious. We showed up around 10 p.m. in a small town near Jonesboro, Ark. Better judgement may have suggested an initial meet and greet preceding the late night boat ride into the flooded backwaters of Arkansas. But alas, we were on the road and had not the time for such formalities.
Normal bullfrog hunting conditions are hot days and low waters. We had floods and 50 degrees F temperatures. Despite the difficult conditions, we found some frogs. These invasive creatures can be spotted by the illumination of their shiny underbellies. And when you shine a light in their eyes, they can’t see. In that moment of blindness they stay still and thus arises your opportunity to grab them.
There are many fancy ways to cook up a frog’s leg, but in Arkansas they do what they do to a lot of their foods … fry it up! These legs were delicious — like the most succulent chicken. And remember, as that famous traveler James Michener put it, “If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion, and avoid the people, you might better stay home.”
