Food Fight Friday: Sandwich Battle, Bierocks vs. Spoonie Sliders

This Food Fight features a couple of unique sandwiches from a couple of frequent Food Fighters. Those of you not from the Midwest might be new to Levi Banks’s bierock–also known as a cabbage burger or, here in Nebraska, runsa (or Runza). I love the things (the homemade versions anyway), so I’m really leaning that way this week. But, I have to give props to Neil Selbicky for bucking conventional wisdom and giving the spoonbill a try with his admittedly tasty sounding sliders. I’m so impressed, in fact, that I’ll be featuring his spoonie slider recipe here next week.
**
Neil Selbicky’s Spoonie Sliders**

I was hunting the banks of the Rogue River one freezing cold January morning and getting nothing. Finally checking a flooded oxbow, I was lucky to connect with one of two fleeing ducks. Excitedly I waded out in chest deep water to retrieve a duck with a large bill. As a waterfowl hunter of only three years, this was my first northern shoveler.

Doing a little Internet research, I surmised that spoonbills are not highly regarded as table fare. When it came time, I labeled its freezer wrap with “Well I’ll Try It.” And I’m glad I did! I turned my Northern Shoveler into Mini Spoonie Burgers. A lot of waterfowl hunters pass the spoonbill up. I found the breast meat ground with a little Aidells Spicy Mango with Jalapeño Sausage made quite possibly the best little burgers I have ever had.

Levi’s Banks’ Bierocks

The Bierock is apparently German in origin (Editor’s Note: with no small amount of Russian influence) and has ground venison, onions, garlic, and cabbage wrapped in dough and baked to form a tasty little sandwich. My recipe came from the cookbook Cooking Wild in Missouri.

Don’t forget to snap a pic of your next fish or wild game feast and send it to fswildchef@gmail.com.