Conservation Corner: April 17, 2000

McKell Offers Primer On Heart Healthy Wild Foods
by James L. Cummins

My friend Dr. Bill McKell, of Gautier, Mississippi, has recently authored a primer of hearty, healthy foods from Mississippi. The Game Gourmet: Recipes That Celebrate a Culinary Journey Through Mississippi Outdoors is a collection of nutritional recipes and fascinating snippets of Mississippi history wrapped around anecdotes from Dr. McKell's life.

This medical doctor from the Gulf Coast was born in Oxford, Mississippi, and has lived in the state all of his life. Following his service as an Air Force Flight Surgeon, Dr. McKell practiced medicine for 28 years.

Hunting and fishing was as common to this man as going to church, school and doing chores. Like my parents and grandparents, Dr. McKell's mother and grandmother believed in garden freshness in their food and from them he learned the methods and techniques of good cooking, especially preparing wild game and fish.

According to Dr. McKell, "Today, we're more health conscious than ever before: society has turned from the traditional, fattening and cholesterol saturated fare in the interest of living healthier, longer lives. Finding healthy food is always a compromise against great taste. The Game Gourmet let's you know what you're eating."

Recipes feature where the dish originates, as well as the number of calories, fat, protein carbohydrates and sodium per serving. Additionally, there are suggestions on serving. Dr. McKell shows that the compromise between healthy food and great taste doesn't mean that you have to sacrifice taste and variety.

Dr. McKell wrote this book with every intention of it being user-friendly, and with that in mind, each recipe goes well beyond a straight-forward list of ingredients to include detailed instructions on preparation, and in many cases, tips are suggested which may serve you in the kitchen or at camp.

There are recipes for every occasion from backyard barbecues to fine dining of the sort that demands crystal, silver and fine china. Mostly, though, its good, healthy eating. Dr. McKell has divided the book into sections for greater convenience.

Throughout, his foremost interest is in providing recipes which bring joy both as you prepare and partake of them. I remember the old adage about cookbooks which suggest that if a given volume contains a single recipe you really like, it is a good buy. Well, then this one is a great buy!

The Game Gourmet is published by Tradery House and is available through Wimmer Distribution. Copies of it are available for $19.95 plus $5.00 postage and handling from Wimmer Cookbook Distribution, Ordering Department, 4210 B.F. Goodrich Boulevard, Memphis, TN 38118 or by calling toll free at 1-800-727-1034.

James L. Cummins is Executive Director of the Mississippi Fish and Wildlife Foundation in Stoneville, Mississippi. Known as "Wildlife Mississippi," the Foundation is a non-profit, conservation organization founded to conserve, restore and enhance fish, wildlife and plant resources throughout Mississippi.