James Lawrimore's monster buck was featured in SC Sportsman Magazine.

Ellen cooks Hamburger Patties!

We fired up the grill again tonight for some hamburgers.  The way Cordray's has the patties pre-made and individually frozen in a package of 6 was such a time-saver this evening!  We grilled the burgers just how they came out of the package.  They stayed pretty close to their original size, making a good-size meal out of each one.  Since the burgers were sized so generously, the package of 6 burgers fed my family with some to spare.  We served them as cheddar cheese burgers with a little mesquite bbq sauce on top.  Delicious! 

This meal was a big hit with everyone- the guys all loved the hearty burgers and I loved how quick the meal was to prepare.  Awesome burger and now I am in love with these ready-made Cordray's patties!  =)

Happy cooking,

Ellen

Harry Bean picked up his mount this week!

Larry Ott picked up this gorgeous mount from Cordray's Taxidermy!

Lunchbreak gobbler! Kenneth of Cordray's Taxidermy got this big Tom!

All our cows sported stockings just a few weeks back.

It seems like ages ago, but just a few weeks back we were in the middle of a very WET and MUDDY winter. This cow shows traces of the mud stockings that covered every animal we have. I'm sure all the people I know are glad for warmer, dryer weather, but what if you had to tromp through it every day? Now all the cows are getting fat eating spring rye grass and dozing in the sunshine! It won't be long before we'll FINALLY have some Cordray Farms Beef! Stay tuned...

From Ambrose Family Farm: HELP Tons of Strawberries for PYO!

I have attached some pictures of the strawberries we have available for Pick Your Own!  Pete has asked for HELP.  His plea is for each of you to come to the farm and pick strawberries and also to pass the word in your office, neighborhoods, churches, schools etc about the strawberries.  There are literally "TONS" of berries ready to pick and getting riper each moment.  He is distraught about losing the berries, it breaks my heart to see him so worried and frustrated and sad to see 'his babies' go bad.

Help us spread the Word.  Print the attached map & info and post it in your office, school room, church, business, etc.  Email it to everyone you know. 

$2/lb pick your own-organically grown

Mon-Sat  9am to 6pm

Sunday-  Noon to 5

559-0988 Farm

559-9999 Stono Market

Babs Ambrose

I wanna hold your hand!

If think you've got what it takes to hold hands with a really BIG alligator, be sure to go online at SC Department of Natural Resources to apply for tags for the 2010 Alligator Season. Application process begins on May 1st!

Kevin Pritchard got this Ravenel buck mounted at Cordray's!

Remember our buffalo?

This beefalo is half cow and half buffalo. She runs like a buffalo and is smart just like her dad. Just yesterday all the cattle were standing at the fence waiting for us to open the gate for them to go in the rye grass pasture. The whole herd, except for this one, stood by the gate, bellowing to beat the band. She jumped the ditch and walked all along the fence line looking for a weakness in the fence. She made the circuit, didn't find a short cut and then cut back across the ditch and was first in line on the green grass!

Ossie Beauchene got his first deer mounted at Cordray's Taxidermy!

Getting ready for Alligator Season!

Last year was the second year of public hunts for alligators in SC. We really struggled skinning 12 foot long alligators weighing over 600 lbs. in a facility made for 150 lb. deer! We're going to be doing some renovations in the next few months to help us be better able to serve your needs should you bag a BIG one! Don't forget to apply for the tag drawing on May 1st at SC DNR.

Cordray Farms beef is available at Stono Farms Market on Johns Island!

Cordray Farms All Natural Beef burger in bulk or patties is available at Stono Farms Market. Stop by, have lunch, pick up fresh vegetables and delicious beef all in one spot!

James Harris with a Ravenel buck!

Putting in a garden?

If you're putting in a vegetable garden, like I am, Vaughan's Store in Ridgeville truly has everything you need. Mr. Vaughan helped me decide what kind of seeds I wanted and measured out the exact amount. Vaughan's also has all the gardening tools you could possibly need. Last year I bought tomato plants from all over, Lowes, Walmart, anywhere they looked good. The ones I bought from Scott at Vaughan's were WAY better than the rest. They were Marion plants. It produced earlier and longer than the other varieties. It's so nice to go to a place where they can tell you, "I planted this kind in my yard and they'll work for you."  Vaughan's is open 7 to 7 Monday through Saturday. It's right by the railroad tracks in Ridgeville. Check 'em out. I think it's true what they say, "If we don't have it, you don't need it!"

Ellen cooks Sirloin Steak!

Tonight's cut of meat was Sirloin Steak!  The first thing we noticed was how the Cordray Farms Sirloin cut we received was far bigger than the biggest steaks I've seen at the grocery store.  It was enormous!  =)  I was having difficulty deciding which recipe to use, until I had a thought.  I have been amazed at how different (better!) the Cordray beef tastes from what I was previously buying at the store.  It is also much more tender.  So, I thought it would be interesting to just do something simple.  I didn't want to cover up the taste of the meat with a lot of added ingredients, so the only ingredient we used was Worcestershire sauce.  I marinated the steak for an hour or so and then my husband put it on the grill until it was cooked medium well.  We did add a little garlic butter (minced garlic added to melted butter) to one of the steaks to try as we had heard it recommended.  The result was by far, the best tasting, and most tender steak we've ever eaten.  This was a steak that had been frozen, also!  I actually preferred the Sirloin without the butter because it was so good by itself.  There are so many ways to marinade and flavor a steak, but sometimes simpler is better! 

 Happy cooking,

Ellen

Robert Darby picked up his mounted big buck from Cordray's!

We're proud of Tristan! Check out the article in today's Post and Courier!

Many of you know Tristan, our oldest son, from his years of working at Cordray's. Check out the article in today's Post and Courier on his dental practice in St. Stephen.

Turkey Season Special!

Turkey Fan Mount

with beard, feet, & fan

Free engraved name plate

$95

It's our Birthday! The Cordray's Blog is ONE YEAR old!

Thank you! In this first year,  we've had over 70,000 visits!  We've published 1045 different posts  on everything from recipes to catching alligators.  We hope that you've enjoyed it as much as we have. The blog is a fun way to keep you informed about the beef farm, the taxidermy business, and the wild game processing all in one place. Until I get the time to write my book, entitled "This Cannot Be Normal!", the blog will have to do! I always appreciate comments and suggestions, so please let me know what you think we can do to make our blog more interesting and more informative. Right now, we get lots of comments, but they are all written in Chinese or they want me to post things that would embarrass  both you and me! I don't let them publish, but I'll be glad to publish yours :) Send 'em on!