Roast Wild Pheasant Recipes

EMERIL'S FAVORITE ROAST PHEASANT

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F and position the oven rack in the bottom third of the oven.
• Season the cavities and the outside of each pheasant liberally with salt and pepper. Divide the chopped onion and carrot equally among the cavities of the pheasants. Squeeze the juice from both halves of the orange and set aside. Cut 1 of the squeezed halves into 3 pieces, and tuck inside of the cavities along with the veggies. Insert 1sprig of thyme into the cavity of each pheasant.
• Arrange the pheasants in a large roasting pan, breast sides up. Lay 2 strips of bacon over the top of each pheasant, cutting the bacon into pieces if necessary to cover as much of the pheasant as possible. Roast for 15 minutes, then remove the bacon strips and continue roasting for approximately 30 to 40 minutes, or until the juices run clear. (It is important to not overcook the pheasants, as they are very lean birds.) Remove the pheasants from the oven and transfer to a serving platter, loosely tented, while you make the sauce.
• Using a spoon, carefully remove as much extra fat from the pan as possible. Place the roasting pan over high heat and, when hot, deglaze with the reserved orange juice and Madeira, using a wooden spoon to scrape any brown bits from the bottom of the pan. When the orange juice and Madeira have reduced by half, add the chicken stock and continue to cook until sauce has reduced enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 3 to 4 minutes. Swirl in the butter and remove from the heat. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.
• Remove the back bone from each pheasant, then cut along the breast bone to divide the birds into two halves. Serve 1/2 pheasant per person, napped with some of the sauce and with some of the Wild Mushroom Bread Pudding.
• Heat the oil in a large, deep skillet over high heat. Add the onions and cook until golden brown and tender, 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, 1/2 teaspoon of the garlic, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the Essence, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and 3/4 teaspoon of the pepper, and cook, stirring, until the mushrooms are tender and have given off their liquid, about 5 minutes. Add the beer and cook, stirring, to deglaze the pan and until the mixture is almost dry, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool.
• In a large bowl, combine the eggs, cream, molasses, Worcestershire sauce, thyme, remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons of Essence, remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon of pepper, and whisk well to combine. Add the mushroom mixture and cheeses and stir well. Add the bread cubes and let sit until the bread has absorbed the liquid, 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Butter a 9 by 13-inch baking dish with the butter. Add the bread crumbs, shaking to cover the bottom evenly. Pour the bread pudding mixture into the prepared pan and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 1 hour and uncover. Continue baking until risen and firm in the center, and golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool slightly before serving.
• Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.
• Recipe from "New New Orleans Cooking", by Emeril Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch. Published by William and Morrow, 1993.

ROAST PHEASANT

Steps:

• Brine the bird. Make a brine by bringing the water, salt, bay leaves, juniper and sugar to a boil. Cover and let cool to room temperature. When it cools, submerge your pheasant in the brine and keep it in the fridge for 4 to 8 hours. The longer you brine, the saltier the pheasant will become. I brine pen-raised birds for 4 hours, old roosters for 8 hours.
• Optional step: If you really want a crispy skin, take the birds out of the brine and set them uncovered in the fridge for 12 to 24 hours. This dries out the skin (but not the meat} and helps you get crispier skin.
• When you are ready to cook, take the pheasant out of the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes and up to an hour. Heat your oven. Get it to 500°F if possible, but at least 400°F. Give yourself at least 15 minutes of preheating, and up to a half hour. Oil the bird. You can do this with olive oil or you can smear butter all over it. Crack some black pepper over the bird.
• Stuff with a piece of onion or apple and a few fresh herbs. A cut lemon is a good choice, too. Do not pack the cavity. Truss the bird if you want. I do this often because it helps the pheasant cook more evenly. (Here's a video on how to truss a chicken, which is basically the same thing as a pheasant.)
• Roast the pheasant uncovered for 15 minutes at your high temperature. Take the pheasant out and lower the temperature to 350°F. Leave your oven door open to speed this process.
• Optional step: Baste the bird with either butter or a glaze. When I do this, I like to use a boiled-down combination of butter and maple syrup.
• Return the pheasant to the oven and roast uncovered for 30 to 45 minutes. You want the internal temperature of the thigh meat to be about 155°F to 160°F and for the bird's juices to run pretty clear. A little pink in the juice - and in the bird - is what you want. The higher end of this cooking time will give you a well-done bird, which I try to avoid but many people prefer.
• Remove the pheasant and let it rest for 10 to 15 minutes. This resting time is vital, as it lets the juices redistribute within the pheasant. It will also finish off the cooking process through carry-over heating.

ROAST WILD PHEASANT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Lightly salt the inside of the bird and rub in with your hand.
• Fill the cavity loosely with your favorite Herbed Suffing.
• Truss the legs and place breast side up on a rack in a roasting pan.
• Place Bacon slices over the breast side by side.
• Roast for approximately 1 1/2 hours, or until tender.
• Check after 75 minutes of cooking.

ROAST PHEASANT

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C).
• Stir the chopped rosemary and thyme into the olive oil and set aside. Rub the pheasant inside and out with salt and pepper. Place into a close-fitting roasting pan. Pour the herb oil over top.
• Bake the pheasant in the preheated oven for 1 hour, then cover with aluminum foil, and continue baking an additional hour, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone reads 180 degrees F (82 degrees C). Remove from the oven, cover with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 minutes before slicing. Baste the pheasant with the hot oil and juices from the pan every 30 minutes while cooking.

ROAST PHEASANT WITH WILD MUSHROOM, POTATO & BACON RAGOUT

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Pour about 200ml of hot water from the kettle over the mushrooms and leave to soak for 20 mins. Drain, reserving the liquid. Squeeze any excess liquid from the mushrooms, but keep them whole.
• Generously season the pheasant all over. Heat the sunflower oil in a shallow flameproof dish and slowly brown the legs, turning frequently, for 20 mins. Brown the breast for a further 10 mins, then remove from the dish. Add the bacon to the dish and sizzle until starting to crisp. Throw in the potatoes, increase the heat and fry with the bacon until brown around the edges. Add the mushrooms and fry to heat through. Pour in the wine, sizzle for a moment, and pour over the reserved mushroom liquid, keeping the last drop back as it may be gritty. Nestle the pheasant, breast-side up, in the middle of the dish and roast in the oven for 25 mins.
• Remove from the oven, lift the pheasant onto a plate, cover loosely with foil, then leave to rest for about 15 mins. Tip any resting juices into the potatoes, stir in the parsley, then transfer everything into a serving dish. Put the watercress in a bowl and toss with a drizzle of olive oil. Serve with the potato ragout and the pheasant ready to carve.

ROAST PHEASANT WITH WILD MUSHROOM DUXELLES AND ROASTED VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Place 1/2 teaspoon of the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook for about 15 seconds. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms have given off their liquid and most liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and pepper to taste.
• Use your fingers to carefully loosen the skin over the breasts on each pheasant. Place some of the mushroom duxelle under the skin of each bird. Place 1 head of roasted garlic into the cavity of each bird. Rub the remaining teaspoon of olive oil over the skin of the pheasants. Season with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together. Place in a large roasting pan and surround with the carrots, potatoes and onions.
• Roast for 15 minutes, stopping once to run a spatula under the pheasants to prevent them from sticking. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Roast until the juices run slightly pink when pricked with a fork in the thickest part of the leg, about 30 minutes longer. Let stand for 10 minutes. Remove the string. Season the vegetables with salt and pepper. Cut the pheasants in half and serve with the roasted vegetables.

ROAST PHEASANT WITH GRAPES AND WALNUTS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
• Rub the pheasant with the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Stuff with fresh herbs and the lemon and truss. Spread the onions in a roasting pan and lay the pheasant on top of them. Add the chicken stock and Marsala wine to the pan.
• Roast 35 to 45 minutes, or until the thigh juices run clear when pricked with a fork, basting every 15 to 20 minutes with the pan juices. If the feet of the pheasant begin to darken, tent with foil. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest.
• Meanwhile, transfer the roasting pan to the stovetop, skim the fat, and bring the pan juices to a boil, scraping any browned bits from the pan. Add the grapes and walnuts and cook 15 minutes, or until the grapes are soft and the juices are thickened. Crush some of the grapes with the back of a spoon to release their juices.
• Slice the pheasant into 1/4-inch slices and serve over the radicchio. Spoon the grapes and walnuts alongside and season with salt and pepper.

ROAST PHEASANT WITH WILD RICE STUFFING

Steps:

• Wipe the pheasants with paper towels and leave them to air-dry overnight (or longer) in a cool place. Soak the rice overnight in water to cover. Drain.
• Bring the chicken broth to a boil and slowly add the rice. Cover and simmer for one hour over low heat. Remove the rice from the pan and place it on paper towels to dry.
• Melt the butter and saute the onions until they are soft. Add the mushrooms and celery and cook until the mushrooms begin to yield their juice.
• Remove from the heat and add the grapes, Sherry and salt and pepper to taste. Mix in the wild rice. Stuff into the cavity of the birds and truss.
• Place the birds on a spit and roast, turning occasionally, for 40 minutes or until they are tender.

HONEY ROASTED PHEASANT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
• Place the pheasant into a baking dish.
• Pour lemon juice over the pheasant.
• Generously spread the honey over the entire bird.
• Season the cavities of the pheasant generously with salt, pepper, garlic powder, tarragon& thyme.
• Lightly sprinkle the outside of the pheasant with salt, pepper, garlic powder, tarragon& thyme.
• Place into the bottom third of the oven& roast until done, which will be when you puncture the bird& the juices run clear.
• Be careful not to over cook the pheasant, as it is a very dry bird with very little fat.