November Pheasant

Very tender, juicy pheasant perfectly in season, cooked in its own pheasant broth and doused with a sweet orange sauce. Pheasant was our anniversary dinner, so I've cooked it 26 times in total (the first year we were busy getting together :-)!

Time	Activity	Schedule
6-8 hours	Marinade the pheasant (optional)	The day before
2.5 hours	Cooking the pheasant broth	The day before
2.5 hours	Cooking the pheasant broth	The day before
10 mins	Prepare the pheasant	On the day
1:30 mins	Cooking the pheasant	On the day

Ingredients for the (optional) marinade:

• 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary

• 2 fresh bayleaves

• 1 Tbsp black peppercorns

• 1 Tbsp red peppercorns

• 1/2 Tbsp juniper berries

• The rind of 1 orange

• 2 tsp fine salt

• 1 tsp sugar

• 1 lemon (the juice only)

• Water (to reach the top of the pheasant)

Ingredients for the broth:

• Pheasant bones (you basically buy a full pheasant, then portion it out)

• 1 big carrot

• 3 celery sticks medium size

• 1 blonde onion

• A handful of pepper grains (I use a mixture of black and red peppercorns)

• 1 teaspoon of minced fresh rosemary

• 2 teaspoons of chopped fresh parsley

• 2 bay leaves

• Half a teaspoon of ground salt

Ingredients for the pheasant:

• 300-400gr pheasant broth

• 2 pheasant breast fillets and 2 tighs (this serves aboundantly 2 people)

• 7-8 tablespoons of flour

• 3 teaspoons of cornflour

• 1 heaped tablespoon of butter or vegetable spread

• A glass of dry red wine (Chianti is perfect)

• 1 small red onion, chopped really finely but not minced

• 2 medium juicy bio oranges (juices of both, zest of one)

• 2 teaspoons of orange marmalade

• 2 teaspoons of red balsamic vinegar

Method:

• MARINADE (optional):

• Wash the herbs, then put all the ingredients in a big enough bowl (glass or plastic)

• Add the pheasant pieces and the water until the pheasant is all covered

• Stir it all very well

• Cover and keep in the fridge 6-8 hours

TIP: I use this marinade not only to enhance the flavours, but to take off the "gamey" strong flavours and, most importantly, to help tenderize the meat (the salt and sugar will do that)

TIP: if you do use the marinade, remember not to rinse the pheasant before using it, but to blot it dry very well using plenty of kitchen paper

• BROTH:

  • Prepare the broth: clean and chop the vegetables in big pieces

  • Make the broth with the bones, ensure that the water covers well the ingredients. Let it simmer with the lid closed for 1.5 hours

  • Part-open the lid and let it continue to simmer for another hour. The liquid should have reduced considerably

  • Strain the broth into another pot, then let it simmer without the lid for some time until it has reached the desired quantity (roughly 300-400 gr, but stop reducing it when you reach 500gr as you may need more)

  • Set aside a small cup of broth at this time

• PHEASANT:

  • Put the chopped onions and butter in a deep non-stick pan, and let them cook slowly on a medium heat until tender

  • Coat the pheasant pieces in the flour, then increase the heat under the pan and brown them evenly, add a little more butter if necessary

  • Once golden, set the pheasant pieces aside, then scrape the bottom of the pan and deglaze it with the wine, let it simmer 1 min scraping the bottom and mixing it well

  • Add the pheasant pieces back to the pan

• Once the smell of alcohol has subsided, add the broth, lower the heat and cover

• Let it simmer gently for 1 hour and 15 minutes, checking that the broth is not drying out (if needed add a little more broth/water) and turning the pieces regularly

• Uncover the pan and raise the heat to a good bubble to start reducing the sauce for about another 10 minutes turning occasionally the pheasant

• Take the pieces out of the pan and set aside, covered with tightly wrapped tinfoil

• SAUCE:

  • Keep the heat high and add the the juices of the oranges, the zest, the balsamic vinegar and the marmalade and let it reduce for a further 5-10 minutes

  • Add a teaspoon of cornflour to a small cup of broth (you set it aside before, so it's at room temperature), and add it to the pan, stirring quite often until it almost reaches the right consistency

  • Repeat with another tsp of cornflour and broth if not thickened enough

• Add the pieces of pheasant back to the pan and coat well with the sauce

• Cover the pan again and cook for a further 5 minutes, turning once

TIP: Serve with roast potatoes and green beans