I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excellent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250° or roasted at 375-400°? Any special handling to keep it
moist?

Thanks
--
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----
Louis Cohen
Living la vida loca at N37° 43' 7.9" W122° 8' 42.8"

Louis Cohen wrote:
I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excellent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250° or roasted at 375-400°? Any special handling to keep it
moist?

Thanks

Wild birds are very difficult to keep moist, even if you brine them.
I've cooked many a pheasant and the only ways I've found that result in
moist meat a

1. Remove the meat, cut into chunks, saute quickly with garlic and oil
over high heat and serve over pasta or rice (you can make a garlic cream
sauce, if you like).
2. Stew the birds
3. Cut up and grill, then brush with your fave bbq sauce.

You can smoke them, if you like, but they're going to be quite dry.

--
Stan

Louis Cohen wrote:
I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excellent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250° or roasted at 375-400°? Any special handling to keep it
moist?

Thanks

Wild birds are very difficult to keep moist, even if you brine them.
I've cooked many a pheasant and the only ways I've found that result in
moist meat a

1. Remove the meat, cut into chunks, saute quickly with garlic and oil
over high heat and serve over pasta or rice (you can make a garlic cream
sauce, if you like).
2. Stew the birds
3. Cut up and grill, then brush with your fave bbq sauce.

You can smoke them, if you like, but they're going to be quite dry.

--
Stan

Dog3 wrote:


Deathbed statement...

"Codeine . . . bourbon."
~~Tallulah Bankhead, actress, d. December 12, 1968



That sig caught my eye. Nobody gave her what she wanted, did they?

She was dying and all anybody around her did was write her words down on a
scrap of paper.

"Damn her wishes, we'll record what she said for posterity."


Did she get a shot or a pill? Does anybody know? ("shot" referring to a
shot of liquor, not a medicinal shot.)

Dog3 wrote:


Deathbed statement...

"Codeine . . . bourbon."
~~Tallulah Bankhead, actress, d. December 12, 1968



That sig caught my eye. Nobody gave her what she wanted, did they?

She was dying and all anybody around her did was write her words down on a
scrap of paper.

"Damn her wishes, we'll record what she said for posterity."


Did she get a shot or a pill? Does anybody know? ("shot" referring to a
shot of liquor, not a medicinal shot.)

"Louis Cohen" wrote in message
...
I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excellent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250° or roasted at 375-400°? Any special handling to keep
it
moist?

Thanks
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
----
Louis Cohen
Living la vida loca at N37° 43' 7.9" W122° 8' 42.8"

This is the simplest way to keep 'em from being too dry; (as well as your
favorite brine, with a few sprigs of rosemary added)

1 Pheasant
Salt and pepper
Butter
4 Cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 Chopped onion

Salt and pepper pheasant inside and out. Rub butter on outside of pheasant
and add garlic, onion and a little butter to cavity of bird.
Put bird in a brown bag and tie end. Set on cookie sheet and bake 1 1/2
hours at 350 degrees.




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On 2004-07-15, Louis Cohen wrote:

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250° or roasted at 375-400°? Any special handling to keep it
moist?

I know this is bubbu-Q blaspheme, but I recommend moist cooking. Even a
raised pheasant is fast muscle fiber. That means tough/lean breast meat.
Your best bet is a braise or fricassee. My fave is to braise in a mushroom
espagnole sauce. Yum!

nb

"Louis Cohen" wrote in message
...
I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excellent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250$B!(B or roasted at 375-400$B!(B? Any special handling to keep
it
moist?


Louis,

I smoked a pheasant (with oak) in the spring and still have another in the
freezer. I brined mine for 2 days and then allowed it to dry. I (carefully)
teased the skin away from the meat and laid strips of fatty bacon between
the skin and the meat. I smoked it for approx 3 hours at 250-275 and it kept
relatively moist due to the fat rendering from the bacon. It's also very
gamey, and watch out for lead shot when eating. The liver was particularly
enjoyable.

Graeme

Thanks, everybody for your suggestions.

--
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----
Louis Cohen
Living la vida loca at N37° 43' 7.9" W122° 8' 42.8"


"Louis Cohen" wrote in message
...
I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excellent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250° or roasted at 375-400°? Any special handling to keep
it
moist?

Thanks
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
----
Louis Cohen
Living la vida loca at N37° 43' 7.9" W122° 8' 42.8"

If you want to do something different, you can try what I did a couple of
years ago. Take a chicken gumbo recipe and substitue the pheasant. Serve
this with your next bbq. If you smoke a brisket, and start the crock for
the gumbo at the same time you start the fire in your firebox, they will
finish about the same time.

I have done this with Pheasant and Chuckar and other than needing a touch of
extra butter or olive oil, they turn out lovely.

Paul


"Louis Cohen" wrote in message
...
I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excellent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250° or roasted at 375-400°? Any special handling to keep
it
moist?

Thanks
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
----
Louis Cohen
Living la vida loca at N37° 43' 7.9" W122° 8' 42.8"

"Graeme...in London" wrote in message
...
Louis,

I smoked a pheasant (with oak) in the spring and still have another in the
freezer. I brined mine for 2 days and then allowed it to dry. I
(carefully)
teased the skin away from the meat and laid strips of fatty bacon between
the skin and the meat. I smoked it for approx 3 hours at 250-275 and it
kept
relatively moist due to the fat rendering from the bacon. It's also very
gamey, and watch out for lead shot when eating. The liver was particularly
enjoyable.

Graeme

Louis:

I'm sort of with Graeme on this one, but I would use herbed butter in place
of the bacon. Also, you might think about using alder as a smoking wood.

James Emanuel

Louis Cohen wrote:

I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excellent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250° or roasted at 375-400°? Any special handling to keep it
moist?

Thanks
Want it frutie?

Stuff it with plums and just a few cloves. Make a plum sauce to serve
with it.

The key here IMHO is to stuff the thing with something that will keep it
moist during smoaking.

Crack the ribs using a sharp knife from the inside and scrape till meat
is exposed on the inside, then stuff with anything you may like that
will keep it moist but add the flavor that you want. Smoke with any
fruit wood.

Another thing to try is to stuff it with chicken thighs with the skin
on? That should do it too. It in fact does do it. I have done it. Yummy!
Use Alder.

Louis Cohen wrote:

I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excell=
ent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?
=20
My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250=B0 or roasted at 375-400=B0? Any special handling to=
keep it
moist?

Start with the idea that they're *extremely* lean. Moistness comes=20
from 3 different sources; water-based juices, fat and our saliva while=20
eating. You can affect 2 of them with culinary technique.

Brining is a good idea, but you might also want to think about barding=20
and larding the birds. Larding is making small holes in the meat and=20
putting fat (bacon, suet, blanched salt pork, goose fat, etc.) in the=20
holes. It can be as simple as making several small holes and pushing=20
little pieces of fat into them or, more effectively, to push strips of=20
bacon through the breast meat. Larding is draping the bird with slices=20
or strips of fat.

Smoke it as cool as you can (but still over 160=B0F) or roast at low=20
temps (between 225=B0F to 275=B0F) to keep moisture in the meat. The=20
degree of doneness will determine the water-moistness, so the=20
combination of brining to add extra water and low-temp roasting to=20
evaporate less juice will give you a more moist and tender bird.=20
Cooking at 225=B0F will give you virtually no pan juices; they're all=20
still in the meat.

Before cooking the bird, take it out of the brine and either suspend=20
it or put it on a rack - in the fridge - to let the surface dry and=20
form a skin or "pellicle" to make it cook more cleanly. Let the bird=20
sit on your counter until it comes close to room temp before cooking.=20
It'll help the bird cook more quickly and because the meat will come=20
to temp more quickly and evenly, less moisture loss.

A variation on larding is to rub the birds with a generous portion of=20
mayonnaise. It's an old chef's trick for moistening the skin and=20
helping it to brown more evenly.

A further way to keep it more moist is to brine, bard, rub with mayo=20
(or goose fat) and dredge in seasoned breadcrumbs. The crumbs provide=20
a further buffer against moisture loss and another opportunity for=20
subtle seasoning.

Pastorio

Louis Cohen wrote:

I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excell=
ent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?
=20
My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250=B0 or roasted at 375-400=B0? Any special handling to=
keep it
moist?

Start with the idea that they're *extremely* lean. Moistness comes=20
from 3 different sources; water-based juices, fat and our saliva while=20
eating. You can affect 2 of them with culinary technique.

Brining is a good idea, but you might also want to think about barding=20
and larding the birds. Larding is making small holes in the meat and=20
putting fat (bacon, suet, blanched salt pork, goose fat, etc.) in the=20
holes. It can be as simple as making several small holes and pushing=20
little pieces of fat into them or, more effectively, to push strips of=20
bacon through the breast meat. Larding is draping the bird with slices=20
or strips of fat.

Smoke it as cool as you can (but still over 160=B0F) or roast at low=20
temps (between 225=B0F to 275=B0F) to keep moisture in the meat. The=20
degree of doneness will determine the water-moistness, so the=20
combination of brining to add extra water and low-temp roasting to=20
evaporate less juice will give you a more moist and tender bird.=20
Cooking at 225=B0F will give you virtually no pan juices; they're all=20
still in the meat.

Before cooking the bird, take it out of the brine and either suspend=20
it or put it on a rack - in the fridge - to let the surface dry and=20
form a skin or "pellicle" to make it cook more cleanly. Let the bird=20
sit on your counter until it comes close to room temp before cooking.=20
It'll help the bird cook more quickly and because the meat will come=20
to temp more quickly and evenly, less moisture loss.

A variation on larding is to rub the birds with a generous portion of=20
mayonnaise. It's an old chef's trick for moistening the skin and=20
helping it to brown more evenly.

A further way to keep it more moist is to brine, bard, rub with mayo=20
(or goose fat) and dredge in seasoned breadcrumbs. The crumbs provide=20
a further buffer against moisture loss and another opportunity for=20
subtle seasoning.

Pastorio

On Thu, 22 Jul 2004 06:19:15 -0400, "Bob (this one)"
wrote:

Louis Cohen wrote:

I just got 4 frozen pheasants (and a load of birch wood) from my excellent
neighbor. Any suggestions for cooking the birds?

My hunch is that a brine for this lean poultry would be in order. But
smoked at 220-250° or roasted at 375-400°? Any special handling to keep it
moist?

Start with the idea that they're *extremely* lean. Moistness comes
from 3 different sources; water-based juices, fat and our saliva while
eating. You can affect 2 of them with culinary technique.

Brining is a good idea, but you might also want to think about barding
and larding the birds. Larding is making small holes in the meat and
putting fat (bacon, suet, blanched salt pork, goose fat, etc.) in the
holes. It can be as simple as making several small holes and pushing
little pieces of fat into them or, more effectively, to push strips of
bacon through the breast meat. Larding is draping the bird with slices
or strips of fat.

Smoke it as cool as you can (but still over 160°F) or roast at low
temps (between 225°F to 275°F) to keep moisture in the meat. The
degree of doneness will determine the water-moistness, so the
combination of brining to add extra water and low-temp roasting to
evaporate less juice will give you a more moist and tender bird.
Cooking at 225°F will give you virtually no pan juices; they're all
still in the meat.

Before cooking the bird, take it out of the brine and either suspend
it or put it on a rack - in the fridge - to let the surface dry and
form a skin or "pellicle" to make it cook more cleanly. Let the bird
sit on your counter until it comes close to room temp before cooking.
It'll help the bird cook more quickly and because the meat will come
to temp more quickly and evenly, less moisture loss.

A variation on larding is to rub the birds with a generous portion of
mayonnaise. It's an old chef's trick for moistening the skin and
helping it to brown more evenly.

A further way to keep it more moist is to brine, bard, rub with mayo
(or goose fat) and dredge in seasoned breadcrumbs. The crumbs provide
a further buffer against moisture loss and another opportunity for
subtle seasoning.

Pastorio

I once had to deal with farm-raised free-range pheasants and I was
scared to death because everyone said they are dry when roasted.

I eventually cooked them in an oven bag with very fatty rashers of
bacon over them. They were delicious and were NOT dry at all.