A pheasant had a bad run in with a shotgun recently and to make it feel better I'd like to treat it to a cook on the PBC. Any tips? Reading up on it - so far it sounds like it's a gamier than duck/goose and so doing a wet brine for 12 hours helps with both the gamey flavor and keeping the bird moist.
Also, I typically cook store bought chicken at around 310-330, crack the lid at 135 and cook it until 160. Fat renders/crisp skin. However, wild game typically doesn't have much fat on it, right?
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I've not done a pheasant on the PBC so this is just a SWAG: 160 is the general minimum safe temperature for most poultry (esp. chicken, turkey, etc.). 175 is to address the possibly slimy texture of dark meat. I think I'd assume that an active, flying bird like a pheasant is mostly dark meat and shoot for 175 IT pretty much everywhere. Remember that this is just a SWAG. Perhaps a Pit member who has actually done one will chime in with a much more informed answer for you.
My experience with pheasant is that it can be really, really, really incredibly dry. They are not gamey at all. I wouldn't try to grill/smoke it unless you can figure out someway to get a bunch of moisture into it. I've made smoked pheasant in a manner similar to jerky strips that has been good. For fresh birds, I mostly cut them into pieces, brown and then braise in white wine sauce with rosemary and onion. I also have made a French inspired dish that uses a red wine base, but still braised. I'll post the recipes if you want them. Pheasants spend most of their time running around on the ground and only fly to get away from threats - like a person with a dog and shotgun (heh-heh). Their breast meat is quite white and the legs/thighs dark. Did I mention that pheasant can be really dry?
Last edited by OneEyedJack; November 14, 2016, 05:35 PM.
Good to know - and yes, if you could reference your favorite way to have pheasant I'll be sure to try it out on the next one.
I already put it in brine for 12 hours and now have the Memphis Dust under the skin/dusted on the skin. Fingers crossed that it doesn't turn out dry - and if it does, I'll eat the flank steak that's cooking beside it instead.
Pheasant in White Wine (easy!)
3lbs pheasant cut up as fryer
4 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp crushed rosemary
2 cups white wine
2 onions
salt & pepper
Season meat with S&P, dust with flour. Soak rosemary in white wine. Brown pheasant in butter over hot flame. Arrange pieces in a casserole dish. Pour wine with rosemary over pheasant. Slice onions and lay over top. Cover and bake at 325 until fork tender ~ 1 hour.
Pheasant Beaujolais
3 to 4 lbs. pheasant or chicken
1/3 lbs. pork shoulder steak
8 pearl onions
1/2 lbs. small mushrooms
2 cups beef broth
1 cup Beaujolais or any dry red wine
2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp. chopped parsley
1 tsp. cornstarch for thickening
Cut pork into 1/2" cubes. Brown in own fat and maybe a little oil until crisp in a wide frying pan or 4-5 quart kettle (recommended). Set pork aside. Cut pheasant into serving pieces. Add pheasant and onions to pan and cook until meat and onions are well browned. Lift meat and onions from pan and set aside. To the same pan add mushrooms and cook until lightly browned. Lift mushrooms from pan and set aside. Do not scorch the pan because the fond is the basis of your sauce! Add broth to pan to deglaze and reduce to one cup. Return pheasant to pan and add wine and Dijon. Bring to boil and reduce heat to simmer for ~30 minutes until thigh is fork tender. Stir in reserved pork and add the parsley. When simmering again, lift meat and vegetables from pan with a slotted spoon to a serving dish. Blend cornstarch with 1 tsp. water and stir into cooking juices. Bring to boil, stirring then pour over pheasant.
Thank you for the recipe - I am def. going to try that next time. Cooking it on the PBC was ok - it didn't dry out but it was a bit chewier than duck or goose.
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I've only eaten it once, and I fried the pieces in a skillet with salt & pepper & EVOO (before my BBQ & smoker days). Breast was very dry, the rest wasn't but was slightly tough. It went excellently with some kind of pomegranate or plum sauce of some sort that we had at the time. I think a wet brine would be a great thing to do before grilling.
Well the brine kept it from getting dry, however the texture was slightly tough in places. The breast meat could be taken off at 150 and the legs at 160, so I just ran it up to 153ish and pulled it, lightly tented it, and let it coast a bit closer to optimal leg temp. Next time I'll try that recipe OneEyedJack suggested.
Your photos look great! Pheasants are a challenge to prepare properly. Unlike waterfowl, there is practically no fat, but the meat is delicate and takes on flavors well. If you like whisky, I've got another recipe that is very flavorful. The only trouble is that you will have an open bottle of Wild Turkey in your kitchen
1 pheasant quartered
4 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp corn starch
1/2 cup Wild Turkey Bourbon (101 proof recommended)
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 cup sour cream
Brown pheasant in butter, turning frequently, until golden brown (don't burn!) Pour bourbon over pheasant and cook for 5 mins. or until bourbon has evaporated. Add broth, cover and simmer for 50 mins. or until tender. Remove pheasant to serving plater and keep warm. Mix cornstarch with 1 Tbsp. water and stir int skillet juices. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Add salt and pepper to sour cream. Lower heat and stir in sour cream and heat until sauce begins to simmer. Don't boil or sauce will break! Pour over pheasant and serve at once.
(source is Lymans The Wild Gourmet cook book as is the wine/pheasant recipe). (The French one is from an old Sunset Magazine cook book) These are tested recipes and are good!
I grew up in Pheasant country. My Grandparents were German ancestors.
My Uncles always hunted and always hung their birds out in the barn for a week before cooking.
Not sure it is something I would attempt myself but it was and is the only way I really cared for pheasant.
Found a short article from Nebraska hunters who still seem to do it. http://magazine.outdoornebraska.gov/...nts-wild-fowl/
I have smoked pheasants in a Cookshack. Soaked them in brine for two or three days before smoking. The extended time in the brine seemed to help with less dryness. That was before I found this site and their techniques for preparing meat before smoking.
Wild Game | Pheasant on the PBC
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