Introduced by the Normans in the 11th century, the pheasant is now a familiar sight in the countryside. Food writer Debbie Major shows us how to buy and cook these often overlooked birds.
Walk in the Hampshire countryside, where I live, during October and you’re bound to hear the boom of distant guns. The pheasant-shooting season begins on the first of the month, and for the next four months these delicious little birds are in plentiful supply from butchers and farm shops.
Game is increasingly popular because it’s low in fat, full of flavour and quick and easy to cook. If you’ve never tried it before, pheasant is a good starting point because it’s easy to come by when in season – and it’s well priced. For as little as £9 you can pick up a brace (a pair: one cock or male bird and one hen, the female), which will feed four generously. And nothing could be more free-range.
There are a few tricks to buying a good pheasant. First, find a reputable butcher. I go to SW Pickles & Son in New Milton, along the coast. Mr Pickles is a mine of information. His advice is to avoid birds with pale flesh, which look like small chickens. They might seem appealing but they’ll lack flavour and can be tough, as they haven’t had a chance to hang.
The case for hanging
All game benefits from this technique, which improves the flavour and tenderises the meat. In the past, it was the done thing to hang pheasant for a long time, but that results in a ‘high’ flavour. I don’t much like strongly flavoured game, and I’m sure that’s what puts other people off it. These days, the hanging time is shorter, but it depends on the weather; 10 days is average, but if October is mild it could be four or five days. Then, later on, when the days are cold, dry and frosty, pheasants can need as much as three weeks of hanging.
Don't buy any old bird
Once you’ve found properly hung birds, pick out mature, plump pheasants from the truly aged ones that have been running around the fields for years. Younger ones will be slightly smaller than the older birds, and the breast bone near the neck cavity will still be slightly flexible because the cartilage won’t yet have turned to bone. Also, the spurs on an older cock bird’s legs will be longer.
Bear the following in mind
- Inspect the bird closely to check for lead shot and remove it before cooking.
- Because pheasants are naturally lean, they benefit from the addition of extra fat, usually in the form of bacon, wrapped around before cooking.
- Pot-roasting is a great way to cook pheasants because the birds cook in a tightly sealed pot with a little liquid, which helps to keep the meat moist.
How to roast a brace of pheasant
- Check over both the birds for lead shot, wash them inside and out under running cold water and remove any stray feathers.
- Season each cavity well and stuff with a thyme sprig and a knob of butter. Season the outsides of the pheasants, then lay a rasher of fatty bacon over each breast and secure in place with kitchen string.
- Put both pheasants into a lightly oiled roasting tin and roast at 220°C/fan200°C/gas 7 for 20 minutes per 450g (combined weight) plus 5 minutes, or until the juices run clear when you insert a skewer into the thickest part of the thigh.
- 10 minutes before the end of the roasting time, snip the string, slide the bacon to one side and return to the oven to brown the skin.
- Remove the birds from the oven, cover loosely with foil and rest for 5-10 minutes before serving with bread sauce, game chips (crisps made of carrot, parsnip or potato, and a bunch of peppery watercress.