Poultry and Game Recipes - Burgundy Pheasant Recipe

  
 

Poultry and Game Recipes - Burgundy Pheasant Recipe

Ingredients

Serve 4-6

  • 2 plump oven-ready pheasants with giblets

  • 1 small thyme sprig or a pinch of dried thyme

  • 50 g/2 oz butter

  • 300 ml/1/2 pint red Burgundy

  • 1 tablespoon arrowroot or corn flour

  • 2 tablespoons redcurrant jelly

  • 2 tablespoons drained cocktail onions

  • 2 tablespoons stuffed green olives (optional)

  • salt and pepper 

To garnish:

  • redcurrants

  • parsley sprigs 

To serve:

  • bacon rolls

  • game chips

  • fried crumbs

  • small sausages

Method:

  1. Put the pheasant giblets into a pan with enough water to cover, add a little salt and pepper and thyme. Cover the pan and simmer for 45 minutes. Strain the liquid and boil briskly until reduced to 300 ml/12 pint of stock.

  2. Meanwhile, put half the butter inside the birds and spread the remainder over the skin. Put them into a roasting tin and cover lightly with kitchen foil to keep from drying out.

  3. Roast in a preheated oven, 200°C (400°F), Gas Mark 6, for 40 minutes. Take the roasting tin out of the oven about 10 minutes before the birds are cooked.

  4. Lift them on to a dish and pour out all the fat, straining 1 tablespoon into a pan for the sauce. Replace the birds and pour 3 tablespoons of the wine over them. Return to the oven while you make the sauce.

  5. To make the sauce, blend the arrowroot or corn flour with the remaining wine and add to the fat in the pan, together with the redcurrant jelly and giblet stock. Bring to the boil, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens slightly and the jelly dissolves.

  6. Lift the pheasants on to a warm dish. Strain the juices from the roasting tin into the sauce. Boil for a few minutes, then add the onions and olives, if using, and any extra seasoning required. Heat for 2-3 minutes.

  7. Pour the sauce over the pheasants and garnish with redcurrants and sprigs of parsley. Serve with accompaniments such as bacon rolls, game chips, fried crumbs and small sausages.