"One of the greatest joys of hunting is that when you succeed, you suddenly have an entire game animal to prepare. You feel grateful to have such an ingredient that has lived its entire life in the wild. Being able to provide your own ingredients as an amateur chef is one of the greatest pleasures of all."
Here is a recipe from Adam Price, a danish tv chef and restaurant owner, for pheasant that stands out from the typical game dishes with sauce and potatoes. The pheasant is marinated in buttermilk and breaded to ensure a crispy exterior and juicy interior.
Ingredients:
For 4 people
- 4 pheasant breasts – marinated in buttermilk for 1-2 days.
For breading
- 200 grams flour
- 200 grams panko
- 2-3 eggs – beaten
- Salt and pepper in the flour
Vegetables
- 2-3 small, new carrots per person
- 2-3 new onions per person (or spring onions)
- 2-3 green asparagus per person
For the Sauce
- Rich chicken stock. Make your own or buy a quality one. It makes a difference in this sauce.
- 1 tbsp whole-grain mustard
- 2 tbsp finely chopped herbs – e.g., lovage and parsley
- 1 tbsp finely chopped onion
- 2 tbsp finely chopped tomato
- 1-2 tbsp butter
Instructions:
Remove the pheasant breasts from the buttermilk. Pat them dry with a paper towel or cloth. Coat them thoroughly in flour, then in the egg mixture, and finally in panko. Set them aside for breading.
Fry them in a pan with half butter, half oil. Use enough fat in the pan so they effectively shallow-fry—the fat should come up about 1/3 of the way up the side of the meat.
Sauté the vegetables over low to medium heat in a large pan with a little oil and butter. Season with salt and pepper. Start with the onions and carrots and then add the asparagus last.
Sauce:
Reduce the stock. Just before serving, whisk in the whole-grain mustard. Add the onion and tomato. Whisk in the butter for a creamy consistency. Finally, add a handful of finely chopped herbs.
Lovage Oil:
Blend a large bunch of lovage with 3 dl of oil and a little salt. Blend on the highest setting until the mixture warms to about 50 degrees from friction. It usually takes 2-3 minutes of blending. Strain the oil through a nylon cloth or a tea towel. It can keep for about 3 weeks in the fridge. Save the pulp as well. It can be used for other things, such as pesto.
On each plate, arrange the freshly sautéed summer vegetables, a breaded pheasant breast, and drizzle some sauce around. Add a few drops of the beautiful green lovage oil. Serve!
Enjoy with a good glass of Beaujolais. Have a great summer!
