Pot Roast Pheasant

Pot Roast Pheasant

Game season is in its full throw so the Farmer's market in Preston City Centre is overflowing with all sorts of Game.

Not being certain as to the age of the bird always makes choosing a Game recipe a bit tricky, only if you get a bird not yet plucked will you be sure of the age and sex.

For pheasant a good way of being sure of not ending up chewing on a tough bird for an evening is to pot roast it. This is my recipe:

Ingredients

1 whole pheasant
8 dried apricots
a large glass of red wine
a double measure of cooking brandy
6 smoked garlic cloves
salt and pepper
3 carrots
a large handful of oyster mushrooms
a bay leaf

In a large casserole dish place the pheasant (make sure all the bits of feather ends are removed).
Add the apricots, garlic cloves, red wine and brandy and bay leaf.
Season and place in a pre-heated oven at 160 degrees C for an hour, basting half way through.
Add the carrots, cut into rough batons
cook for a further 15 minutes then add the oyster mushrooms, taking the opportunity to baste the bird again. Leave in the oven, uncovered, for a further 15 minutes.

Let the bird rest before serving, the left over cooking liquor makes a wonderful sauce straight from the pan.