Braised Pheasant With Celery And Walnuts Recipes

BRAISED PHEASANT WITH CELERY AND WALNUTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Brown the pheasant in two tablespoons butter in a casserole. Add the orange juice and Madeira or port, salt, pepper and stock. Cover and braise in the oven for 45 minutes or until tender, basting occasionally.
• Meanwhile, trim the celery, cut into one-half-inch slices crossways. Heat the remaining butter in a skillet and add the walnuts and celery. Saute over high heat with salt and pepper to taste, keeping celery crisp.
• Julienne the orange rind and simmer in boiling water until tender (about 45 minutes). Strain and set aside.
• Test the pheasant for doneness and season with salt and pepper. Remove to a heated serving dish. Bring the cooking juices to a boil and reduce (if the sauce is very thin, add a little cornstarch mixed to a smooth paste with water and bring to boil). Season to taste with salt and pepper and pour the sauce around the pheasant and serve with the celery and walnuts scattered on top with the orange rind.

BRAISED PHEASANT WITH RED CABBAGE WILD RICE

Steps:

• Make wild rice:
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• In a fine sieve rinse wild rice well and drain. In a small saucepan bring broth to a simmer. In a small flameproof casserole Sauté rice in oil over moderately high heat, stirring, 1 minute and stir in hot broth and salt and pepper to taste. Bring mixture to a boil and bake, covered, in middle of oven 1 hour, or until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender.
• While rice is cooking, in a 10-inch skillet cook bacon over moderate heat until crisp and transfer to paper towels to drain. Transfer all but 1 tablespoon drippings to a small bowl and reserve for cooking pheasant.
• Heat drippings remaining in skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and sauté onion and cabbage, stirring, until softened. Add vinegar and salt and pepper to taste and sauté, stirring, 1 minute. Chop bacon. Just before serving, stir cabbage mixture and bacon into wild rice.
• Make pheasant while rice is cooking:
• Rinse pheasant under cold water and pat dry inside and out. Cut pheasant into 6 serving pieces, transferring feet, back, neck, and wing tips to a small saucepan. To saucepan add water and bay leaf and simmer, uncovered, 15 to 20 minutes, or until reduced to about 3/4 cup. Strain stock through a fine sieve into a heatproof bowl.
• In a small bowl stir together salt, pepper, and allspice. Pat pheasant dry again and sprinkle evenly with allspice mixture. In a 10-inch heavy ovenproof skillet heat oil with 1 tablespoon reserved drippings over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and sauté pheasant until golden, about 5 minutes on each side. Transfer pheasant to a plate.
• In fat remaining in skillet cook raisins and shallots over moderate heat, stirring, until shallots are softened. Stir in gin and boil until most is evaporated. Stir in wine and boil until reduced by about half. Stir in stock, tomato paste, rosemary sprig, and salt and pepper to taste and bring sauce to a boil.
• Add pheasant to sauce, skin sides down, and braise, tightly covered, in middle of 350°F. oven until breast meat is cooked through and tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer breasts to a clean plate and keep warm, covered. Braise legs and thighs until cooked through and tender, about 10 minutes more. Transfer legs and thighs to plate and keep warm, covered. Stir minced rosemary and grapes into sauce and boil until slightly thickened, about 1 minute.
• Divide pheasant between 2 dinner plates, spooning sauce over it, and serve with red cabbage wild rice.

BRAISED PHEASANT WITH CHESTNUTS

Steps:

• Make the stock by simmering the pheasant neck and gizzard with the onion, carrot and celery, salt and pepper, thyme and bayleaf for 20 minutes. Set aside.
• Melt the butter in a casserole large enought to hold the pheasant surrounded by vegetables in one layer. Saute the carrots, shallots and turnips in the butter until they are golden. Sprinkle the flour on the pheasant and brown in the butter. Turn down heat, cover and leave to simmer.
• Meanwhile, make a short vertical slit through the top of the chestnuts toward the bottom. Simmer for five minutes in boiling water. Remove with a slotted spoon one at a time and peel while hot. If you allow the chestnuts to cool, the inner skin sticks to the chestnuts. Use rubber gloves if you cannot peel the chestnuts with your bare fingers.
• Add the chestnuts to the casserole. Add the wine and one cup of stock. Cover and cook for half an hour. Test the pheasant for doneness and season with salt and pepper. Remove the pheasant to a serving dish. If the sauce is too liquid, bring to boil and reduce. If it is too thick, add more stock.
• Arrange the vegetables and sauce around the pheasant and serve hot.

CIDER-BRAISED PHEASANT WITH PEARL ONIONS AND APPLES

Steps:

• Make marinade:
• In blender, combine olive oil, ginger, tarragon, orange juice, zest, salt, and pepper and purée until smooth. In large bowl, combine marinade and pheasant and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight or up to 48 hours.
• Braise pheasant:
• In very large Dutch oven over moderately high heat, heat olive oil until hot but not smoking. Remove pheasant pieces from marinade, scraping off excess, and sprinkle with salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Working in batches, sear pheasant pieces until well browned, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to paper towel-lined platter to drain.
• Preheat oven to 325°F. Skim off all but 1 tablespoon oil from pan, leaving browned bits at bottom, and set pan over moderately low heat. Add butter and heat until melted. Stir in onions, bay leaf, fennel seeds, salt, remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are well caramelized, 30 to 40 minutes.
• Return pheasant to pot. Add chicken broth, cider, and wine. (Liquid should cover half of pheasant pieces. Add more chicken broth if necessary.) Raise heat to high and bring liquid to simmer. Add apples, cover, and transfer pot to oven. Braise, turning pheasant pieces occasionally, until meat is cooked through and tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour.
• Using tongs or slotted spoon, transfer pheasant to platter and cover with foil to keep warm. Set pot over high heat and bring pan juices to boil. Boil, uncovered, until sauce is well reduced and thickened, about 25 minutes. Taste and add additional salt and pepper, if necessary.
• While juices are reducing, prepare caramelized onions and apples:
• Bring medium pot of water to boil. Add pearl onions and boil, uncovered, 1 minute. Drain and run under cold water until cool enough to handle; slip off skins.
• In small skillet over moderately high heat, heat oil until hot but not smoking. Add onions, apples, sugar, salt, and pepper and stir to combine. Sear, shaking pan occasionally, until onions and apples are dark golden, about 10 minutes. Stir in apple cider, scraping up any browned bits in pan. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until onions are fork tender, about 2 minutes more.
• Serve:
• Spoon some of sauce over pheasant and garnish with onions, apples, and chopped tarragon. Serve additional sauce alongside.