Skinless pheasant

MickeyT · January 2001

Hi gang,[p]Just lookin for a skinless pheasant recipe for smoking. The friend that gave me the bird (figuratively speaking) :>) suggested I wrap the bird in bacon as a way to keep it moist.[p]Thank you all,[p]Mick

JJ · January 2001

MickeyT.,
Juniper Pheasant Recipe
[p]3 dressed pheasants[p]6 sliced bacon[p]1 stick melted margarine
1/2 cup Juniper berries[p]1/4 cup cooking oil[p]1/2 tsp salt[p]1/4 tsp black pepper
I modified this from the attached url to work on the EGG.[p]Sprinkle the pheasants with salt and pepper, place them in a pan breast side up and drape bacon strips over them. Pour cooking oil and melted margarine over the the pheasant. Spread juniper berries around the pheasants. Place the casserole in a preheated 375 degree EGG, let it cook for 1/2 hour inderect, or until tender, baste frequently as it cooks.[p]
[ul][li]Wild game[/ul]

BBbrew · January 2001

MickeyT.,[p]I cant give you a specific recipe for pheasant, but you can pretty much treat it exactly like chicken. (Please, no "tastes just like chicken" jokes - in this case it is true).
I have a friend who gives me birds quite often (figurativley speaking too!). He is from Iowa and apparently the place is overrun with pheasants. [p]One thing I can tell you is DO NOT slow smoke it for an extended period of time, especially if the bird came with no skin. It will be dryer than you can ever imagine.[p]Soak the bird in your favorite chicken marinade and quick grill at a high temp. Seearve it on a bed of rice pilaf.

Spin · January 2001

BBbrew,[p]As we don't often eat the skin, I have cooked many a totally skinned bird in the Egg at 225-250°F (dome gauge) until the meat is cooked to done. The result is a well flavored, tender meat.[p]The advantage of using skinless birds is you can apply any flavoring directly to the meat (smoke, herbs, rubs, etc.) and enjoy the real benefit of this application in the finished meal (especially a smoke flavoring).[p]I cook these birds either verticle or horizontal (v-rack), both set over a drip pan set directly on the grill (no firebricks or pizza stones). Meat doneness is monitored with a polder type thermometer. The drip pan is filled with fruits, spices, vegetables, and liquid (water is the last thing to use).[p]The cook is done entirely with the dome closed - taking advantage of the design benefits of the Egg. The lower the cooking temperature, the less airflow needed through the Egg to maintain this temperature. Less airflow equals less drying of the meat as the meat can only dry as the air flowing around it removes moisture. The drip pan sees the direct heat of the fire and heats the liquid mixture it contains, causing evaporation of the flavors in the mix. Air can contain only a limited amount of moisture (100% humidity is the upper limit). Air approaching 100% humidity can not dry anything it comes into contact with, rather simply exchanges moisture.[p]The result is a moist meal, flavored mostly by the direct application to the meat, with a slight hint of the drip pan flavorings as well a hint of the charcoal fire.[p]We all have to floor the pedal on our new vehicle at some point, if only just to know what it can do so we can understand its limits. We do this with our understanding of what it should be capable of doing.[p]The Egg is capable of more than we understand. That is way this Egg is such a great cooker.[p]Spin

BBbrew · January 2001

Spin,[p]I guess the only point I was making is that pheasant is a very dry bird and I wouldnt do anything to it that you normally wouldnt do with chicken. If you have problems with chicken being dry (especially the white meat), then you will be in real trouble with pheasant. If you nomally slow cook chicken in your BGE and it comes out tender and juicy, then by all means try it with pheasant too. It still wont be as juicy as chicken thought because pheasant has absolutely no fat whatsoever. Skin removal aggrevates the peoblem. [p]Personally, I have a major aversion to overcooking any type of game animal so I err on the side of hot and fast cooking.
Of course, as you have said, the design benefits of a BGE help to keep the meat from drying out so it may not really be a problem afterall.[p]

BearFan · January 2001

JJ,[p]Great link![p]I'm putting some venison steaks
the egg tonight. Hungry already!

Spin · January 2001

BBbrew,[p]I have not tried the method on pheasant - only cooked with the skin on. I would use the bacon as a fat layer, placed on after the smoking. With skinless chickens, I've cooked for more than 6 hours with tender results.[p]I do get better results when the cook is done in the small over the large Egg. I think it is because the large has more surface area and then requires a bit more heat (airflow) than the small to maintain cooking temp.[p]Spin

BBbrew · January 2001

Hey Spin,[p]I found some boneless, skinless chicken breasts at the grocery store for $1.69 a pound on the way home from work today (I bought 5 packages:). I usually dont buy them prepared to that extent. (O.K., so I am cheap and I buy whole birds that I cut up myself - makes for better stock that way).[p]Anyway, they are marinating in teqela, lime juice, olive oil, garlic, cilanto, and chopped up serrano peppers right now. I am going to try your method and cook them a little slower. Probably not quite for 6 hours, but maybe an hour-and-a-half at about 275 to 300 or so. I will let you know how they turn out.

Skinless pheasant

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