Smothered Pheasant or Grouse

ladypit's Note:

This is from a cool cookbook called "The Washington Cookbook" which features recipes collected from Washington state and published in 1982. From the wild game chapter, this is posted in response to a request. Not one I have tried, but I am happy to up the number of wild game recipes on zaar! The original recipe suggests that the flavor of this dish is enhanced by vegetables and that tiny boiled carrots are a good accompaniment. It also recommends that a bed of wild rice is quite nice. Actually, the ingredient list does not include carrot but the original directions say to sauté them along with the celery and onion. So if you try it let me know how it goes and I'll make adjustments!

• Total Time: 1 hrs 30 mins
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

• 2 pheasants or 4 grouse
• 1 tablespoon salt
• ½ cup flour
• 4 tablespoons butter , divided
• ¼ cup chopped celery
• ¼ cup chopped onion
• ½ cup water , boiling

Directions:

1. Skin, wash, and quarter your pheasant or grouse.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
3. Mix the flour and salt in a brown paper bag. Shake the meat pieces in the bag 2 at a time until coated.
4. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet. Sauté the celery and onion until tender. Place them in a shallow baking pan.
5. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in the skillet. Add the floured meat pieces and brown.
6. Remove the browned meat to the baking pan. Add the boiling water and cover with wax paper.
7. Bake for 1 hour or until the meat is tender.
8. Serve at once.

Reviews

[Hattie Ghost]

I made this with grouse and chicken breast (Hubby likes grouse but I prefer chicken). I added some oregano to the flour and added chopped carrots and a few mushrooms to the onions and celery. DELICIOUS!!! Hubby loved the grouse and I loved the chicken! I served it over mashed potatoes and it was GREAT! Have tried many grouse recipes and this is a keeper! One of the best I have tried. Thanks ladypit!

[AngAustinBrody]

My hubby came home from hunting with 3 grouse. I've tried various recipes before and have always ended up with a super chewy lump of meat before that ended up in the garbage. Thankfully this recipe proved my bad luck with grouse wrong!!!! It was delicious. Very tender flakey meat. I did use chicken broth instead of water, but other than that I didn't alter the recipe. Thanks for the great recipe. Always nice seeing wild game recipes on food.com!!

[SukiB]

My first time cooking grouse - I used chicken broth instead of plain water and added a bit of oregano to the flour... The grouse turned out remarkably tender with no game-taste at all. This is a keeper!