Hunter's Fowl " Cacciatore"

This dish can be made with pheasant or guinea hen, but chicken seems to be more common. If chicken is used rather than the wild fowl,cut the cooking time in half, reduce the wine by half and reduce the amount of tomatoes to 3 cups. I am trying to combine 3 recipes and get it right since I don't actually use one when I make this. Some folks like peas with this dish rather than peppers.

• Ready In: 1 hr 15 mins
• Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 2  pheasants, cleaned and brined
•  all-purpose flour
• 1⁄4 cup  vegetable oil
• 1⁄4 cup olive oil
• 1  cup onion, cubed
• 1⁄2 cup dry white wine
• 6  ripe roma tomatoes, peeled and crushed with juice
• 1  sprig oregano
• 1⁄2 lb mushroom, sliced
• 2  cups bell peppers, cut into strips

Directions

1. Remove birds from brine, rinse and dry.
2. Halve the fowl, cut hindquarters off and split each bird down the breastbone.
3. Remove wings, discard wing tips. (Keep the backbone and bits for chicken stock).
4. Sprinkle meat with salt and pepper.
5. Dredge in flour, shaking excess flour off.
6. Heat vegetable oil in a large heavy pan.
7. Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil.
8. Brown fowl a few pieces at a time.
9. Remove fowl from pan and set aside.
10. Add onion to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes.
11. Deglaze with the wine, scraping pan to get the crispy bits.
12. Add the tomatoes and oregano; bring to a boil.
13. Put the meat back into the bubbling sauce, reduce heat to a simmer and cover.
14. Cook, stirring if needed, for around 20 minutes.
15. Sauté the mushrooms and pepper strips in remaining olive oil in a separate pan until peppers are just limp but not soft, with "tooth" left.
16. Pour the mushroom/pepper mixture on top of the fowl.
17. Cover and continue to simmer for around 15 minutes until fowl is tender.
18. Remove meat from sauce, place on a warm plate.
19. Increase heat under sauce, adding more water if needed, and return to a boil.
20. Cook 5 minutes longer and spoon around pheasant on serving plate.