This is an elegant way to serve pheasant recipes that is simple enough to do on a weeknight. The pan-roasted breasts come out juicy, the skin crispy and sweet with a pomegranate glaze. The sauce is really deep and has a sweet-savory silkiness that makes you want to eat more. Have some crusty bread to soak it up.
Health Meals
Ingredients
2 whole pheasant breasts with skin
2 pounds fingerling potatoes or small Yukon Gold potatoes
4 tablespoons rendered pheasant fat, bacon fat or olive oil
Salt
3 finely chopped green onions
3 finely chopped green garlic stalks, or 3 cloves chopped
1 cup pomegranate juice
1 cup pheasant or chicken stock
1/2 cup sweet red wine (I use Greek Mavrodaphne)
2 bay leaves
2 small, dried hot chiles
2 tablespoons maple syrup
Fleur de sel or other finishing salt
Ingredients
2 whole pheasant breasts with skin
2 pounds fingerling potatoes or small Yukon Gold potatoes
4 tablespoons rendered pheasant fat, bacon fat or olive oil
Salt
3 finely chopped green onions
3 finely chopped green garlic stalks, or 3 cloves chopped
1 cup pomegranate juice
1 cup pheasant or chicken stock
1/2 cup sweet red wine (I use Greek Mavrodaphne)
2 bay leaves
2 small, dried hot chiles
2 tablespoons maple syrup
Fleur de sel or other finishing salt
Preparation:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Put the pomegranate juice, stock, sweet wine, bay leaves, dried chiles and maple syrup in a pot and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce this by 2/3 until it begins to thicken a bit.
- Meanwhile, roll the potatoes in 2 tablespoons pheasant fat, sprinkle with salt and put in a covered pot into the oven. Bake for at least 45 minutes.
- Salt the pheasant breasts well and set them out at room temperature.
- Watch the pomegranate sauce, and taste it from time to time. It usually needs a little salt — but this will depend on how salty your stock is.
- After the potatoes have cooked for 45 minutes, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons pheasant fat in an oven-proof pan over medium-high heat. Pat the pheasant breasts dry and lay them — skin side down — onto the pan.
- Let the pheasant breasts sear for 4-5 minutes, or until nicely browned. Turn over and paint with some of the pomegranate sauce.
- Take the potatoes out of the oven and put the pheasant pan into the oven. Turn the heat up to 425 degrees.
- Open the potato pot and smash the potatoes; you want pieces of various sizes. Toss in the chopped onions and garlic and maybe a little more fat or oil. Recover the pot and set aside.
- Watch the pheasant in the oven. You want the pomegranate glaze to caramelize. This should take 3-4 minutes if you oven can get hot fast, but under no circumstances should you let the pheasant stay in more than 8 minutes.
- Remove the pheasant breasts and let them rest 5 minutes.
- To assemble, pour a little pomegranate sauce on the plate. Add some potatoes, and then top with slices of pheasant breast. Add a little crunchy fleur de sel as garnish. Serve immediately with a juicy light red wine, such as a California Barbera or Sangiovese.