Pheasant Potpie Recipes

Steps:

• Crust:Combine flours, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Add butter; pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few pea-size pieces remaining. Evenly drizzle with 6 tablespoons cold water. Pulse until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed (if necessary, add up to 2 tablespoons more cold water). Turn dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap. Press into a flattened rectangle, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to overnight. (Dough can be frozen up to 1 month; thaw in refrigerator the day before using.)
• Filling:In a large pot, combine pheasants, bay leaf, broth, and enough water to cover (6 to 8 cups). Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer and cook until pheasants are cooked through, about 20 minutes. Transfer pheasants to a plate; let cool. When cool enough to handle, pull meat from bones and cut into 1/2-inch pieces. (You should have about 4 cups meat.) Discard skin and bones.
• Skim fat from broth; return to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce to 4 cups.
• In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add flour and thyme and stir until vegetables are well coated, about 2 minutes. Slowly add reduced broth, whisking constantly. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in pheasant meat, peas, pearl onions, and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Pour filling into a 9-by- 13-inch baking dish.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On a lightly floured work surface, roll dough into a 13-by-16-inch rectangle. Cut two 1-inch-wide strips from long side, and one 1-inch-wide strip from short side. From these strips, cut long, oval feathers. Using a butter knife, score a line along center of each feather (don't slice all the way through). Using a paring knife, cut several short, parallel slices along outer edges of feathers to create fringe. Transfer feathers to freezer. To create herringbone pattern on remaining dough, gently press the tines of a fork into pastry (not going all the way through). Starting from top left corner, make diagonal hatch marks along edge of pastry. Switch direction of fork tines and repeat, creating alternating rows, until entire pastry is covered. Cut a vent in center of dough with a 1-inch round cutter; refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes. Center dough over filling. Tuck extra dough under while gently pinching to crimp edge. Brush egg wash over dough. Arrange feathers on crust and brush with egg wash. Place dish on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling, 50 to 55 minutes. Let cool 20 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, place the pheasants, water, quartered onion, celery and garlic; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1 hour or until tender. , When cool enough to handle, remove meat from bones; discard bones. Cut meat into bite-sized pieces; set aside. Strain broth, discarding vegetables. Measure 3-1/2 cups broth and place in saucepan. Add the lemon juice, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce and nutmeg. Remove 1/2 cup and stir in flour. Bring broth in saucepan to a boil. Add flour mixture; boil 1 minute or until thickened and bubbly. , Add the pearl onions, peas, carrots, pimientos, parsley and pheasant. Spoon into a 2-1/2-qt. baking dish. Roll pastry to fit dish; place over meat mixture and seal edges to dish. Cut small steam vents in crust. Bake at 425° for 35-40 minutes or until bubbly and golden.

Steps:

• With a sharp knife cut off legs, including thigh portion, of 1 pheasant and cut legs into drumstick and thigh portions. Reserve drumsticks and feet if attached for stock. Cut off wings and reserve for stock. Cut breast meat from pheasant carcass, keeping breast halves intact, and remove skin. Reserve carcass and skin for stock. Cut up and reserve parts of remaining 2 pheasants in same manner.
• Trim any excess fat from thighs and pat thighs and breasts dry. Arrange thighs and breasts in a flat-bottomed dish just large enough to hold them in one layer.
• Make spice rub:
• In a small heavy skillet dry-roast juniper berries over moderately high heat, stirring, until fragrant and shiny and in an electric coffee/spice grinder grind to a powder with salt, pepper, and thyme. Rub pheasant evenly with spice powder. Marinate pheasant, covered and chilled, at least 1 day and up to 2.While pheasant is marinating, make stock. In a small bowl soak porcini in hot water 20 minutes, or until softened. Remove porcini, squeezing out excess liquid, and reserve liquid. Wash porcini under cold water to remove any grit and chop them.
• Preheat oven to 350° F.
• Pat thighs dry, keeping breasts covered and chilled, and season with salt and pepper. In a 12-inch heavy skillet heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and brown thighs on all sides, skin sides down first, transferring with tongs to a large flameproof casserole (preferably shallow).
• Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons fat from skillet and in fat remaining in skillet cook shallots and garlic over moderate heat, stirring, until softened. Add porcini, shiitake, white mushrooms, and salt and pepper to taste and sauté over moderately high heat, stirring, until liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated. Slowly add all but about 1 tablespoon reserved porcini liquid, discarding last tablespoon (which contains sediment), and boil until liquid is evaporated. Add gin and wine and bring to a boil. Remove skillet from heat and ignite liquid carefully. When flames die out return skillet to heat and boil until liquid is evaporated. Add 2 cups stock and bring to a boil.
• Pour mushroom mixture over thighs in casserole and braise thighs, covered, in middle of oven 1 1/2 hours, or until tender. Transfer thighs with tongs to a bowl and cool. Add breasts to mushroom mixture in skillet and cook on top of stove at a bare simmer, uncovered, turning once, 8 minutes, or until just cooked through. Transfer breasts with tongs to bowl and cool. Pour cooking liquid through a large fine sieve into a large bowl, reserving mushrooms, and measure liquid. Add enough remaining pheasant stock to measure 4 cups liquid total.
• In a steamer set over boiling water steam vegetables separately, transferring all vegetables to a large bowl. Allow about 5 minutes cooking time for just-tender celery; 8 minutes for just-tender turnips, parsnips, and onions; and 10 minutes for just-tender carrots.
• Cut pheasant breasts into 1 1/2-inch chunks and cut thighs into chunks, discarding skin and bones. In a 3-quart oval gratin dish (about 15 by 10 1/2 by 2 1/2 inches) or other shallow baking dish toss together vegetables and pheasant chunks.
• In a large saucepan combine stock mixture and reserved mushrooms and bring to a boil. Stir cornstarch mixture and add to stock mixture, stirring. Simmer sauce 2 minutes and season with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over pheasant mixture. Filling may be made 2 days ahead and chilled, covered. Bring filling to room temperature before proceeding.
• On a lightly floured surface roll out 1 pastry sheet into a 14-inch square, keeping remaining pastry sheet chilled. Cut three 1/4-inch-wide pastry strips and braid together for pastry braid around rim of baking dish. Continue to cut and braid more strips from pastry to fit around rim of baking dish, transferring braids to a tray. From remaining rolled-out pastry cut out 2 long feathers for decoration, transferring to tray. Chill braids and feathers.
• Preheat oven to 375° F.
• On lightly floured surface roll out remaining pastry sheet into a rectangle at least 2 inches larger than baking dish and brush evenly with some egg wash. Drape pastry, egg-wash side down, over baking dish. Trim corners of overhang and press overhang along rim and side of baking dish to seal.
• Brush crust evenly with some egg wash. Arrange pastry feathers on crust and braids around rim, pressing gently to make them adhere. Brush decorations with some egg wash and if desired with a small sharp knife score pastry feathers decoratively.
• Bake pie in middle of oven 35 to 40 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and puffed slightly. Pie may be baked 1 day ahead, cooled completely, and chilled, covered loosely. Reheat pie, uncovered, in a 375° F. oven 35 minutes, or until heated through (pastry will darken slightly).