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Smoked pheasant with wild mushroom and sweet grass sauce
Ingredients
- 1 whole pheasants
- 1/4 cup kosher salt
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 4 cups water
- 1.5 cups maple syrup, reduced by half
Wild mushroom sweet grass sauce:
- Braid of sweet grass (lightly torched)
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- Optional: 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- 1 pinch white pepper or black pepper
- 1 cup assorted wild mushroom (rough cut)
- 1/4 cup garlic butter
- 1 pinch paprika
- 1 pinch salt and pepper
- 10 sage leaves
Directions
- Dissolve the salt and sugar in the water. Find a lidded container just about large enough to hold both pheasants. Cover them with the brine and let this sit in the fridge for at least 12 hours and up to 18 hours.
- Take the pheasants out of the brine. Set in a container uncovered in the fridge overnight. This drying process is an important step. You want tacky on the outside, not soaking wet.
- Smoke the pheasants over the wood of your choice – I prefer apple, or – for at least three hours, you want a relatively warm smoke, between 200°F and 250°F. Let the pheasants smoke for one hour before brushing on the maple syrup, then repeat with the syrup every 30 minutes afterward.
- When the pheasants reach an internal temperature of 160°F in the thigh meat, take them out of the smoker. Put them on a cooling rack and baste them with maple syrup one more time. Wait at least 20 minutes before eating. They are excellent cold, too.
Wild mushroom sweet grass sauce:
- Grab braid of sweet grass and lightly torch evenly to begin to release the natural aroma of the sweet grass. (Just light torch and be careful not to burn. Set aside.
- Grab a sauté and melt your garlic butter until it starts to bubble. Turn down heat to medium and add in your mushroom medley. Sauté with paprika and salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
- Heat the milk in a saucepan and add in sweet grass over medium heat until bubbles begin to appear around the edge. Keep warm.
- Melt the butter in a separate saucepan over medium-low heat.
- Add the flour and stir until mixture is well blended to make a roux. Continue cooking, stirring, for two minutes. Make sure it does not turn brown.
- Gradually stir the hot milk into the flour and butter mixture. Cook over medium heat, constantly stirring, until the sauce begins to boil and thickens then turn to simmer
- Simmer, frequently stirring, over low heat for five minutes.
- Stir in the cream and wine, if using. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Leave the sweet grass braid in the sauce all night if possible. This sauce is best made the day before so that the sweet grass can really incorporate into the flavour.
- Ladle small pool of sauce on the bottom of desired plate and place smoked pheasant piled high over sauce. Finish by adding more sauce if needed and garnish with sage and micro greens
