Christmas Recipes > Roast Pheasant with Cranberry Sauce

This recipe is part of the December 2006 Recipes Menu.


Starter - Avocado and Grapefruit Salad
Starter - Melon and Prawn Cocktail
Main Course - Goose with Apple and Walnut Stuffing
Main Course - Roast Pheasant with Cranberry Sauce
Dessert - Christmas Pavlova
Dessert - Prune, Apricot and Nut Torte

How to make roast pheasant with cranberry sauce:
Pheasant is a game bird which has a fairly strong flavour. It might be worth practising with this dish before the big day to check on amounts needed etc. Be careful when preparing and eating the birds as they can sometimes contain shot.



Ingredients

1 brace oven ready pheasants
1 lemon quartered
4 tablespoons melted butter
8 slices streaky bacon, rinds removed
seasoning

for cranberry sauce:

1 tablespoon plain/all-purpose flour
glass red wine
approx. 1/2 pint stock
finely pared rind and juice of 1 orange
4 tablespoons cranberry jelly
(see measure conversions for more information)

Method

- Wipe the pheasants inside and out and place in a roasting pan.
- Put half the butter and 2 quarters of the lemon in each cavity.
- Brush 2 tablespoons of melted butter over each bird and season lightly.
- Lay the bacon slices over the breasts.
- Roast the pheasants in a preheated oven at 220oC/425oF/gas mark 7 for 3/4 to 1 1/4 hours depending on the size of the birds, basting regularly until just cooked through and tender.

to make the sauce:

- Discard all but 2 tablespoons of the juices from the roasting pan.
- Add the flour to the pan and cook, stirring for a minute or so.
- Gradually stir in the stock and the wine and bring to the boil, stirring until thickened.
- Strain into a saucepan and add the orange rind and juice and the cranberry jelly.
- Serve the pheasants with seasonal vegetables and the cranberry sauce.




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