Thursday August 20, 2009

bdog94tiger01® Phesant Pate

1) Defrost whole pheasant and remove head.

2) Make up brine solution with lukewarm water and about 1/4 cup of salt.
Use enough water to fully cover the bird. Soak bird in brine for at least
30 min. (This pulls all the blood out of the tissues and makes for a
cleaner tasting meat.)

3) Make up a glazing/basting sauce; I used:
a: 12 oz of Blenheim Ginger ale (cause I had it available)
b: 4-5 Tblspns of Honey (or Pure Cane Syrup)
c: 2-3 Tblspns of Chipotle Sauce (either Tabasco Chipotle or some
Mexican Chipotle Sauce)
d: Salt and Pepper to Taste

4) Slowly cook the sauce and reduce the volume of the sauce by about half
until sauce becomes fairly thick.

5) Heat up Smoker to about 210-215 Deg F (I had mine at 225 and I thought
it was a little warm for the bird). I used a mixture of both apple and
cherry wood chips in the smoker. (Don't forget to soak the chips in water
at least 30 minutes prior to putting chips in the smoker.)

6) Take pheasant out brine and dry off bird. Crack some black pepper on
the breast and legs.

7) Find some thick cut bacon (mine was peppercorn coated) and wrap the
bacon around the legs and breast of the bird. Secure the bacon onto the
bird by using toothpicks.

8) Baste the bird once with the sauce prior to putting bird in smoker. (Be
sure to save at least one third of the basting sauce for after the bird is
smoked, this will help give the bird a smoky sweet taste.)

9) Place bird in smoker for no more than 2 hours and 10 minutes at the
target temperature. About half way though smoking time, open the smoker and
turn over the bird. While the smoker is open, add another cup of woodchips
onto the chip pan/tray.

10) After the birds are smoked, remove the birds from heat and allow them
to cool on the rack. (About 15 minutes)

11) Remove the strips of bacon and set aside. Hand pull all of the meat
from the legs and cut the breasts away from the breast bone. (Take special
care on the legs, on the "calves" of the bird there are little tendons on
the meat that are kind of spiny. Try and remove the meat from the tendons
and throw the tendons away.)

12) Lightly mince the breasts, leg meat and bacon and place into a
Cuisinart. Pulse chop the meat until it is finely cut. (Don't turn on the
Cuisinart, this just turns the meat into paste.)

13) Remove the meat and place into a mixing bowl.

14) Cut up 3 oz of Fontina cheese and place it in Cuisinart. Pulse chop it
until it is finely cut. Add into bowl with meat. (I like Fontina here
because it is a soft, yet tangy cheese that helps balance the sweet from
the glaze.)

15) Use remaining glaze, if needed add a little Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVO)
and your favorite BBQ sauce (but it needs to be a mildish type sauce) into
the mix and then use a big spoon to roll the mixture together until cheese,
sauce and meat is fully homogeneous.

16) Let meat pate rest for a few hours as this really allows some of the
flavors to meld.

17) Serve with Triscuits and a cold beverage and ENJOY!!!