Coronation pheasant

Method

By Annie Bell 

This is another dish for converting any sceptics who think of pheasant as being dry. Cooked following this method, the bird should emerge beautifully succulent from the pot. Traditionally this is served with a rice salad, for instance a mixture of basmati, cucumber and chopped, fresh herbs. But I'd also serve a salad of red chicory, with plenty of chopped flat-leaf parsley and a mustardy vinaigrette. To make a dressing: whisk 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed to a paste, half a teaspoon golden caster sugar and some seasoning to taste in a bowl, then whisk in 5 tablespoons groundnut oil and 2 tablespoons walnut, hazelnut or extra-virgin olive oil.

1 Place all the ingredients for the poaching liquor in a large saucepan with a heaped teaspoon of salt and about 2 litres of water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes, then add the pheasants, breast-downwards; the liquid should almost submerge the birds. Bring back to a rolling boil, then cover, turn off the heat, and leave to cool for about 8 hours.

2 To make the sauce, heat a couple of tablespoons of oil (i.e. 30ml) in a large frying pan over a medium heat, add the onion and fry for 5-7 minutes until coloured, adding the garlic just before the end. Add the curry powder and stir for a moment until fragrant, then add the dried apricots and stir again.
Add the tomatoes, some seasoning and the sugar, and cook over a low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until you
have a rich, aromatic sauce. Blend this in a food processor with the lemon juice, adding a little water if necessary, then leave to cool.

3 Now make the mayonnaise: place the egg yolk in a bowl with the mustard and a little salt and whisk to blend them. Add just a dribble of oil and whisk it in, then gradually whisk in the remainder until the mayonnaise is so thick it clings to the whisk and sits in mounds. Stir the curried purée into the mayonnaise and taste for seasoning. Pass the sauce through a sieve.

4 Remove the pheasants from the poaching liquor, pat them dry with kitchen paper and carve them, discarding the skin. Arrange the meat on a large serving dish and smooth the sauce over. The carcasses can be added back to the poaching liquor and boiled up for stock. The recipe can be prepared to this point well in advance, in which case cover and set aside in a cool place. Scatter over the nuts and seeds, if using, just before serving.

* Spread on a baking dish and toast for 7-8 minutes at 200°C (180°C fan oven) gas mark 6.