pigeons

[jenny_haddow]

Hi all

I have a largish quantity of pigeon breasts in my freezer and want to roll out something tasty next weekend when we have visitors. Any suggestions?

Cheers

jen

[Fallow Buck]

Hi Jenny,

Pigeon can be quite dry so unless it is either cooked medium rare or for a lonf time in a stew/pie it can run the risk of being quite tough.

I often cook pigeon with black cherries. Just fry up some onions bit of garlick and brown off the pigeon breasts.

Then add a pint or so of stock, a couple of bay leaves and some seasoning and cover. Once that is reduced down a bit and the pigeon is cooked to tender, add half a glass of brandy and flame it. Then add a tin of pitted cherries and some butter and flour paste at the last minute to thicken the sauce slightly. I often then put this in a casserole and put it in a low oven to do its thing covered up for a couple of hours.


Another one that I do is to cook pheasant with chestnuts, but you could use pigeon. Similar to this but using less brandy and adding some ginger to the onions and some mixed herbs. Add a bit more stock, & instead of the cherries add plenty of cooked chestnuts then thicken up the sauce the same way. This I always finish in a casserolle in the oven.

Last one is like a Steak and Mushroom pie, but instead of pastry I use layers of finely sliced potatoes brushed with butter. and seasoned on top. The last one I did I used a sweet pear cider instead of half the stock and a spoon of crab apple jelly with lots of mushrooms in the mix. It's a great thing to do with mixed game trimmings too. If you want a more detailed recipe let me know and I'll post one, but I think you are probably a bit of an expert in this feild judging by some of your previous exploits!!!

Rgds,
FB

[Ianinfrance]

Hi Jenny,

We were given a couple of pigeons the other day, and as I wasn't too sure of their age, decided to make a pigeon pie. It's the first time I've made on and it was really good.
I used more or less the standard (hammergun) recipe, with cubed pigeon breasts, some thinly sliced steak and (homemade) sausagemeat balls, but leaving out hard boiled eggs. Flaky pastry topping. The only thing you might find a little tricky was to make some pigeon stock. I used the rest of the carcases and beef trimmings to do so.

Here's the reference to the recipe I used.

http://www.pigeonwatch.co.uk/recipes.htm

[jenny_haddow]

I'm spoiled for choice here guys, thankyou very much indeed. I'm finding some good game supplied in the butchers here in Ely, and at a reasonable price, so I'm taking full advantage of it.

Thanks again

Jen

[Fallow Buck]

Actually I have just remembered that I have 8-10 duck breasts in the fridge that I took out last night so I think I'll probably do them with cherries tonight unless I don't have any in which case I'll do the chestnut one.

Thanks Jen, I'm looking forward to dinner now!!

FB

[welsh wizard]

Hi Jenny, pidgeon is a staple in our house (but dont eat too many they are not too good for you).

As a starter, I fry the breasts in butter with a little garlic for 1 - 2 mins on one side, turn over and 2 - 3 mins on the other. Take them out of the pan and leave to rest in a warm oven for 10 mins. Meanwhile, deglaze the pan with some port and add a table spoon or two of redcurrent jelly and simmer.

Take the breasts out of the oven, cut into a fan and serve with the sauce and some salad. yum yum

[jenny_haddow]

Thanks WW, superb. I'll have to try all of these I can see that.

FB, if you like using cherries with meat I have a great middle eastern recipe which includes cherries, I'll dig it out and post it.

Jen

[saucisson]

pidgeon is a staple in our house (but dont eat too many they are not too good for you).

Why is that WW?

Dave

[welsh wizard]

Hi Saucission

Ref My comment about "not too many", I thought that may come back and bite me in the bum. It was somthing I heard when I grew up as a lad in the country, as people then associated the little grey wonders with the eating of large quantities of acorns and thought it left a residue in the meat. I dont know if this is correct or as I suspect an old yarn, but having lived in rural Devon and rural Herefordshire I have heard this tale on a number of occassions, so it just may well hold water. However I eat four of five breasts at a time and it has not seemed to do me any harm

Cheers WW

[saucisson]

Thanks WW,

Dave

[welsh wizard]

Hi again saucisson I did a bit of follow up on this via a vet mate of mine and evidently there is truth in the old tale, and it is all about the toxins in Acorns - he went into greater depth but I went into greater drinking mode!

Anyway rest assured you need to eat a lot of them, and I mean evry day, for them to do you any harm.

Cheers WW

[Fallow Buck]

Hi Jen,

Yes I do usea lot of cherries in various game recipes recentl for some reason. I find black cherry jam in most game and ale pies just lifts the gravy a bit. I'd love to see any North African/middle eastern recipes you have as I really like thattype of food but have never managed to cook it well. I'd love to hear of anyones moroccan lamb couscous tagine recipes if they are out there??

I did the Ducks last night with Cherries and covered it in potatoe slices before putting in the oven and it was great. I had to make up a mug of beef gravy though and add it to the meat stew as I went a bit overboard on the crabapple jelly and it was going to be too sweet!!

Very nice though.

FB

[Big Guy]

A little late but here are some recipes.

Crock pot Pigeon

4 pigeons, cut into serving pieces
oil
1 can cream of mushroom soup
4 slices of bacon, chopped
1 onion , chopped
� cup red wine
� cup uncooked rice
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 Tbs. hot sauce
� tsp. oregano
salt
pepper

Brown pigeon pieces in oil. Transfer to crock pot. Add all ingredients. Cook on low 4-6 hrs.


Pigeon with pecan dressing


4 whole dressed pigeons
� cup white grape juice
� cup raisins
� cup onion, chopped
4 Tbs. Margarine
2 cups cornmeal muffins, crumbled
2 eggs, beaten
� cup chopped pecans
� tsp. salt
� tsp. poultry seasoning
� tsp. pepper
Combine grape juice and raisins in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Saute onions in margarine. In a large bowl combine onions, crumbled corn muffins, eggs, pecans, salt, pepper, poultry seasoning, and raisin and grape juice. Mix well. Stuff pigeons with the mix, place in a 9x12 baking dish and bake at 350 for 1 � hrs. serve with wild rice.


Creamy Pigeons

6 pigeon breasts
2 cans mushroom soup
1/2 lb. Mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, chopped
2 Tbs. sage
Butter


Place enough water to cover breasts in a large pot along with the sage. Bring to a rolling boil. Remove from heat; add the breasts and cover. Allow to stand for 8-10 minutes. Remove breasts from water and rub with butter, salt and pepper to taste. Arrange breasts in a shallow baking dish; add the mushrooms, onion and mushroom soup. Cover and bake at 350 until breasts are tender approx. 30 minutes.

[jenny_haddow]

Thanks Big Guy, more good data for my pigeon file.

FB, here's the recipe I promised, I think it originates in Iran, and you can see a glimpse of the Moghul influence in Indian food here I think.

A chicken, chopped into portions
A jar or can of black cherries (Lidl do a large jar of these very reasonably)
2 sliced onions
500gr basmati rice
vegetable oil
salt and pepper

Soak the rice in warm salted water for 2-3 hours, drain, then add rice to boiling salted water and cook until slightly softened. Drain, rinse and put to one side.

Put the chicken, onions, salt and pepper in a pan with about 2 cups of hot water. Cover and cook over a medium heat until the chicken is cooked. Remove the chicken and take out the bones, put aside. Strain and reserve the cooking juice, put the strained onions with the chicken meat.

Drain the cherries and reserve the juice. Mix the cherry and chicken juice and 2-3 tblsp of oil. Stir the cherries into the half cooked rice.

Pour half a cup of hot water with 2tblsp of oil into a large lidded pan or casserole dish. Add half the rice and cherries, cover with the chicken and onions, then the remaining rice and cherries.

Pour the cherry/chicken juice mixture over the top, cover and cook in a medium oven, or on a low heat on the stove top, for about an hour. A crisp layer forms on the base and sides of the pan and is the bit that is fought over traditionally (a bit like the skin on a rice pudding over here). Ideally you should be able to turn this out of the dish like a loaf of bread, but I tend to pay safe and serve it from the pan, tastes the same!

Resist all temptation to stir while it is cooking or you loose the layered effect when it is served. Nice with tabouleh and arab flat bread, or raisin couscous(Cooked with chicken stock, raisins, butter, cinnamon and nutmeg)

Enjoy

Jen

[game bird]

Game Conservancy Recipe book had this and I bulk it out with various veg and beansprouts. Also nice with pheasant and venison.

chorizo - sliced
pigeon breasts - sliced

grapeseed oil to stirfry

thats it .

whack chorizo in to flavour oil remove then cook the pigeon and any veg you fancy, whack the chorizo back in and some ready to wok noodles or whatever type you fancy and a splash of soy sauce.
its lovely.

think it would be nice with rice too.