OT - plucking pheasants

Does anyone know of a good web resource on how to pluck pheasant? I have four to do tomorrow evening, and I'm a first-timer...

Ta

Reply to
Tim Hobbs
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|| Does anyone know of a good web resource on how to pluck pheasant? I || have four to do tomorrow evening, and I'm a first-timer... || || Ta ||

Couldn't help you there - I'm not a pheasant plucker, I'm a pheasant-plucker's mate (and so on...)

Serious offering: Mrs B says don't bother - too much like hard work. Skin them (3 minutes each bird if you know how) and bung 'em in a casserole. Almost as good and 1/20th the effort. She gets a lot of practice - several crack shots in her family, and I even contribute one or two on the odd occasion.

Reply to
Richard Brookman

How long have they been hung? (The feathers come out easier the longer they've been hung, you see. at least a couple of days until the skin turns blue on the neck). Otherwise (like, if they're, ahem, "fresh roadkill"), it's harder work and they won't taste half as good (this is open to much debate). Either way, bung them in the fridge for an hour or so first, then start at the arse end and work toward the head - pull them in the opposite direction to which they go in - IYSWIM. I've only done it once or twice at the most. Wouldn't want to do it again and to be honest, it really isn't worth the hassle IMHO. Depending on how you're going to cook it, it may be better to 'peel it' (this'll happen anyway on your first bird as the skin is like wet bogroll...)

Martyn

Reply to
Mother

Still got to gut the buggers though, I would think.

Seems to me I ought to go through the grief at least once before taking the easy option!

Reply to
Tim Hobbs

A week tonight, so 8 days by the time I get to them.

I'd be pushing otherwise, surely? :-)

Just seems like one of those things I ought to do at least once (if not four times). I'm dead set on getting some chickens once I have a more suitable bit of land so I'm interested to see how it goes.

Reply to
Tim Hobbs

Never had to do it myself. The occassions that Bruce has shot a pheasant, his Dad has alway prepared them ready to cook. If he weren't here, then I would seriously consider taking them to the local butcher down the road to do for me, as I know the removal of the insides would put me off eating it afterwards. Bruce is the same. Puts him off eating it too if he has to gut it as well. He never ate any of the last rabbit he bought home. The kids did though - told them it was chicken stew or they wouldn't have eaten the "cute little thing".

Reply to
Nikki

You too? Bruce is planning to keep pigs as well as chickens. A book really worth reading is The River Cottage Cookbook by Hugh Fernley-Whittingstall. He's the one that had the mobile kitchen on the back of his land rover. Alot of the book is dedicated to his way of living, keeping animals, killing them, preparing etc and his attempts at gardening etc as well as some really good recipes. It's the first book Bruce has read, for as long as I can remember, that wasn't a some sort of technical manual, tool catologue or instruction leaflet.

Reply to
Nikki

Blimey - I've got a Mrs Beeton somewhere. Never thought of that. Doh!

Reply to
Tim Hobbs

As the best meat on a pheasant is the breast, and there is not much left after that, you are better off just removing it, and caseroling it.

Easiest way:

Lay the bird on it's back, and feel down the front for the chest bone. Slide a sharp knife inside, following this chest bone. Do this from top to bottom. Peel back the skin to reveal the breast. Slide in your hand, and you can almost pull out the breast meat with little force. You may need that knife again for "trimming" if you cannot get it out. Remove any yellow paste-like covering as this is the pheasants fat reserve, and is not that nice to eat. ;-)

Do the same for the other side, and repeat for the other birds.

If you want the whole bird, cut off the head and feet. Lay it on it's back again, and slide a knife UNDER the skin. Cut the skin from top to bottom, and peel back. You can then "unpeal" the bird, without plucking. The skin and feathers can then go in the bin.

No plucking, no mess.

Reply to
H

Ah... At the stage where 'mellow' meets 'yellow' ;-)

I grew up on a poultry farm, there's no desire in my body to return to one. My parents gave it up when everybody else moved into battery farming - odd really, as my parents idea of 'free range' was far more humane than the current interpretation of the term, very much in vogue.

Martyn

Reply to
Mother

The simplest way to do this is the method SWMBO adopts - take them to your local butchers, they'll turn them into a "ready to cook" state for you in around 5 minutes each. ISTR we pay about 5 quid a brace for this service, saves a lot of hassle !

cheers

Dave W.

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Reply to
Dave White

I'd pay that just to have them gutted...

Derry makes it sound far easier and nicer than it is. Surgical gloves and some Vicks smeared under the nose helps, but only just...

Martyn

Reply to
Mother

Makes my stomach turn thinking about it. Bruce said the only time he managed to gut what he'd killed was when he did a rabbit and lit a cigarette just before he did it. After 8 days I think you are more likely going to want a peg on your nose or better still a gas mask. Take it to the butcher and let him deal with it. They're used to things like that.

Reply to
Nikki

skin them not pluck . chop off head wings and legs .

pluck some of the feathers off the breast , cut open the crop and empty it , then you should be able to peel back the skin and remove the bird from the outer skin just by gradually pulling skin and feathers off together and working back around the rear of bird .

then youre left with just the meat and a nice clean bird to wash off and cook .

cook it long and slow and will be reasonably tender .

Reply to
M0bcg

Thanks to everyone who posted on this. The job is done and TBH it wasn't all that hard. About an hour or so for 2 brace, the first bird took about 30 minutes the rest was like shelling peas.

Fine butchery it wasn't, but skinning was definitely the way to go, so thanks to all those who suggested it. The last two I managed to get out as whole carcasses, gutted and featherless. Mum took care of them after that point and I have my two as breasts plus leg meat in the freezer ready for use over New Year. Next time I'll try to keep the skin on and roast them as whole birds, this time round it will be either pan fried or probably a small casserole.

Thanks again.

Reply to
Tim Hobbs

Some comments-

Agree with Derry, but get a big bin liner and pluck the bu**er in a bin liner (it may seems like blind mans duff but it save chasing feathers for a long time)..

Personally when pheasant are at £3.50 a brace, then a fiver for a butcher is ummm .. actually, how many times have I wandered into my local butcher and asked him what best to do with a cut of meat.....or him suggesting how best to prepare a meal from what you have got....go with the chap who knows!

Reply to
pl.white

I find them a bit dry if roasted. The best bit is the stew you can make with the left overs and the carcass boiled up to make stock.

Reply to
Nikki

Bruce shot a couple of rabbits this morning and managed to get them all by himself. I did go down the road to the butcher with them as his Dad is away until tomorrow. He skinned them and jointed them for me - have to do this so the kids don't realise what they're eating.

Reply to
Nikki

Too true - my 3 yr old asked me today when faced with a picture of a pig (from kindly relative in Chrimbo pressie) "is that where the bacon comes from Daddy cooks for breakfast?".

If only life was so simple all the time

Reply to
pl.white

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