A long tailed game bird
introduced into Europe from Asia in the ealy Middle Ages. In many
countries shooting has considerably reduced the phesants population, in
spite of the periodic suply of reared birds. These are either released in
January and allowed to breed in the wild, or else they are liberated just
before the shoot. In the latter case, the flesh of the birds has less
flavour than that of the truelywild pheasant. Hens and young cock
pheasants can be roasted without being barded, but barding fat on the back
and breast is necessary for old male birds. True connoisseurs prefer the
hen pheasant to the cock as the hen has a finer flesh. The male bird is
larger than the female. It is also more brightly coloured with iridescent
blue and green feathers and large leg spurs. Pheasants should be hung for
a period of 3 days to two weeks, depending on taste and the weather, in a
cool dry airy place. A bird has usually been hung for long enough when the
tail feathers can be pulled out easily. Reared birds should not be hung,
but cooked immediately, like poultry.
The young pheasant can be distinguished from an old bird by the first
wing-tip feather, which is pointed in a young bird and rounded in a old
one. The upper part of the beak of a yound bird is pliable to the touch.
It is best roasted, or casseroled and flavoured with wine or spirits. A
stock can be made from the carcass and used as a basis for sauce or
consommé. A fricassee of pheasant can be made by cutting it into
quarters (two suprêmes and two legs) or into six pieces (two wings,
two leags and two pieces of breast). Older birds can be prepared as a
chartreuse (a mould made from game birds, cabbage and othe vegetables) or
a salmis, accompanied by braised cabbage, cep mushrooms, fresh pasta, or
apples with bacon and onions. Very old birds should be casseroled or made
into pâtés; or terrines. But the most decorative method of
preparing pheasant is a à la Sainte-Alliance, in which it is
presented in all the glory of its magnificent plumage.
