I had never cooked nor eaten pheasant before last week. But I happened to come across some free range pheasants going spare, so gave it a go!

This recipe is inspired by one that came with the purveyor of pheasant. Balsamic and cherries are goooooood.  Might have to work on a recipe with them that has a wider application.

Roast Pheasant with Cherries
Serves 4

2 pheasants, cut in half*
sea salt and black pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 large onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
3 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups tawny port
680g jar pitted morello cherries, drained and liquid reserved
1/2 tsp mixed spice
3 whole cloves
2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup brown sugar

*The pheasants I got came whole, so I did a bit of research and halved them myself. I did take photographs, but they are little gruesome and I’m in two minds about whether to post them. If you have strong feelings either way, please leave a comment! Or I’m happy to send you the pics and instructions if you contact me directly. If you also happen to come across free range pheasants going spare. Common I know.

Rinse the pheasant halves and pat them dry with paper towels. Rub them all over with salt and pepper, and place them in a shallow ceramic dish.

In a bowl, mix together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, onion, garlic, bay leaves, port, the cherry liquid (should be about 1 1/4 cups), mixed spice and cloves.

Pour this marinade over the pheasant, and leave to marinate in the fridge for 24 hours, turning and basting at least 2-3 times.

Preheat the oven to 160 (c). I transferred the pheasants and marinade from the ceramic dish to a metal roasting dish for better heat. Mix together the hot chicken stock and brown sugar, and pour this over the pheasants.

Cover the roasting dish with tin foil and place in the oven for about an hour. Take the cover off and turn the oven down to 150, and cook for another 30 minutes, basting every 10  minutes. Remove from the oven, and set the pheasants aside to rest for 20-30 minutes before serving. Meanwhile, make a sauce by thickening the pan juices. Either start with butter and a bit of flour and make a roux, and gradually add pan juices until you get to the right consistency, or I just heated a cup or two of the juices and stirred in 1 Tbsp of cornflour mixed to a paste with 2 Tbsp water. Either way, add about 1 cup of the cherries from the jar. Adjust seasoning with brown sugar (or add more pan juices if it’s too sweet). Place a pheasant half on each plate and spoon the sauce over them.

I served my pheasant with crushed roast potatoes, steamed baby carrots and a minted broad bean mash.

They were pretty good! I think it’s quite hard to get them as tender as chicken, but they have a distinctive flavour and were overall very … pleasant!