It is the second time we make this delicious pheasant paté and it is just so damn good that we are going to make yet another portion tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, so that we can serve it for appetizers on New Years Eve before heading to the restaurant where we are going to eat this year.

We made it for the first time last winter and ate it in days, but never got time to make another portion as Christmas was coming. This year we have bought three pheasants and until now we have only used one, so there is plenty of pheasant meat to make another two portions so that we can spoil friend and family when they come over for a glass of red wine and a pheasant crostini 🙂

 

Ingredients (2 pots)

Pheasant Stock

1 pheasant, bones only

1 cup celeriac, diced

1/2 cup carrots, diced

1 cup onions, diced

10-15 peppercorns

Herbs (thyme, rosemary and bay leaves)

Water

 

Paté

1 pheasant, meat

1 large onion

3 cloves garlic

1 tbsp. duck fat

Salt and pepper

1 cup red wine

2 cups pheasant stock

2/3 cup bacon, diced

1/2 tsp. nutmeg, ground

1/2 tsp. black peppercorns

1/2 tsp. star anise

4 bay leaves

 

Stock

Skin and debone the pheasant – only the breast and leg meat is required for this recipe. Make sure that you have cleaned it thoroughly for feathers. Put away the pheasant meat while you make the stock.

Place the carcass and drumsticks in a sauce pan and cover it with water. Bring it to a boil while keeping an eye on it. Just before it begins to boil, all the impurities will come to surface – remove the impurities with a spoon so that your stock gets clear and pretty.

Add all the vegetables, peppercorns and herbs and let cook for one hour.
Strain the stock from the vegetables after an hour and continue to cook until the stock has reduced to the needed 2 cups (approximately 2 hours at medium-low heat).

Paté

Roughly chop onion and garlic cloves. Melt half of the duck fat and soften onion and garlic until the onions get a clear and shiny surface. Add the red wine and reduce until almost all the wine has evaporated. Add the stock and reduce again. You should end up with a approximately 1 cup of onion/stock.

While you reduce the stock you can prepare the meat. Mince the pheasant meat, diced bacon and the remaining duck fat on a coarse mince setting. Grind the peppercorns together with nutmeg and anise using a pestle and mortar. Add to the minced meat together with the stock reduction and pass it through the mincer again.
Season with salt and pepper and stir to combine all ingredients evenly.

Take a small amount of the mixture, fry if and taste. Season more if required.

Divide the mixture into two sterilized pots – be careful not to over fill the pots, otherwise the mixture will bubble over. Place two bay leaves in the top of each pot before putting the pots a bain-marie (water bath). Place the jar lids in a position where they can be closed quickly as soon as the come out of the oven.

Cook in the oven at 320F for 60 minutes. Remove from the oven, seal the jar immediately and leave to cool. Unopened the paté can be stored at room temperature for up to 4 weeks – this, of cause. depends on weather you have used sterilized pots or not. Fridge when opened.

Serve on a piece of toast as an appetizer for new years eve, birthday dinner or just for you and loved once on a cozy winter night with a glass of good red wine 🙂

Bon Appétit!

 

Ingredients (2 pots)

Pheasant Stock

1 pheasant, bones only

2.5 dl celeriac, diced

1.25 dl carrots, diced

2.5 dl onions, diced

10-15 peppercorns

Herbs (thyme, rosemary and bay leaves)

Water

 

Paté

1 pheasant, meat

1 large onion

3 cloves garlic

1 tbsp. duck fat

Salt and pepper

2.5 dl red wine

5 dl pheasant stock

1.6 dl cup bacon, diced

0.5 tsp. nutmeg, ground

0.5 tsp. black peppercorns

0.5 tsp. star anise

4 bay leaves