Pheasant Pot Pie
An easy and succulent recipe for a crispy, creamy, and flavorful pot pie featuring pheasant meat
A friend recently shared with me that she is a “pot pie connoisseur.” She always makes a point to explore restaurants, both local and while traveling, to see who serves the best pot pie.
I asked her, “Have you tried pheasant?”
“No,” she said. Thus, the challenge was accepted.
While the Pillsbury pie crust I used is arguably nothing special, what’s inside is second-to-none. Perfectly cooked pheasant breasts, diced and mixed with vegetables and a delectable cream sauce to bind it all together—you could put this stuff on cardboard and still experience bliss with each bite.
Pheasant Pot Pie Versus Pheasant Shepherd’s Pie
A few years ago, I shared a recipe for Shepherd’s Pie, Upland Style. If the idea of a homemade mashed-potato pie crust is preferable to regular pie crust, check that recipe out. The contents will vary from the shepherd’s pie recipe here, but you can definitely swap the inside-mix instructions between each pie recipe as you see fit.
Salting, Brining, Aging, and Swapping Out Other Upland Bird Meat
While this recipe calls for pheasant, you are welcome to substitute any 12 ounces of upland bird white meat. You can also salt or brine your upland bird cuts. A brine will help draw out any residual blood and is almost a must when dealing with shot-up bird meat. Both salting and brining game helps boost flavor and retain moisture during cooking, as salt binds to the muscle fibers and does some fancy chemistry stuff that results in a juicier final product. If brining, make sure to wash off the brine under cold water ahead of cooking.
A brine will also somewhat reduce the wild flavor tones of game birds. Sometimes this is preferred, depending on whom you’re serving. Other times, neutralizing innate wild tastes is the last thing we want to do.
For those who prefer a wilder flavor—the tastes that eliminate the chance for any one to say “tastes like chicken”—consider aging your birds. Doing so both tenderizes meat and concentrates flavor, so that bird tastes how Mother Nature intended.
Pheasant Pot Pie
Ingredients
- 2 pheasant breasts skinless
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper freshly cracked
- Avocado oil or similar high-heat oil
- ½ yellow onion finely minced
- 1 tsp white pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp fresh thyme minced
- 1½ tsp garlic minced
- 12 oz frozen vegetable mix carrots, corn, green beans, peas
- 1 egg for egg wash
- Double 9" pie crust Pillsbury refrigerated or homemade
- Cooking spray
- ½ cup chicken stock
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup white wine
- ¼ tsp chicken buillon
- ¼ cup flour
- 2 tbsp salted butter
Instructions
- Season the pheasant breasts with salt and pepper and leave them in the fridge, uncovered, for at least a few hours to dry.
- Heat a large skillet on medium-high heat. Add a very thin layer of high-heat cooking oil.
- At this time, pull the frozen bag of mixed vegetables from the freezer and leave it out at room temp.
- Once the skillet is hot (500 F), add pheasant breasts and either place a grill weight atop them or press a spatula down to make sure the pheasant breasts make full contact with the skillet. Once the underside is golden-brown (approximately 2 minutes), flip them. Cook until the other side is golden brown (another 2 minutes), still weighing the breasts down to keep them from curling up while cooking at high heat.
- Remove the pheasant breasts when both sides are golden brown. Set aside and cover with foil.
- Turn the skillet burner heat to medium-low. Add a little bit of cooking oil, followed by finely minced onion. Lightly salt and pepper the onion. Continue to stir frequently to deglaze the pan of brown pheasant bits.
- When minced onions are brown and soft, add the freshly minced garlic and stir for 5 minutes. Add the mixed vegetables, along with white pepper, paprika, and freshly minced thyme. Turn the heat to low.
- Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, add the chicken stock, heavy cream, white wine, and chicken bouillon. Mix thoroughly. Simmer on medium-low and let the liquids reduce to half the original amount. This might take upwards of 20 minutes.
- Once the liquids in the small saucepan have thickened, finely dice the pheasant breasts and preheat the oven to 325 F. Add the finely diced pheasant to the skillet with the vegetables, then add ¼ cup flour and 2 tablespoons of salted butter. Mix everything together well.
- Once thoroughly mixed, add liquids from the small saucepan. Stir until all the contents are thoroughly mixed.
- Follow the instructions on the store-bought pie crust (which includes bringing to room temp). Spray either a 9-inch oven-safe pie pan or skillet with cooking oil. Place the bottom pie-crust piece inside, followed by the mixture of pheasant and vegetables.
- To make egg wash, lightly beat one egg.
- Place the top pie-crust over the filling and firmly fold edges together with the bottom pie crust. Trim off any excess crust along the edge. Lightly coat all exposed pie crust with egg wash. Cut six slits along the top crust before placing it into the oven.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes or even the crust is golden brown.
- Upon removing, allow the pie to cool for 15 minutes prior to cutting and serving. Enjoy!
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