Porto Cruz Braized Pheasant

Porto Cruz Braized Pheasant

1 whole pheasant (with the giblets)

For the stock

550 ml water
1 onion, sliced in half
1 carrot, sliced
1 stick celery
1 bay leaf
a string of fresh thyme
a few black peppercorns
salt

Clean and wash pheasant. Cut into smaller parts and leave the giblets too.

Put the neck, giblets, onion, carrot, celery stick and the spices with the water into a pot and bring to boil. Cover, reduce the heat and cook for 2 hours. When it’s done, strain the stock for further use in the recipe.

For the sauce

280 ml Porto Cruz wine
80 g butter
1 1/2 Tbsp oil
16 small onions
350 g bacon, cut into small cubes
a few springs of fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic, pressed
270 ml dry white wine
230 g button mushrooms (as small as you can find)
40 g flour
salt and ground black pepper

Rub the meat with salt and pepper. Heat 40 g butter with oil and fry meat until golden brown. Leave the remaining butter on room temperature to soften. Transfer into a separate dish. In the same pan fry onions until golden brown and transfer them into separate dish. Brown the bacon in the same fat also and transfer with the onions.

Return meat into the pan, add thyme, bay leaves, garlic, Porto Cruz, white wine and 270 ml previously prepared stock. Bring everything to boil, and then, reduce the heat. Cover and cook for 45 minutes. Add mushrooms, bacon and onions and stir. Cover and simmer for another 45 minutes, or until the meat is tender.

Mix the remaining butter with the flour. Using a slotted spoon, remove meat and vegetables from the pan into a serving dish. Bring the remaining liquid to boil and continue to cook until it reduces by about a third. Whisk in butter and flour mixture, bring to boil and finally, pour over the meat and vegetables.