Barbecued Beer Can Pheasant

Pheasant is a great game bird to cook with, but there’s a fine line between it being cooked perfectly and over cooked and dry. Cooking the pheasant on top of a can of beer, however, is a really good way of keeping the meat moist.

If it’s a typically rainy British summer’s day and you’d rather not crack out the barbecue, you can cook in a conventional oven at 200C/Fan 180C. Place the tray with the bird on the can in the oven and baste as below until the juices run clear. Set aside to rest covered with kitchen foil for 5 minutes.

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 1 oven-ready pheasant
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• 1 tbsp of chopped rosemary
• 1 tbsp of chopped thyme
• 1 can (400ml) of hoppy beer
• Sea salt and cracked black pepper, to taste

Method

1. Prepare your barbecue so it’s ready at a medium heat and the coals are glowing, then position the rack about 20cm above the coals.
2. Remove the pheasant from the fridge 20 mins before cooking to bring to room temperature.
3. Using a sharp knife, remove the wishbone from the pheasant. Rub the bird with the olive oil and season well with salt and pepper before sprinkling with the rosemary and thyme.
4. Open the can of beer and pour out one quarter of the beer. Place the can inside the pheasant’s cavity, then place the pheasant on a baking tray to catch all the juices. About three quarters of the can should sit inside the bird.
5. Place the baking tray on the grill and leave the pheasant to cook for 25-30 mins, depending on the size of your bird. You can baste he pheasant every 5 mins with the juices that gather in the pan. The pheasant is cooked when you can stick a skewer into the thigh and the juices run clear.
6. Set the pheasant aside to rest for 5 mins covered with kitchen foil. Enjoy with rustic rolls, coleslaw and sweet potato fries.

Order whole pheasant online now.