When my Dad gives us pheasant we normally have our meals planned, so it goes straight in the freezer. Pheasant is a great meat and as a child I grew up on it. It freezes really well and great to have in the winter months. When I lived at home we would always have it with stew.
It was Dean’s idea to do a lasagne using pheasant, I suggested to do a shepherd’s pie. As a child Dean would have shepherd’s pie a lot and never really liked it so I think it’s put him off. It’s something I really like so maybe next time we have pheasant I will try and convert him!
At first I wasn’t sure if a pheasant lasagne would work, but I’m pleased to say it was delicious. We decided to slow cook the pheasant to keep the meat tender, this worked really well with the pasta.
To add a bit of colour we surrounded the lasagne with watercress, it would also work well with rocket.
Slow Cooked Pheasant Lasagne
Ingredients
Slow Cooked Pheasant
- 1/2 large onion roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
- handful baby tomatoes halved
- 1 whole pheasant
- 1 pint chicken stock
- 1 tsp dried italian herbs
- 1 tsp rosemary
Cheese Sauce
- 25 g plain flour
- 25 g butter
- 80 g cheddar cheese grated
- 1 pint semi skimmed milk
- pinch grounded nut meg
Filling
- 400 g chopped tomatoes
- 1 pepper
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 8 large mushrooms chopped small and chunky
- 3 fresh lasagne
Instructions
- For the pheasant add all of the ingredients to a slow cooker and give it a good stir. Leave to simmer away for a minimum of 6 hours.
- Preheat your oven to 180°C / 160°C fan / gas 4. Chop the mushrooms and peppers. Add a little oil to a big frying pan on a medium heat and cook the mushrooms and peppers until soft but still with a bit of crunch. Add the chopped tomatoes, herbs and Worcestershire sauce then stir well. Bring to the boil and turn the heat off.
- Shred the pheasant breasts and legs up on a plate and add to the filling. Sieve the stock and set aside, leaving the remaining onions – add this to the filling. Then add a tablespoon of stock to the mixture and season with salt and pepper.
- Soak the lasagne sheets in cold water or to the packet instructions. You may wish to use dried lasagne sheets instead. While your pasta is soaking start to make the cheese sauce.
- Add the flour and butter and mix well to make a roux, gradually add the milk and stir constantly. Bring to the boil until the sauce starts to thicken, then add the cheese and stir well. Season with nutmeg.
- Add the first layer of pheasant filling to your dish followed by a pasta sheet then a layer of cheese sauce. Repeat this three times. Sprinkle with some more cheese and put in to the oven for 20-25 minutes.
- Serve with a side salad or garlic bread and enjoy!
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