Wood Pigeon Leftovers

Dead simple!

Having thoroughly enjoyed the Wood Pigeon the night before, I cooked up a big batch with the intention of having a couple cold for lunch.

That worked out great ...

Simple shred some things you love eating and layer thinly sliced meat over.

I went for red cabbage, red onion, sweet red pepper, some shredded lettuce, pickled garlic, pickled chilli and dropped a few cockles in, along with some streaky bacon.

When it came to eat, I sloshed a good helping of chilli and garlic sauce over to wet it all up.

Wood Pigeon

Actually a member of the dove family, the wood pigeon is a wild bird which gleans fatty pink breast meat with a game flavour from its diet taken from open fields or gardens and lawns where young shoots and seedlings are favoured.

Seasonally shot from January to March, this was a celebration of the passing of the season for this delicious bird.

Wilt some spinach with a little butter in a skillet and keep warm.

Trim the breast off the bird, reserving the remainder of the carcass for stock, and taking care to remove all shot from the flesh.

Warm a little butter, dripping or coconut oil in a skillet and lay the breasts in to colour up a little on one side before flipping over to colour the other, warming the middle through in the process.

Wood Pigeon is best served slightly pink so plate up a mound of spinach, laying the meat over.

While the fat is still hot, whisk in a shot of whisky or red wine, emulsify and pour over the meat. Garnish with a little black truffle which is right in season, presently.

Wood Pigeon Stir Fry

Actually a member of the dove family, the wood pigeon is a wild bird which gleans fatty pink breast meat with a game flavour from its diet taken from open fields or gardens and lawns; young shoots and seedlings are favoured, as well as certain fruits and berries.

This delicious meat is best served slightly pink and can be fast cooked as whole breast or cut into small chunks for stir fry.

Let's get frying ...

Prepare the breast under running water and inspect carefully for shot. How carefully you inspect the meat will depend upon whether you've ever crunched a tooth on a piece of shot ... it's not good! Once this has happened to you ... trust me, you will inspect game meat very carefully!

Cut up the breast into bite-sized pieces.

Slice up some stir fry ingredients - whatever takes your fancy, although red, green and yellow peppers work very well indeed, as do mild chillis chopped into good slices.

Prepare some "noodles" by julienning complimentary vegetables such as mooli or cucumber.

Using a hot wok, sear the breast pieces and using the fat which renders out to prevent sticking, toss in the vegetables. The wok should be smoking hot.

Serve with a good helping of the juliennes and a generous portion of stir fry over the top. Feel free to use some chilli sauce or a squirt of lemon juice over the top.