Live pheasants now available

Adult pheasants are now available from the Max McGraw game farm in Elgin. It's a minimum order of 10 birds though at $10 a piece (hens and roosters 50/50).

If you want a well hung pheasant, this or shooting the bird yourself are the only options.

Group buy anyone?

I've shot at Max's a number of times. The birds are all pen raised and don't require any hanging unless you like the taste of old meat. -Dick

Hi,

I have a friend who lives on an old dairy farm that is now largely developed. She raised pheasants to shoot on her property. She would leave enough older ones to be available to acquaint the younger ones on the lay of the land.

She advocated hanging pheasants. She would not dress them, then hung them by a wire around the neck. They were done when the body fell to the floor. Fergus Henderson advocates hanging commenting on the full body flavor. I don't think I have yet to eat a hung bird, though I hope to someday.

Regards,

I'd be interested in getting a few birds. Any idea about the weight of each bird?

budrichard wrote:I've shot at Max's a number of times. The birds are all pen raised and don't require any hanging unless you like the taste of old meat. -Dick

FWIW, my Dad and his brothers dog-and-gun hunted pheasants when I was a kid, and they never hung them, also because they were from a "stocked" reservation. I've never knowingly eaten a "hung" pheasant, so I can't comment on the taste difference between dressed and hung pheasants. (Hmmm, this conversation is taking a strange turn . . . )

If anyone accidentally leaves out an h, this thread's in big trouble.

Kennyz wrote:If anyone accidentally leaves out an h, this thread's in big trouble.

It's funny you say that because when I first read this thread title, it registered in my mind as "Live Peasants Now Available," and I immediately had this mental image of an itinerant band of burlap clad folksy-types, who were "available," presumably to help in the kitchen or dig your garden.

aschie30 wrote:

Kennyz wrote:If anyone accidentally leaves out an h, this thread's in big trouble.

It's funny you say that because when I first read this thread title, it registered in my mind as "Live Peasants Now Available," and I immediately had this mental image of an itinerant band of burlap clad folksy-types, who were "available," presumably to help in the kitchen or dig your garden.

What it brought to my mind is the immortal 1066 And All That by W. C. Sellar and R. J. Yeatman of 1930, a satiric retelling of British history (but only the bits that are "memorable"). The errata sheet at the front of the book states: "For pheasant read peasant throughout."

Kennyz wrote:If anyone accidentally leaves out an h, this thread's in big trouble.

Frankly, I thought the thread was in trouble at the outset with the words "well hung."

David Hammond wrote:I'd be interested in getting a few birds. Any idea about the weight of each bird?

They are adult but young birds, so my guess is that they average 2.5 lbs.

elgin wrote:

David Hammond wrote:I'd be interested in getting a few birds. Any idea about the weight of each bird?

They are adult but young birds, so my guess is that they average 2.5 lbs.

I've emailed the folks at McGraw requesting additional info, and I'm definitely interested in getting a few of these foul. I've never cooked pheasant but am keen to do so.

As a lifelong (well, 35 years of it anyway) bird hunter I can tell you that pen-raised birds will have much more internal fat and a much milder flavor than a wild ring-necked pheasant. They will be "gamier" than chicken, but a far cry from the flavor profile of a wild bird.

I hunt mainly wild birds and I do hang mine beforce cleaning as it helps tenderize the meat and, when skinning, helps what little fat there is in a wild bird stick to the meat rather than the skin. I don't hang mine in the British method - by the leg and they're done when the leg pulls out of the socket - but rather for 3-4 days. And if it's too warm outside, I wrap the birds in a plastic bag and keep in the refrigerator.

My best (favorite of the family anyway) pheasant recipe involves halving the breasts against the grain, then pounding into thin cutlets, dredging in egg and flour and pressing either finely choppped cashews or walnuts into the flesh before sauteting in olive oil and butter. I finish with "sauce hongroise" from the Joy of Cooking - it's a bechamel flavored with paprika. With wild rice and yams on the side - a fine autumn meal.

I use the legs to either make stock or slow cook in a crock pot with chunks of root veggies, shred the meat, stir-fry some julienned red cabbage or broccoli and plop into a tortilla skin with hoisin for moo-shu pheasant.

Pheasant also makes delectable deep-fried nuggets - the Davooda children love them.

Enjoy,
Davooda

I noticed that Whole Paycheck in downtown Evanston had fresh pheasant along with all the other birds - IIRC, they're about the size of a fryer and were somewhere in the $14 range - I'm assuming they're farmed, though.

I've had no luck getting through to the Max McGraw game farm in Elgin. I'm not getting responses to emails and they have no phone number on their site. Nutty.

Woodman's carries FROZEN pheasants AND FROZEN smoked pheasants that come from a farm near Beloit, WI. An average sized bird will be about $13.

David Hammond wrote:I've had no luck getting through to the Max McGraw game farm in Elgin. I'm not getting responses to emails and they have no phone number on their site. Nutty.

The Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation sounds like an interesting institution. I'm not sure if you tried these already but this is the contact information from their Game Farm webpage.

Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation
PO Box 9
Dundee IL 60118
Mon-Fri 7:30am-4:30pm
847-426-4711
bschroeder@mcgrawwildlife.org

When I was at Oxford I used to shoot (not "hunt"--that's done with horses! : ) with a pal of mine who belonged to a game club. He did the hanging pheasant and the hanging hare thing: both by the neck until parted. Well-hung, jugged hare [don't even think about it!] is like eating liver, and not-so-very-tasty liver at that. Well-hung pheasant is pretty liverish, too.

What I actually liked about the deal was that I got to keep any wood pigeons that flew in front of my gun--they were considered vermin,

but man, were they good! They're about a foot and a half long, those pigeons, and a solid chunk o' meat. Hang 'em? HAH! not a chance!

Geo

Hi,

I saw frozen pheasants at H-Mart today for $1.99 per pound.

Regards,