Wingshooting in South Africa

[Velo Dog]

now is that tough to bring down or eat?

Spike.t,

If "tough to eat" is the answer;

For overly chewy game birds, I cut out the breasts and from any larger bird (goose, crane and some ducks), I slice or "butterfly" them, making four thin fillets from the two originals on each bird.

Then I bash the living daylights out of them with the dull side of a heavy cleaver but, civilzed folk use a Chef's mallet.

When I'm convinced the tough meat fibers are sufficiently broken down, I season with fresh cracked black pepper and a little coarse Kosher salt or coarse sea salt (fine grained "table salt" sometimes has a metallic flavor that is distracting).

Then I dust them with flour and flash fry them in very hot peanut oil - about 375 degrees Fnht. (Sunflower seed oil or extra light olive will also work).

Care must be taken to not over-cook them or they become like cardboard, quite fast.

In my freezer I keep plenty of chicken stock and from it I make a gravy, by adding a little corn starch to thicken if needed, also the bird heart, best parts of the gizzard and liver, (all three of these "giblets" finely chopped), plus seasonings such as sage, white pepper (and Kosher salt if needed).

These pounded and briefly fried fillets with gravy, aka - "Schnitzel" (or however you spell it) served over mashed potatoes, I guarantee you will produce no left-overs.

This method/recipe' works well on tough game meat of any sort actually / does not have to be fowl necessarily.


If that's not enough torture to read through, I save the bird legs and simply simmer them in a crockpot with no impact tenderizing.

Simply cooked slowly in beef stock (yes beef), with a tight fitting lid, plenty of dehydrated onion and a package or two (to taste) of Dry Onion Soup mix will tenderize them .

It does however usually require several hours to accomplish this down to "fork tender" status but it is worth the wait.


But wait, there's more ! ... When cleaning a decent pile of game birds I occasionally end up with the hearts from mine and everyone else's birds, sometimes totaling many.

After using the relatively small amount of chopped heart needed to help flavor the gravy, I then slice each remaining heart length wise, at least in half but the largest ones I slice into 3 or 4 pieces lengthwise and remove any gristle, then season lightly and slowly fry in a very large pan with light olive oil, plenty of either fresh garlic, (bruised or coarse chopped).

This recipe can be done instead with plenty of fresh onion, coarse chopped instead of garlic, (any vampires you invite over to sup with you, will thank you for not making the garlic version).

Fried hearts with garlic and/or fried hearts with onion are always quite popular with my numerous cave man friends.

Well it's time to pour myself yet another glass of the highly nutritious Vitamin-G supplement that I think my Doctor would want me to have plenty of.

So, adios for now,
Mr. V. D.

 

[spike.t]

Mike, I would like that, never tested one.

ok pieter and pete patsys marinade she used for the spurwing breasts is very simple , green grated pawpaw and plain yoghurt for 2 days .

 

[Diamondhitch]

Spike.t,

If "tough to eat" is the answer;

For overly chewy game birds, I cut out the breasts and from any larger bird (goose, crane and some ducks), I slice or "butterfly" them, making four thin fillets from the two originals on each bird.

Then I bash the living daylights out of them with the dull side of a heavy cleaver but, civilzed folk use a Chef's mallet.

When I'm convinced the tough meat fibers are sufficiently broken down, I season with fresh cracked black pepper and a little coarse Kosher salt or coarse sea salt (fine grained "table salt" sometimes has a metallic flavor that is distracting).

Then I dust them with flour and flash fry them in very hot peanut oil - about 375 degrees Fnht. (Sunflower seed oil or extra light olive will also work).

Care must be taken to not over-cook them or they become like cardboard, quite fast.

In my freezer I keep plenty of chicken stock and from it I make a gravy, by adding a little corn starch to thicken if needed, also the bird heart, best parts of the gizzard and liver, (all three of these "giblets" finely chopped), plus seasonings such as sage, white pepper (and Kosher salt if needed).

These pounded and briefly fried fillets with gravy, aka - "Schnitzel" (or however you spell it) served over mashed potatoes, I guarantee you will produce no left-overs.

This method/recipe' works well on tough game meat of any sort actually / does not have to be fowl necessarily.


If that's not enough torture to read through, I save the bird legs and simply simmer them in a crockpot with no impact tenderizing.

Simply cooked slowly in beef stock (yes beef), with a tight fitting lid, plenty of dehydrated onion and a package or two (to taste) of Dry Onion Soup mix will tenderize them .

It does however usually require several hours to accomplish this down to "fork tender" status but it is worth the wait.


But wait, there's more ! ... When cleaning a decent pile of game birds I occasionally end up with the hearts from mine and everyone else's birds, sometimes totaling many.

After using the relatively small amount of chopped heart needed to help flavor the gravy, I then slice each remaining heart length wise, at least in half but the largest ones I slice into 3 or 4 pieces lengthwise and remove any gristle, then season lightly and slowly fry in a very large pan with light olive oil, plenty of either fresh garlic, (bruised or coarse chopped).

This recipe can be done instead with plenty of fresh onion, coarse chopped instead of garlic, (any vampires you invite over to sup with you, will thank you for not making the garlic version).

Fried hearts with garlic and/or fried hearts with onion are always quite popular with my numerous cave man friends.

Well it's time to pour myself yet another glass of the highly nutritious Vitamin-G supplement that I think my Doctor would want me to have plenty of.

So, adios for now,
Mr. V. D.

Good stuff I do the same as the first (minus the clever bashing )

I prefer an even simpler method of tenderizing for my goose, I grind them into the best hamburger you ever ate!!! I don't know what grinding does to improve the flavor but it cant be beat, I would give it 3 thumbs up if I had em. Use the burger just as you would any lean ground beef.

 

[Mekaniks]

Good stuff I do the same as the first (minus the clever bashing )

I prefer an even simpler method of tenderizing for my goose, I grind them into the best hamburger you ever ate!!! I don't know what grinding does to improve the flavor but it cant be beat, I would give it 3 thumbs up if I had em. Use the burger just as you would any lean ground beef.

I have never thought about grinding them into burger. That's interesting. I am gonna have to try that the next time I get a mess of geese or ducks. Maybe some breakfast style sausage as well....

 

[Velo Dog]

Good stuff I do the same as the first (minus the clever bashing )

I prefer an even simpler method of tenderizing for my goose, I grind them into the best hamburger you ever ate!!! I don't know what grinding does to improve the flavor but it cant be beat, I would give it 3 thumbs up if I had em. Use the burger just as you would any lean ground beef.

Goose breasts also make perfect jerky.
When I used to live where there were millions of snow geese, I was never out of jerky.

 

[Diamondhitch]

I have never thought about grinding them into burger. That's interesting. I am gonna have to try that the next time I get a mess of geese or ducks. Maybe some breakfast style sausage as well....

Sausage is good too. I went from a guy who ate Canada geese simply because I loved shooting them to a guy who craves eating them! The burger is that good. The only thing to escape the grinder are specks and mallards.