Post-Big Game Big Game

By Mike Osborne

The collective wistful sigh of angst at the close of another football season might be powerful enough to push that wacky jet stream out of Texas altogether, if only we could all sigh in the same direction. So what's a rabid fan supposed to do with the weekend now that only wimpy winter sports like figure skating and luging remain? Let me offer a suggestion. If you're one of the millions of red-blooded gun totin' outdoor types who enjoys the hunt, how about cleaning out your freezer and taking a look at the wild things you have on hand. Why, there might be a rack or two of ribs off that feral hog you gut-shot outside of Marlin. There could be a venison backstrap in danger of getting frostbit. You might discover a sack of doves from opening day or even some duck breasts from that one cold daybreak last year when you came to the painful realization that you were a much better retriever than your very expensive dog would ever be.

I think I've painted a clear enough picture here. You've got game, but you don't know what to do with it, but if you don't do something your wife or significant other will gleefully toss it to make room for several gallons of fat-free ice cream. Don't let this happen to you, and don't take the easy way out by marinating whatever species you shot in eye-talian dressing and slapping it on the fire. Since there's no more football for a while, you might as well get in the kitchen and get your game face on. Let me coach you and offer a couple of tips.

Game doesn't look or taste much like cow or chicken--it's lean muscle, low to no fat, and can get dry and tough if you don't treat it right. Game can have "that wild taste" sort of liverish almost. Well, I hate to break it to you like this, but game birds ain't from the Chicken Shack. Your first prep step is to remember what the good book says, "Bad hair is human, to brine is divine." Maybe it was some other book, but I'm here to tell you that brining will improve the juiciness and taste of most wild meats, both two and four-legged varieties. Here's my basic recipe and method. Measure a gallon of water into a stockpot. Add 1 cup kosher salt, 1/2 cp brown sugar, 1/4 cup cider vinegar, a tablespoon of crushed black peppercorns, a couple cloves of smashed garlic, two whole cloves (the spice dummy, not more garlic), a bay leaf, and a few sprigs of fresh thyme. Heat it all up and stir so the salt and sugar dissolve, then cool it off. I take a big baggie full of ice and drop it into the pot until the brine gets cool.

What next? Put your doves or backstrap into a big sturdy freezer bag. Place the bag into a bowl to steady it. Pour in enough brine to cover, squeeze out the air, seal, and refrigerate. How long? Well, that depends. For doves, quail, pheasant, and duck--eight hours should do the trick. If you're dealing with the rear quarter of a feral hog or a wild turkey, 24-hours is more appropriate. This brine works wonders with conventional cooking methods as well as smoking and grill techniques. I've given you the basic formula, but you should feel free to improvise. Sweet spices like cinnamon and allspice work well with pork. Juniper berries go great with duck. Herb variations like rosemary and sage could be effective brine ingredients. Don't be afraid to experiment.

So, you've brined the heck out of your meat--what now? Let's narrow the focus and zoom in on wild duck. I know how a lot of you mallard blasters are--you just rip the breasts out and don't bother with such nonsense as plucking and proper evisceration. You're really missing out on a lot of waterfowl goodness, but we'll save that for later. The question is, what to do with a skinless duck breast? Slice the breast halves off the keel bone. Pat them dry with a wad of paper towels. Season the halves on both sides, but don't get crazy with the salt. Put the two halves together, yin-yang fashion so you have one piece of breast that's the same thickness. Wrap the breasts with smoked bacon. Saute in a little pork fat to crisp the bacon, then pop the pan in a 400-degree oven for about 8 minutes. You want the duck medium rare--about 135-degrees internal temp. Keep it covered with foil after you take it out of the pan--let it rest while you make a pan sauce.

Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat. Saute some sliced shallots for about a minute. Add a half cup of madeira and a half cup of dried cherries to the pan. Let the madeira almost evaporate. Add 12 ounces chicken stock, a bay leaf, 10 peppercorns and two thyme sprigs. Let the stock reduce until it gets saucy and coats the back of a spoon. Taste the sauce for seasoning, adjust, and swirl in a knob of butter off heat. Serve the sauce with that duck breast. This dish has a high yum factor.

How about some side dishes? Wild rice with apples and pecans sounds good. Sauteed wild mushrooms sounds good, too. Oven roasted asparagus adds some color, crunch, and is unfailingly easy. See, that's not too hard. Serve this to your better half and I guarantee you a better time than 30 minutes of Super Bowl commercials.

If you've got game--recipes, that is, that don't involve wishbone dressing, I want to hear about them. And duck hunters--please pluck your duck, and save the feet. We'll chat about that another time. As we say in the bidness--Chow.

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