- 1 [2 1/2 to 3-pound / 1 to 1.3-kg] young pheasant
- Salt, to taste,
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 or 3 celery stalk tops, with leaves
- 2 sprigs fresh parsley
- 1 thick slice lemon
- 4 slices fatty bacon
- 4 tablespoons [60 g] butter, melted
- 1 cup [250 mL] strong chicken broth
- 3 small onions, sliced
- 1/2 pound [227 g] whole mushrooms
- Flour or cornstarch
|
- Preheat oven to 350°F [180°C].
- Rinse then pat dry pheasant.
- Sprinkle pheasant inside out with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Stuff bird with bay leaf, celery stalk tops, parsley sprigs and slice of lemon.
- Tie legs together using a string, closing body cavity.
- Lay bacon slices on top of breast; fasten with wooden picks.
- Transfer pheasant onto the rack of a roasting pan; baste pheasant with melted butter.
- Pour chicken broth into roasting pan; arrange onion slices and mushrooms.
- Roast pheasant into preheated oven for 75 minutes, basting every 15 minutes with cooking juices.
- Transfer pheasant onto a warm serving plate; keep warm.
- Skim fat from pan drippings.
- Stir flour or cornstarch into drippings to thicken into gravy.
- Half pheasant, discard cavity contents and serve, along with gravy.
|
