In my kitchen

ANDREW Pern’s Salmis of Grouse with Stump.

As I write this, I am enveloped by the rich scent of the first of the season’s grouse cooking in the ovens; the aroma of its heather-fed diet fills the kitchen with a distinct smell, although actually the flavour of the meat is not so strong and it’s so individual and totally delicious… In fact, I may have got carried away by the grouse theme, as I have just added Dark Chocolate and Famous Grouse Whisky Mousse to my puddings menu. Well, someone did challenge me to invent a dessert with grouse in it.

While early season grouse are perfect traditionally roasted, old grouse can have a tendency to be a little tough, so my recipe is one to keep for later in the season.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Salmis is a classic casserole dish, using older birds to create a wonderful, deep, Burgundy-rich stew. The stump, with its less than glamorous name, which is just a Yorkshire term for mashed carrot and swede – add a good pinch of cracked black pepper and you are away.

You will need

Ingredients: 2 old grouse (oven ready); 50g smoked bacon cubes; 6 shallots, finely diced; 2 sticks of celery, washed and diced; 2 carrots, finely diced; 2 cloves of garlic, crushed; 250ml red wine; 1 spring of thyme. Seasoning 100ml game stock; 5g cornflour, or as required. A little rapeseed oil for frying. Seasoning.

For the Stump: 6 carrots, 1 medium swede, 50g butter, Seasoning.

Method

Preheat the oven to 150°C/Gas Mark 2.

Cut the grouse longways, so that you have 4 pieces. Heat a little oil in a large saucepan and fry off the breast meat, legs and smoked bacon until browned. Add the diced shallots, celery and carrots, and crushed garlic to the pan, followed by the wine and thyme, salt and pepper, bring to the boil, until reduced by half. Then add the game stock and place into the preheated oven for 2 hours, or until the leg meat is soft and the sauce has thickened slightly (use cornflour, if required).

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

For the stump, dice the carrot and swede, and bring to the boil with a little water. Cook until very soft, then drain off the water and mash the carrot and swede, season with cracked black pepper and salt, and add the butter for richness.

To serve, place a leg and some nice chunks of breast in a bowl and cover with the rich red wine sauce and place a good spoonful of the Yorkshire stump next to the casserole.

Andrew Pern is chef at the Star Inn, Harome.

Christine Austin recommends: As the first game of the season, this grouse dish needs a warm-fruited red to accompany it such as Jean-Luc Colombo’s deeply delicious Crozes Hermitage 2008 (Waitrose £13.99) or the blackberry and spice flavours of Torres Sangre de Toro 2009 from Spain (Majestic £7.99).

Related topics: