Page 183. Brining game is an excellent, and simple, way to keep the lean meat tender. I tied it to the neck of the grouse and then suspended the bird by tieing the other end to an available hook-like thing in my fridge. To cook the grouse, preheat oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. The refrigerator is likely too cold for the best experiment results, but the temperatures outside were still too warm and unpredictable to try hanging on my balcony. Shesh, that seems like it would be a lot for just one rabbit. But whatever, I decided to hang it longer than a few days for this reason — 8 days total. Philippa Davis’ brined roast grouse with warm chard and sheep’s cheese salad makes delicious use of your first brace. You can also add aromatics or other flavorings to intensify the seasoning, like whole peppercorns, garlic cloves, dried herbs, whole spices, citrus or other fruit, mirepoix or fruit juices. Add thawed birds and allow to brine for 6-8 hours. ALWAYS make certain to thoroughly rinse off the meat upon removing from the brine. In fact its a must for grilling! (So, definitely worth your time I think.). Hunting was not on my mind then, nor was wild game. I hope to continue with these experiments, the history of it all is fascinating but original sources are tough to find. After your grouse has finished hanging for the appropriate amount of time and you have plucked/gutted/spatchcocked it, it's time to brine. The brining process changes the structure of meat on a cellular level, hydrating through osmosis and retaining moisture through denaturation caused by a salt-to-protein chemical reaction. 'New': added in last 14 days Page: 1 • Alder Cone Smoked Grouse with Fern Root Glaze and Salal Sauce • Apple Tarragon Baked Grouse • Blue Grouse (Chukars Pheasant) Cacciatore • Breast of Grouse The downside of the meat absorbing all of that water is the skin is much harder to crisp. But why is there such a vast disparity of opinion and experience? So when I did come across this technique, I was intrigued enough to try it out for myself without any prejudice as to the results. Otherwise, 1 small grouse per person is ideal.

This is best done by boiling just some of the water and then adding the remaining cool water which will help bring it back down in temperature faster. ★☆ Your prep time in this recipe is way off just given the time to prep the brine not to mention the time to brine it. Im looking to freeze all my grouse and save em for one big batch. : 6-8 hoursPheasant, mallards, etc. I chose the neck. I read so many accounts that grouse meat was incredibly gamey — especially autumn grouse meat — which is what I had to work with — tough and unremarkable, that hanging was a waste of time, that simply breasting and frying was the best cooking method. I don't fully understand the science behind it. But in my experience the faster you clean a grouse the less wild flavour you have to the point that I field dress my birds right after the kill. My first time making grouse, my first time cooking wild game meat on my own (farmed venison, bison and elk don't count). For lean meat such as game, this helps the muscle fibres to relax and become more tender.