- 4
Ingredients
- 1 large pheasant
- paper-thin slice(s) salt pork
- 2 pounds white grapes
- 24 walnuts
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cognac
- 3 lumps sugar
- salt
- pepper
Preparation
Step 1
Prepare the pheasant as though for roasting. Rinse a wide slice or several narrow slices of paper-thin salt pork to remove excess salt. Pat dry and envelop the bird in the fat, binding with kitchen twine.
Save out a few grapes for decoration and force the rest through a strainer to extract the juices.
Put the bird and the wa1nut halves in a deep pan. Add 3/4 of the grape juice, cognac, all the cream and butter, and some salt and pepper. Cover the pan and cook gently for 30 minutes.
Make a very thin caramel with the sugar. Add the caramel and the rest ot the grape juice. Continue cooking for 20 minutes.
Remove the pheasant and take off the twine and fat. Put the pheasant in a very hot (450°F) oven to brown. When nicely colored, place the pheasant on a heated serving platter.
At the same time, remove the nuts from the sauce with a slotted spoon and quickly boil down the sauce for a few moments. Season to taste with salt and peeper and strain the sauce over the bird. Surround with the nuts and grapes. Serve immediately.