Smoked Pheasant Breast

So I began by generously seasoning the breasts with salt, pepper, and the zest and juice of the orange. I then wrapped the breast, covering most of it with the bacon. Place it in the refrigerator while your smoker, or in my case, my grill/smoker heats up. You want it about 250ºF.

Once your smoker is ready, add the breasts, then head in and make your wild rice. Cook the wild rice according to the directions on the package. During this time, get a large cast iron skillet out, heat up the butter on medium heat, and add in all of your mushrooms. Cook until the mushrooms begin to caramelize, about 20 minutes or so, stirring often. Once the rice is cooked, fold in all of the mushrooms, as well as the Craisins. Season to taste and set aside.

The breast should take you about one hour to cook, but about 45 minutes in to the cooking process, add the wood chips to the coals and let the breasts get a nice hit of the cherry smoke. Once the breast is cooked, remove it from the smoker, and let it rest for about 20 minutes. When you are ready to plate, get a platter out, lay down the rice, and add the breasts to the top of the rice. Slice, and serve.

Truly great flavors, and a nice new take on serving something different on the table. Oh yeah, and the wild rice and mushrooms were a great pairing with the pheasant. I used the leftovers, believe or not, and made pheasant pot pies. Enjoy.