Comfort food choice for snow/icey weather

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Try this one... Wild Pheasant and Foraged Chestnut stew you'll love it!

As it is Winter there isn’t many great opportunities to go out and gather wild food, so I made this with some nuts that I had gathered late last year.
So, luckily for me I have had some plump foraged sweet chestnuts sitting in a wooden bowl in my kitchen since late Autumn. The chestnuts were foraged from Danbury woods (Essex, UK) and have kept perfectly since their collection sharing the bowl with some Walnuts from a mate’s garden.
I was holding onto them as Winter especially January and February are particularly tough on the seasonal cook.. Anyway, got wind that the butcher in the market was doing some good deals on Pheasants (it was nearly Feb and the shooters were getting as many in as possible before the season ended!) the butchers was full of them, but if you have a couple of plump birds in the freezer that you have shot all the better!
Ended up getting three Pheasants for a tenner!!

I knew of a great way of cooking Pheasants and combining them with the chestnuts that I had foraged the previous year, so here it is!

Wild Pheasant and Foraged Chestnut Stew:

Ingredients:
2 x Wild Pheasants
Maldon Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper
Juniper Berries
Half a cup of Flour
2 x Carrots
2 x Onions
2 x Celery Sticks
Two large glasses of Red Wine
Couple of handfuls of Foraged Chestnuts
From the Garden:
Few Bay Leaves
Bunch of Thyme
Sprig of Rosemary

Obviously you can buy chestnuts but if you have got some whole chestnuts give them a light roasting by cutting small crosses in the top and at 200 degrees heat them for between 10 and twenty minutes (depending on the size of the chestnut). Leave the oven on for the stew and set aside the chestnuts to cool.
Now, de-joint the pheasants by simply taking the breasts and legs off, try and leave the pheasant meat in four large pieces and don’t worry too much if you have left some meat on the carcass as you can make a lovely game stock with both of the carcasses. In a bowl prepare add your flour, heavily season the flour and the crush eight or so Juniper berries, add these to the flour too! Throw in your Pheasant pieces toss them in the seasoned flour and then brush off any excess.
In a large frying pan, heat some oil and then seal your pheasant pieces. Don’t crowd the pan with to much Pheasant as you want a quick searing heat to lightly brown the jointed pieces. Once all of the Pheasant is browned, set aside.
Meanwhile peel your chestnuts and chop your veggies. Fry the vegetables with (with a little extra oil if you need it) and cook until sweet and soft. Next add your Bay leaves, chopped Thyme and the Sprig of Rosemary, deglaze the pan with the red wine, cook for thirty seconds then add the browned Pheasant pieces and the roasted chestnuts back to the pan. Top up with water until the Pheasant is completely covered and then cover the pan with top with tin foil. If you can find an ovenproof lid for the saucepan and put on top of the pan to stop the tin foil rising up. Cook in the oven for two hours at 200 degrees.
Once two hours have passed using tongs remove the now tender Pheasant pieces and place them on a warm plate. Reduce the lovely stock by half and remove the bay leaves and rosemary sprig – check the seasoning of the sauce. Finally place your wild Pheasant pieces to two warm plates (yes I am greedy!) cover in the sauce and serve with herby Polenta or creamy mashed Potato!

Winter Warmer done! If you try it let me know! Or try my other Wild Food Winter Warmer Wild Venison and Chanterelle Mushroom Wellington!
 

wattsy

Native
Dec 10, 2009
1,111
3
Lincoln
i like a fish pie with leeks and parsley in it or the old classic bangers and mash with a proper onion gravy thick enough to choke a rat
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,937
4,569
S. Lanarkshire
Blast from the past, but it's -6.8 here this morning, and I'm going to get the soup on. Might make a veg hotpot and top it with cheese scones dough.

Plain food, comfort food, stick to your ribs and warms from the inside out :D

M
 

Insel Affen

Settler
Aug 27, 2014
530
86
Tewkesbury, N Gloucestershire
Range Stew! And sweet tea with a hint of coffee (for the old soldiers out there)

There is no recipe as it's different every time.

(I suppose it's a bit like the Chicken Sinatra a chef used to cook me every week at St Omer Bks in Aldershot. I asked him how come it was different every week. He said it was chicken done......[Bursts into song] myyyyyyyyy waaaaayyyyyyyyy!)
 

mousey

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Jun 15, 2010
2,210
254
42
NE Scotland
Man, you lot have made me well hungry now. It's put me in mind for my works Christmas meal :)
 

Broch

Life Member
Jan 18, 2009
7,975
7,755
Mid Wales
www.mont-hmg.co.uk
It's got to be Cawl - lamb or ham but traditionally lamb.
With thick slices of fresh bread from the oven :)
And some fresh black pepper ground over the top.
And, if you're posh, some grated cheese as well :)

Cheers,
Broch
 

Paul_B

Bushcrafter through and through
Jul 14, 2008
6,151
1,544
Cumbria
I'm sorry but on a cold winter's day all the above sounds good. But for me I am afraid it's bought in food. There's a place in Kendal called Baba Ganoush canteen. It's soups vary each week but that doesn't matter. Every single one I've tried is a real winter warmer.

They serve it in cardboard cartons in regular and large. You buy it to go or eat in. Eating in you're probably sharing a table it's so busy. It's a friendly atmosphere and the soups are amazing. I get the large, served with artisan bread, a big lump of bread perfect for dunking.

The large soup I get at lunch and I'm actually stuffed with it. I can eat one at 1pm and not feel hungry until 9pm.

I don't know how they make such tasty and filling soups. Needless to say the soups are crammed full of veg and if meat then there's lots of that too. Flavour is in spades. Veggie or meat soup doesn't matter. They both fill me up and I'm a guy who can eat anything put in front of him. I eat for three of I'm cooking just for myself but this soup is enough for me for lunch.

BTW did I say their soups are good?
 

daveO

Native
Jun 22, 2009
1,453
513
South Wales
Blast from the past, but it's -6.8 here this morning, and I'm going to get the soup on. Might make a veg hotpot and top it with cheese scones dough.

Plain food, comfort food, stick to your ribs and warms from the inside out :D

M

My wife just made a lovely batch of soup. Last time we had a roast chicken I boiled the carcass and picked the remaining meat off then froze the lot together. She's added the veg and spicey herby stuff since she's better at doing flavours than me. Luckily the kale is buried under the snow or I'd have to wrestle that off her to stop her adding it. Horrible stuff :vomit:
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,937
4,569
S. Lanarkshire
What is it with menfolks and brassicas ? they're good for you.
Son1 actually said to me, "I don't do brassicas Mum, I'll eat almost anything vegetarian, but I don't do brassicas".
I like brassicas, I like kale, cauliflower, cabbage, even broccoli :) but they don't do brassicas :sigh: and Himself's not keep on neeps neither.
 

daveO

Native
Jun 22, 2009
1,453
513
South Wales
There's broccoli in there but I draw the line at cattle fodder. The turnips are also buried under the snow and the leeks. I love both of them cooked anyway she pleases. I'd grow a whole field full of leeks if I could, must be a Welsh thing. She does a great turnip risotto which is a lovely winter food if you can actually get to the turnips in the first place...
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,937
4,569
S. Lanarkshire
Sounds interesting :) I have a bag of navets sitting needing used....those are the wee white turnips with the pale pink tops, not the big yellow fleshed ones with the dark plum coloured tops. I'm the only one who'll happily eat them, but new recipes are always welcome :D

M
 

Janne

Sent off - Not allowed to play
Feb 10, 2016
12,330
2,293
Grand Cayman, Norway, Sweden
Hungarian Goulash/Porkolt.....

If you are vegetarian/vegan, you just sub the meat with potatoes. Might work well with turnips too, specially the small ones!
For an authentic Hungarian receipe, just shout!
 

santaman2000

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Jan 15, 2011
16,909
1,114
67
Florida
Too many to include a real favorite, but these would definitely be on my "short" list. LOL. In no particular order:
-Grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup
-Chili
-Beef stew
-Gumbo
-Clam chowder (New England style; NOT Manhattan)
-Red beans and rice
-Macaroni and cheese
-Chili mac
-Biscuits and gravy
-S.O.S.
-Oatmeal
-Baked beans
-Split pea and ham soup
 

Paul_B

Bushcrafter through and through
Jul 14, 2008
6,151
1,544
Cumbria
Scrambled eggs (duck eggs are good too). It's simply so quick to cook in the morning.

BTW I add paprika in top. Occasionally turmeric instead or as well. Apparently paprika is this too kick-start your metabolism in the morning if like me you're not good with breakfast. Turmeric has some evidence it ups your performance in a sporting activity. I figure it will only help me more in the morning. I'm not a morning person.

BTW I used to like smoked salmon with my scrambled eggs. 3 or 4 eggs with salmon. On toast (wholemeal / granary). I buy smoked salmon trimmings when I see them. They're as good as the proper packets only they're the bits cut off when they give the main, expensive packs of smoked salmon their fish shapes I believe. Certainly a lot cheaper with as good a taste IME.
 

Robson Valley

Full Member
Nov 24, 2014
9,959
2,664
McBride, BC
-5C isn't hardly even chilly here. -10C is crispy when there's no wind.
Add some snow and a hard-driving N wind that sifts that into every possible gap in your clothing.
I don't care how much snow I track into my house, just adds humidity to the dry air.
Stop shivering. That's a big deal.
For me, it's several concepts:
1. Some sort of heavy soupy thing or a meat & veg stew.
2. Fresh bready thing: biscuits, breads, dumplings, not pancakes.
3. Warm apple juice with dashes of cinnamon & nutmeg.
 

Toddy

Mod
Mod
Jan 21, 2005
38,937
4,569
S. Lanarkshire
It's not the persistent bitter cold of the continents though RV. The temperature has risen 11 degrees in the last five hours. Now we've got rain, and it's 4C.....and it might well freeze again tonight.

It's the constant change, that it's always moist, or icily frozen to treacherous footing, the rapid and repeated freeze/thaw, and very little sunshine, that makes our Winter's hard going.
When everything's wet, muddy, and damp, and then the wind blows, and the temperature hovers just above and below freezing, there is no stasis, no always right clothing, or always right ways to live in it.
 
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Robson Valley

Full Member
Nov 24, 2014
9,959
2,664
McBride, BC
The damp. My sympathies. Vancouver, down on the SW coast is like that. aka Lower Mainland.
+2C, pouring rain and slashing wind is far, far colder than where I live now (called the Central Interior.).
I enjoy my winter cravings for steamed vegetables and baked potatoes.
 

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