Review and Recipe: Roast Pheasant with Castle MacLellan Mushroom Pâté

Roast Pheasant

Fancy something a little different for the Christmas dinner? Then this pheasant option could be a good alternative to turkey. Now if I had my way I’d be having turkey, but I’ll be eating at my uncle’s this year, so doubt it will feature at the table. Read what I ate the last time I went to his for Christmas.

Back to the pheasant. I was sent a selection of pâtés from Scottish Castle MacLellan and took a particular shine to their ‘Oven Roasted Mushroom Pâté’.  They’ve been making luxury pâtés since 1982 and source local ingredients from small, independent companies rooted in Scottish heritage and provenance. They work with a number of local suppliers, which include Rannoch Smokery and The Orkney Fisherman’s Society. The mushroom pâté is part of their core range that’s available all year round. I try samples from that, along with their limited edition festive range.

Selection of Castle MacClellan Pates

Limited edition festive range:
Chicken Pâté with Brandy – smooth, rich but with a bitter after-taste.

Duck Pâté with Port – deep, strong hit of port that manages not to over-power.

Salmon Terrine – a lovely texture similar to rilletes, with a nice hint of lemon.

Core range:
Rannoch Smoked Duck Pâté with Bramley Apple Jelly – great taste and well-balanced sweetness from the apple jelly, but couldn’t really detect the smoke in the pieces of duck.

Chicken Liver Pâté with Scottish Heather Honey – a smooth, rich and creamy chicken liver pâté with a nice note of sweetness from the honey.

Scottish Smoked Salmon Pâté with Lemon Juice and Horseradish – a light mousse-like texture with a nicely balanced tartness from the lemon.

Luxury Orkney Crab Terrine with Lemon Juice and Galloway Mustard – fresh, light and creamy with flavours of the sea coming from the crab.

Oven Roasted Mushroom Pâté - rich, creamy and nicely seasoned with garlic and thyme with noticeable pieces of mushrooms.

Pheasant prep

I use the mushroom pâté, along with bacon, to help keep the breast moist when roasting and to pack extra flavour. Pheasant is very lean making it easy to dry out.  I try not to overcook it by roasting to between 140-150 °F (60-65 °C) and use my very nifty cooking thermometer, Thermapen, to check the temp. If you don’t have one, roast for 30 minutes then keep an eye on it and cook until the juices run clear.

Castle MacLellan festive and core range pâtés are available in supermarkets and independent stores throughout the UK, priced around £2.49-£2.99.

Thanks to Castle MacClellan for the samples.

Roast pheasant with a mushroom pâté sauce

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Serves	3
Prep time	10 minutes
Cook time	40 minutes
Total time	50 minutes
By author	Natasha Miles

Succulent roast pheasant with mushroom pate sauce.

Ingredients

• 1.2kg Pheasant
• 6 rashers of streaky bacon
• 1 tub of Castle Maclellan mushroom pâté
• 1 handful fresh mushrooms of your choice
• 2 shallots
• 150ml double cream
• 100ml chicken stock
• 50ml dry white wine
• 2 cloves crushed garlic
• 1 handful chopped parsley
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

	Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 4.
	Season the pheasant with salt and pepper.
	Smother the breasts with half the tub of mushroom pate, then layer with streaky bacon making sure the breasts are covered.
	Place on a roasting, put in oven and roast for 40 minutes or if you have a temperature probe until it has reached between 140-150 °F (60-65 °C).
	Once cooked, cover in foil and leave to rest for 10 minutes.
	For the sauce:
	Fry shallots in a small pan for 3 minutes, then add garlic and mushrooms and fry for a further 2 minutes. Add wine and fry until the wine has evaporated.
	Add the rest of the mushroom pate, cream, chicken stock, and any juices from the pheasant, season to taste then cook for a further 5 minutes.
	Pour gravy over cooked pheasant, garnish with chopped parsley and seve with winter vegetables.