Oven-Braised Pheasant with Sauerkraut
Submitted by KarDray
Oven-braised pheasant with sauerkraut, bacon, juniper berries, and white wine. Legs slow-cooked until tender in the kraut, breasts roasted separately to keep them juicy.
YIELD
8 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
3 hrsREADY
3 hrsPheasant and sauerkraut is a classic Alsatian and Central European pairing. Lean game birds can turn chalky in minutes if you roast them whole, so this recipe uses the pro move: break the bird down and cook dark and white meat separately, then reunite on the platter.
The legs, wings, and backs go low and slow in a Dutch oven with bacon fat, sauerkraut, dry white wine, and a handful of juniper berries, thyme, cloves, and bay. Two hours at 300°F (150°C) and the dark meat falls from the bone while the kraut soaks up all the rendered fat and wine.
Breasts are a different animal. They cook hot and fast in a separate pan, 20 to 25 minutes at 425°F (220°C), so they stay blushing pink and tender. Slicing them over the sauerkraut just before serving means they don’t dry out from long braising.
Chef Tips
- Crush the juniper berries lightly with the side of a knife to release their piney oils. Whole, they stay mute.
- Rinse the sauerkraut once in cold water and squeeze if it’s overly salty or vinegary. The long braise concentrates everything.
- Use a dry Alsatian Riesling, Gewurztraminer, or Gruner Veltliner. Their minerality matches pheasant better than a big buttery Chardonnay.
- Pull the breasts at 155°F (68°C) internal and let them rest. They’ll climb to 160°F (71°C) and stay juicy.
Variations
- Add a peeled, quartered apple to the kraut during the braise for Alsatian sweetness.
- Substitute duck legs for the pheasant legs. Everything else stays the same.
- Stir in a handful of caraway seeds with the sauerkraut for a more German profile.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat oven to 300℉ (150℃).
In a large Dutch oven, sauté bacon over medium heat until crisp, 3 to 5 minutes.
Add legs, backs and wings and brown in batches on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes.
Add sauerkraut, wine, Juniper berries, thyme, cloves and bay leaf to the Dutch oven.
Cook over medium heat until about half the liquid has evaporated, about 10 to 15 minutes.
Place the Dutch oven in the oven, uncovered.
Bake for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally and adding liquid as needed, until the legs are tender and the sauerkraut is slightly browned.
Remove the Dutch oven from the oven, discard backs, wings and bay leaf, season to taste, cover and keep warm.
Raise the oven temperature to 425 degrees F.
Salt and pepper pheasant breasts and place them on a rack in a roasting pan.
Roast them for 20 to 25 minutes, or until juices run clear when they are pierced with a fork.
Remove the breasts from the roasting pan, set aside and keep warm.
Reheat the legs in the Dutch oven briefly.
Slice the meat from the breasts and lay it over the legs and sauerkraut.
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