Beretta pheasant
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Beretta pheasant recipe

I will share my favourite pheasant recipe, called Beretta pheasant, a nod to the Italian manufacturer of the shotgun I used to shoot the pheasant I used to make this dish for the first time. It’s an Italian twist on a classic roast pheasant.

Ingredients

100g Parma ham

150g ricotta

1 tbsp thyme leaf, plus some sprigs

4 tbsp freshly grated parmesan

2 oven-ready pheasants, washed and dried

150ml extra-dry vermouth or dry white wine

4 garlic cloves

Olive oil

A pheasant carcass on a dinner table with side dishes

Beretta pheasant recipe

This is a quick-to-make pheasant dish and keeps the mess in the kitchen to a minimum – something I definitely appreciate!

It is a great way to cook a whole bird, ensuring it remains moist, juicy and flavoursome.

Let's get started...

  1. First, heat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas 7 or in the baking oven of a range.
  2. For this pheasant recipe, you will need to chop up some of the Parma ham, leaving 6 slices for later.
  3. Combine the ricotta, chopped Parma ham, thyme and parmesan with salt and pepper.

The pheasant...

  1. Take your two pheasants, ease the skin gently away from the breast meat of each bird and place the ricotta mix between the skin and the breast.
  2. This ricotta mix will prevent the birds from drying out. At this point, you can also add some thyme sprigs into the cavity to add flavour.
  3. Next, place the pheasants in a roasting tin and wrap the Parma ham around them.
  4. Season with pepper, then pour over the vermouth/white wine and drizzle with oil.
  5. Scatter the garlic cloves around the dish and thyme over the birds.
  6. Place the birds in the oven, to roast for 20 minutes, then turn down the heat to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4 and cook for a further 35-40 minutes.
  7. Make sure to baste every now and then with the pan juices.
  8. Remove from the oven once the Parma ham and pheasant brown nicely and leave to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Serving Beretta pheasant

I place the pan juices in a gravy boat. This pheasant dish goes well with roasted rosemary and garlic potatoes and spinach.

To continue with the Italian theme, I recommend having a lovely glass (or two) of Barolo with this delicious dish. 

Hungry for more?

You will find many more tasty recipes for pheasant, and other game, on Eat Game website.

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Picture of Marta Jacyna

Marta Jacyna

Marta Jacyna is BASC’s communications officer. She is passionate about the countryside and enjoys deer stalking and foraging for food.

Game in the kitchen

BASC regional officer Matt Dutton updates on his team’s work to educate future chefs about the benefits of using wild game as an ingredient.

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