Indian Spiced Pheasant Breast Salad

Curry spiced pheasant breast summer salad

When I came up with the idea a couple of nights back to make a curried pheasant breast dish, I did not fully consider how appropriate that would be for dinner on a particularly hot summer's evening. Fortunately, I came up with this plan to make a cold, curry spiced pheasant breast Indian themed salad instead. I essentially served the cooled pheasant breasts with Indian spiced chickpeas (essentially just spiced onions with the onions substituted by chickpeas) and an experimental simple salad in what is actually homemade pakora sauce. The only element of the combination served warm is the naan bread. 

Cook Time

Prep time: 15 min

Cook time: 8 min

Ready in: 23 min (plus cooling time for pheasant)

Yields: 2 servings

Patting pheasant breast in curry seasoned flour

Ingredients

• 2 skinless pheasant breast fillets
• 2 tablespoons plain/all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon (or to taste) hot curry powder
• Salt
• Vegetable oil for frying
• 14 ounce/400g can chickpeas in water, drained and rinsed
• 2 tablespoons tomato ketchup (1 each for chickpeas and mixed salad)
• 2 teaspoons mint sauce (1 each for chickpeas and salad)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground fenugreek
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder (1/4 teaspoon each for chickpeas and salad)
• 1 teaspoon runny honey
• Juice of half a lemon
• 1 teaspoon dried coriander leaf/cilantro
• 3 tablespoons natural yoghurt
• 6 crisp Little Gem or Romaine/cos lettuce leaves, rolled and shredded
• 10 baby plum tomatoes, halved down through the core
• 4 inch (10cm) piece of cucumber (variety known as English cucumber, US), halved down through the core and sliced
• 3 or 4 slices from peeled and halved brown onion, separated into strands
• 2 mini garlic and coriander/cilantro naan breads

Spicy floured pheasant breasts are added to frying pan

Put the flour and curry powder in a flat bottomed bowl and season further with a generous pinch of salt. Use a table knife (yes, honestly!) to stir/combine and you will not create lumps in the mixture.

Pour a little oil into a large frying pan and bring it up to a medium heat. Pat the pheasant breasts on both sides in the flour mix to ensure even covering, gently shake off any excess flour and fry on a medium heat for four minutes each side.

Pheasant breasts are turned to fry on second side

When the pheasant breasts are done, lift them to a plate, cover and leave them to rest and cool completely.

Spicy sauce for chickpeas ingredients

To a large glass or stone bowl add 1 tablespoon tomato ketchup, 1 teaspoon mint sauce, 1/2 teaspoon ground fenugreek, 1/4 teaspoon chilli powder, the honey, the lemon juice and the dried coriander/cilantro. Stir well with a wooden spoon to properly and fully combine.

Chickpeas are added to spicy sauce

Add the rinsed chickpeas to the spicy sauce and carefully stir fold with the wooden spoon to ensure even coating.

Simple pakora sauce ingredients

Put the yoghurt, 1 tablespoon of ketchup, 1 teaspoon mint sauce and 1/4 teaspoon chilli powder into a second bowl. Season with a little salt and stir with a wooden spoon to combine.

Salad ingredients are added to pakora sauce

Add the salad elements to the bowl with the pakora sauce and carefully stir fold to ensure even coating.

Lay the rested and cooled pheasant breasts on a chopping board and slice at a 45-degree angle. Arrange 1 pheasant breast on each serving plate, flanked in each instance by half the salad and half the spiced chickpeas. Heat 2 naan breads in a hot oven or under a hot grill/broiler, or per the instructions on the pack. Note that it is sometimes a good idea to sprinkle them with a little cold water prior to heating to ensure they are moist. Cut the naan breads in half and plate a half at either end of the sliced pheasant.