The perfect gifts with The Game Chef

In this article from My Countryside magazine, The Game Chef (Tom Godber Ford Moore) says that a handmade and delicious gift is the best way to celebrate the season. 

There are those who either love Christmas, or decidedly do not, and I stand firmly rooted in the former camp. Each year, I go big. No ‘quiet Christmases’ around here thank you; I want it all – an extravaganza of food, wine and song with a light bit of piety and a cleansing dose of philanthropy. But whilst the answers to the questions of what to eat and what to drink come to me readily, the question of what to gift tends to linger rather longer. You see, unless prompted on a certain item, I have an aversion to buying tangible things, knowing that most people either already have the item you are gifting and if they don’t then the reason is that they probably don’t want it.

So it is that I often turn to the old faithfuls of food and drink. There are few people out there who wouldn’t be delighted with a pot or bottle of something delicious to help them through the festive season, and in a world where time is a precious commodity, receiving something homemade is special. Not only this, but it’s always a good idea to try and declutter the freezer ahead of the big event, and with a no doubt ever increasing pile of pheasants and partridges at this time of year, the ideas that follow are a perfect means of making some much needed space! I hope you enjoy, and whether you give them away or keep them for yourself, I promise they will help in making it a very merry Christmas. 

A bottle of Bullshot Reviver 
You will no doubt be well-versed in the hot version of bullshot out in the field, and many a man and woman has found renewed lead in the barrels or a tighter leg after flagging on the first drive or covert of a Boxing Day morn. Shaking this life-giving elixir over ice and serving in fine crystal, you will have something that can also renew perhaps far greater steel – that of surviving the family Christmas!

The game stock is what really makes this, so do bother to make your own – if you are making the potted game, you can use the leftover bones from that.

Makes one 750ml bottle full and you can vary the amount of spice with the Tabasco 
to taste.

For the game stock:

• 4 lt water
• 6 pheasant carcasses, or 10 partridge carcasses
• 4 carrots, roughly chopped
• 2 leeks, roughly chopped
• 2 onions, skinned and halved
• 4 stalks of celery, roughly chopped
• 1 bulb garlic, halved
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 small bunch of thyme

Method

1. Roast your carcasses in an oven set to 180°C for half an hour, until browned.
2. Place in a large saucepan and add all the other ingredients.
3. Bring up to the boil, then turn down the heat to simmer gently for 2-3 hours.
4. Leave to cool a little, then strain through a sieve and return to the pan.
5. Bring back to the boil and skim off and discard any scum that rises.
6. Allow to boil hard until reduced by half, you should be left with 1-1.5 litres of liquid.
7. Allow to cool completely and place in the fridge overnight.
8. The next morning, sieve once more to remove any solidified fat.

Use the below ratio to fill a standard 750ml bottle and decorate as you see fit.

• 300ml game stock
• 250ml vodka
• 65ml dry sherry
• 65ml Worcestershire sauce 
• 65ml lemon juice
• ½tbsp freshly grated horseradish
• 1tsp salt
• 2tsp sugar
• ¼tsp black pepper
• ½-1tsp Tabasco sauce

Hawthorn and apple jelly

This is my favourite all round accompaniment to all game meats. Its sharp mix of tannin, sweetness and fruit cuts through and complements the richness of them all. It’s also great whisked into sauces and gravies along with a knob or two of butter, or spread thickly on dripping toast and topped with fried game meat or livers.

Hawthorn berries are often in great abundance and grow in small clumps, which are easy to snip off.

To fill 4-5 350ml terrine jars

• 1kg cooking apples, unpeeled and chopped into quarters with the core left in
• 1kg hawthorn berries, cleaned of stalks and leaves
• 1kg jam sugar
• Juice of 3 lemons
• 4 bay leaves

Method

1. Place the apples, haws and bay leaves in a large, heavy bottomed saucepan and cover with about 4lt water. Bring to the boil then simmer gently for two hours.
2. Strain and mash through a sieve. If you favour an aesthetically pleasing yet ultimately less flavoursome jelly, you can allow the liquid to strain though a muslin overnight, but I prefer taste over looks.
3. Return the strained liquid to the pan and add the jam sugar and lemon juice.
4. Slowly bring to the boil, stirring all the while, and then, once the sugar has dissolved, allow to boil hard for 10 minutes before checking its setting level.
5. To do this, simply spoon a little onto a small plate and place in the fridge or freezer until cold. You want it set but how much so is up to you. I prefer it quite well set with a good density, others prefer it more lightly set.
6. If it is too runny for your liking, simply boil the mixture down for a few minutes more and test again.

Potted pheasant with brandy and porcini

We used to make batches of around 60kg a time of this glorious gloop, and it sold like hotcakes at Christmas time! 

Best eaten at room temperature and spread onto toasted sourdough it is a decadent treat like no other, an excellent nibble for last minute guests – fine champagne or sherry is a must!

Well sealed, it will happily keep up to a month in the fridge.

Makes 4 full 350ml Kilner jars

• 2 pheasants or 4/5 partridges, chopped into quarters
• 300g pork belly
• 800g goose fat
• 1 bulb garlic, halved
• Sea salt and ground black pepper
• 3tbsp brandy
• 6 bay leaves
• 60g dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in 100ml water

Method

The day before you plan to make this, sprinkle the pheasant or partridge (or mix of both) and pork with a few tbsp of salt, and place in a non-metallic container in the fridge overnight.

The next day, rinse the meat quickly to remove excess salt and place in a casserole dish along with the bay leaves and garlic. It is important the meat fits snugly in the dish to make sure it is covered by the fat.

1. Melt the goose fat in a pan over a medium heat and pour over the meat, ensuring it is well covered.
2. Cover with a double layer of tin foil and place in a preheated oven at 150c.
3. Check the meat after 3 hours, and if it is completely tender and falling off the bone, remove from the oven. If not, return to the oven for a further 30 minutes to 1 hour.
4. Allow to cool enough so as you can handle it, and carefully pick all the meat off the bones. (Reserve the bones for an excellent stock).
5. Place the meat into a large bowl and, using your hands, tear and work the meat into shreds. Add all the cooking liquid and goose fat, along with a very good pinch of salt and pepper.
6. Strain the soaked porcini (reserve the soaking juice for the stock), roughly chop, and add to the mix along with the brandy.
7. Shake your hand through the meat, fingers outstretched, for a minute or so until everything is well incorporated and it starts to come together as one. It will not look attractive, but quite frequently the most delicious dishes do not.
8. Carefully spoon into the Kilner jars and seal (sterilise with boiling water first if you plan on keeping it for some time). 

Image: Glenn Dearing