Chinese Waldorf Salad
 | Author:
Eileen Clarke - Rifles and Recipes
Author: Rifles and Recipes |
Chinese Waldorf Salad
Eileen Clarke - Rifles and Recipes
Going for a long, hot walk for some birds come September first? We stash 12-16 ounce pop bottles, ½ to 3/4 filled with water, upright in the freezer. Heading out to hunt, top them off with cold water and slide 2 to 4 of them in the bird vest. As we walk and hunt, they’ll keep us--and our birds--cooler. Really hot? Fill the bottles, leaving an inch or so for expansion, and freeze. The ice lasts longer.
FYI: My husband, John Barsness, longtime Sports Afield, Rifle and Handloading magazines columnist also uses those frozen water bottles to cool down rifle barrels when testing loads or varmint hunting in hot weather.
Going for a short, hot hunt? Perhaps you can loop back to the truck. Instead of putting the warm birds in your vest against your warm body, use a ‘carrier’ that hangs away from the body. Mine is metal and inexpensive, but there are leather and braided-parachute-cord models online that are cheap, not so cheap and very chic. A carrier hangs outside your vest, instead of piling birds cheek-to-cheek against other still 98.6° birds plus our own body warmth.
Once you get to your vehicle, lay 2-3 inches of cubed ice in the bottom of your cooler, and the freshly killed birds in a single layer. As you add more birds, alternate layers of bird and cube ice. When possible, open the drain spout and tip the other end up so the melting ice drains off. Alternately put the birds in resealable plastic bags. Either way, surround each bird--top and bottom, side to side with ice cubes and set the cooler on the shady side of the truck, and toss a light-colored sleeping bag loosely over it to trap the cold in and reflect the heat/sun out.
Enough of the prep work, it’s time to cook.
Chinese Waldorf Salad
serves 4
Marinated in soy sauce and ginger overnight, then grilled and chilled, this upland salad is an easy do-ahead dish that will keep you cool this summer. Use any pale-meated upland bird. It’s pheasant here, but wild turkey, forest grouse and Hungarian partridge work just as well. Except for turkeys, each breast won’t be but 1” thick: 165°F on a meat thermometer, at 450°F only takes about 5 minutes.
Ingredients
For the marinade
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon minced crystallized ginger
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
8-10 ounce raw pheasant breast, boned
For assembling the salad
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup chopped apple
1 cup chopped celery
2/3 cup mayonnaise
Preparation
1. Combine the soy sauce, ginger, sugar, and vinegar in a resealable plastic bag. Seal and shake well. Add the pheasant breast, seal and shake again. Let marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
2. Pour off the marinade and lightly rub the breast with oil. Preheat your grill to medium-high heat, about 450°F then grill about 2 minutes a side, to about 165°F on a meat thermometer, or until the juices run clear when you poke the meat. Chill 30-60 minutes.
To assemble the salad:
1. Dice the pheasant breast into 1/2 inch cubes.
2. In a large bowl, toss the pheasant pieces with the chopped walnuts, apple, and celery. Fold the mayonnaise into the salad. Serve on toast, or with sliced tomato, apples and lettuce on the side.
From Eileen’s all upland bird cookbook, Upland Game Bird Cookery, 180 pages, hardcover, $20, and free shipping in the U.S. @ https://www.riflesandrecipes.com/406-521-0273.
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PhotoCredit: Photo Credits: Eileen Clarke
Image 1 Caption: Chinese Waldorf Salad
Photo Credits: Eileen Clarke
