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Early Autumn Meat/Fish (Mid-September through Early October)
Venison
Recipes
- The word venison, whose roots are in the Latin venatus (to hunt), once simply meant game meat. Now it is used more narrowly to mean the meat of any kind of deer. But deer meat deserves its definitive name: ask people what they consider
to be the ultimate game meat, and they are likely to name venison.
- Venison resembles beef in texture, color, and flavor. In fact, it has very close to the same chemical composition, but it is significantly less fatty. A three-ounce serving of cooked venison has less than 3 grams of fat. The same amount
of flank steak, has nearly 9 grams.
- Deer meat, like beef, is usually aged in a cool place for several days. This enhances the flavor and increases the tenderness of the meat. The meat of older deer, especially, is likely to be tough. Cooks should keep in mind that the
tenderest parts of the deer are the back and saddle; the shoulder and leg are best reserved for dishes that require long, slow cooking. An acidic marinade (made with wine, vinegar, tomatoes, or citrus) can also help to make a tougher cut tender.
Monkfish
Recipes
- Monkfish is also known as lotte (in France), anglerfish, lawyerfish, and devilfish, among other names. It is an astonishingly ugly creature, almost all hideous head -- and
its oversized jaw has an underbite so extreme that it cant close its jagged-toothed mouth. Lurking on the sea bottom, the monkfish feeds by dangling a lure-like filament over its head until a fish comes near -- then it snaps. With such a gigantic mouth,
the monkfish can devour prey that is nearly its equal in size.
- Those who plan to cook monkfish need not steel themselves to brave the sight of its face. The heads are usually discarded while the fishermen are still at sea, and only the fleshy tails are likely to show up at the market.
- Because the monkfish is so unattractive -- and scavenges for food on the ocean floor -- it was considered a trash fish in the United States for quite a long time. In recent years, though, it has come into fashion and has now been fished
more heavily than the population will support. As a result, it is considered endangered in some areas of the Northeast and may not be as readily available at stores.
- The tail of the monkfish yields two cylindrical fillets. The meat is firm, mild-flavored and sweet. Many people think it tastes like lobster. In Japan, monkfish liver, or ankimo, is a delicacy, as are the cheeks and belly flaps of the
fish.
- Monkfish can be grilled, pan-fried, sauteed, or stewed. Just be sure to remove absolutely all of the white membrane that covers the meat (even if this means cutting away some of the meat) before cooking. Heat causes the membrane to
contract and toughen. Monkfishs mild flavor and firm
Pheasant
Recipes
- Pheasants are Old World birds that have been kept by people since ancient times, both as a food source and for the males stunning ornamental plumage. The common (often called ring-necked) pheasant was introduced to North America in
1881, when Judge Owen Denny, a diplomat, shipped several back from China and released them at his Oregon farm. On the East Coast in the previous century, a few European varieties had also been introduced and were thriving on a smaller scale. George
Washington kept pheasants at Mount Vernon.
- The word pheasant itself shows that people have taken an interest in the bird for quite some time. It comes from the classical Greek phasianos, or the Phasian bird -- there was a large population of pheasants near the Phasis River in
the ancient region of Colchis. (In the legend of Jason and the Argonauts, Jason travels to Colchis to steal the golden fleece.) Today the area belongs to the Republic of Georgia, formerly part of the Soviet Union.
- There are 50 or so species of pheasant. The males have long tails and flashy, colorful markings, while the females are subdued in color, so that they blend into the grain fields where they tend their nests. Almost all pheasant species
have resounding, hoarse calls -- the peacock is a type of pheasant. One particularly gorgeous pheasant, the metallic green Japanese kiji, is known for being a foreteller of earthquakes. Sensitive to the slightest tremor, they call out in concert just
before the quake.
- Pheasants are distant ancestors of domesticated chickens. Like chickens, they are gallinaceous birds. That is, they nest on the ground and seek out grassy fields and brushy areas to live in. Their habitat provides protective cover,
concealing them from predators and sheltering them in cold weather. Not surprisingly, modern farming methods and the diminished areas of grassland in the country have worked together to threaten the pheasant population. However, active efforts to preserve
the birds have had a positive effect in recent years. Cooks who live in areas where wild pheasants are under protection can still expect to find domesticated pheasant at good markets.
- Pheasant meat is very flavorful, so devotees usually prefer to keep the preparation simple. Roasted pheasant is complemented by simple autumn stuffings, perhaps flavored with nuts, onions, sage and thyme. A slice of bacon laid over the
bird during cooking is another common flavoring.
Rabbits and Hares
Recipes
- Rabbits and hares are very popular small game animals, and their famously rapid rate of reproduction guarantees that they are rarely danger of extinction. In general, they can be hunted in the fall and winter. Farm-raised meat is
available yearround. It will be milder, plumper, and tenderer than wild -- but this is always true of domestic, as opposed to wild, meats.
- Although we dont make the distinction consistently in America, there is a difference between a rabbit and a hare. Rabbits are born blind, hairless, and helpless. They must be raised by their parents for a significant amount of time, and
they grow up to be social animals that live in groups. Cottontails are true rabbits, and are native to North America. Hares are born with their eyes open, fully furred. They are texture makes it a good addition to spicy, saffron-flavored soups or
wine-rich stews.
- Well-developed enough at birth to hop around almost immediately, and grow up to be solitary adults. The jackrabbit, which is common in California, is a true hare. (There are also species of rabbits and hares that are native to Europe;
most domesticated rabbit breeds in this country trace their ancestors back to Old World varieties.)
- Rabbit hunters, and those who prepare wild rabbit, should be aware that they are the most common carriers of a disease called tularemia, or rabbit fever. This pheumonia-like illness can be transmitted through contact with raw rabbit
meat or by eating meat that hasnt been cooked thoroughly. There is no need for this to prevent you from enjoying wild rabbit, though. Just wear latex kitchen gloves when handling the meat, and be sure to cook it well.
- Hare is darker and has a gamier taste than rabbit, even when the meat is from farm-raised hares, and both are gamier than the meat they are commonly compared to: chicken. Look for rabbit to be prepared in all the ways chicken is, baked,
braised, stewed, sauteed, roasted. Among the many flavors that complement it are dried fruits, olives, mustard, rosemary, and bourbon.
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