Pheasant Leg and Tasso Ham Jambalaya

Jambalaya is a blend of rice, meat, vegetables, and seasonings that make a classic Cajun staple. A bit dryer than étouffée or gumbo, jambalaya is more of a fork meal than a spoon. The beauty of jambalaya is that you can use just about any kind of wild game in it.

Jambalaya is a classic mixture of meat, vegetables, rice, and seasoning that is perfect for wild game. Images by author

If you happen to have some pheasant legs in the freezer, this is the perfect recipe to use them up. It works great with turkey legs and thighs as well, and slow-cooked squirrels are another tasty option.

Slow cook your pheasant legs overnight to make them tender.

Whatever meat you use, cook it overnight in a slow cooker to make it tender. Add the meat, then pour over two quarts of cold water and add the chicken base and bay leaves. Cook on low all day or overnight or until the meat is tender.

Cook until the meat pulls easily from the bone.

Remove the legs from the pot and allow to cool until you can pick the meat from the bones. Reserve the stock in the slow cooker. It is full of flavor and you will use some later in the recipe.

Reserve the cooking stock in the slow cooker and remove all bones and tendons from the meat.

In place of the traditional smoked sausage, I used homemade Tasso ham we cured from a wild pig taken earlier this month. If you don’t make your own, you can find tasso at many butcher shops and larger groceries.

Home cured tasso from a wild pig is the perfect accompaniment to the pheasant in this recipe.

Start by dicing the tasso into small bits. Do the same for the onions, peppers and celery.

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In large pot, sauté the tasso until it is cooked through and crisp. Remove the tasso from the pot. Add the butter and flour, stirring to make a roux. I like a medium, peanut butter colored roux for this one. It took about 20 minutes of constant stirring to reach. Don’t walk away. If your roux burns, there isn’t any fixing it. Just toss it out and start over.

Make a roux and sauté the vegetables.

Once you have reached your desired roux color, add the vegetables. Stir and saute until they start to become tender. Return the tasso to the pot and add the boneless pheasant meat. Pour in about 2 ½ cups of the cooking stock from the slow cooker.

Add the cooking stock and the rice. Bring to a simmer and cook until the rice is done and the stock has been absorbed.

Sprinkle over the salt, peppers, thyme, sage, and tomato paste. Add the uncooked rice. Bring the mixture to a simmer, stir well, and cover the pan. Let it cook, stirring occasionally, until the rice is cooked and all of the stock has been absorbed. Serve with hot sauce at the table and with a chunk of crusty buttered bread.

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