Pheasant Shawarma with Roasted Pepper Hummus

Written by Jeff Davis

Prep Time: 4 to 6 Hours - Cook Time: 1 Hour

Being an Air Force brat, we lived a lot of different places where we got to experience a lot of different things. Of all the places we were stationed, the one place that stands out as the most unique was Turkey. This was way back in the 70's when Pan AM was still a major airline, and the cockpit doors were left open during the flight. I remember getting to meet the pilots, who gave me my very own pair of golden wings, albeit plastic ones, to pin to my shirt, it really made me feel like part of the crew. There wasn't any base housing available at the time, so we lived in some apartment buildings off base. The apartments were a single set of buildings out in a middle of a cotton field with nothing else around them. It felt barren and isolated. Off in the distance you could see a single mountain, who's peak was covered in snow all year round. Coming and going from the apartments, we'd see gypsies picking cotton from the surrounding fields. On a few occasions, a guy would come by the building, pulling a cart, he'd play music while a bear danced around in the parking lot and a monkey collected money with his hat. You would hear prayers being blasted over the air from a nearby Mosque during certain times of the day. We'd took a lot of road trips to go sight-seeing, I remember seeing temples carved into cliffsides in these deep ravines right off the side of the roads and swimming in the Mediterranean Sea.

One day dad had brought home this bag of Pistachios, we sat out of the balcony eating them, throwing the empty shells over the edge of the balcony into the cotton field below. We ate nearly half the bag, before dad for some reason, just bite one in half, only to find it was full of worms. We opened a few more, only to find little tunnels running through each nut and more worms. We quickly ran to the bathroom and washed our mouths out with hydroperoxide and maybe a little bit of alcohol.

I've been wanting to I do a couple Turkish inspired meals and what I came up with is this Pheasant Shawarma with Roasted Pepper Hummus with crushed Pistachios and another recipe, Turkish Bob White Quail Kabobs with Red Bulgur, that'll post next. I'm not Turkish, so these aren't going to be authentic flavors, just my interpretation of them. The main reason for doing these two recipes, is to relate them to my memories of Turkey. For this recipe, I wanted to use the Pistachios that Dad and I ate on the balcony ... only minus the worms.

If you don't know what a Shawarma is, it's basically marinated meat, stacked on a skewer and slowly cooked as it turns on a spit. It's then shaved off into thin slices and used on a sandwich or wrap, sort like the Mexican dish, Tacos Al Pastor ... if you ever heard of that. When I think about Shawarma, I think of it more as a Jewish meal, but the process of cooking the meat on a rotating spit originated in what is now Turkey. While not the exact the same thing, I've been wanting to do a rotisserie bird recipe for some time, and this seems liked a good opportunity to work that in. The rotisserie slows turns the meat on its axis while cooking the meat in its own juices.

My wife introduced me to Hummus, I didn't think I would, but I do. I always buy the Sabra Hummus at the Grocery store with the spicy red peppers in it. If you don't know what Hummus is, it's a Middle Eastern Dip made form Chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice and garlic. It's outstanding with pita bread or crackers. This seemed like a good chance to try to recreate it and it turned out to be my favorite part of this meal.

Ingredients

Turkish Seasoning Mix

2 tbsp Paprika

2 tbsp Sumac

1 tbsp Ground Cumin

1 tbsp Ground Coriander

1/2 tbsp Ground Oregano

1/2 tbsp Sesame Seeds

1/4 tsp Sea Salt

1/4 tsp Cayenne

1/4 tsp Ground Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Ground black pepper

Red Pepper Paste

4 Red Bell Peppers

2 Habenero Peppers

Olive Oil

2 tsp Kosher Salt

Ground black pepper

Hummus

15.5 oz Can of Chickpeas, rinsed and drained

2 Garlic Cloves

1/4 cup(s) Lemon Juice

1/2 cup(s) Tahini

Pistachios

Olive Oil

Sumac

Salt

Tzatziki sauce

8 oz Greek yogurt

1/2 Cucumber

Fresh Dill

2 Gralic Gloves

1/2 tbsp Lemon Juice

3 Mint Leaves

1-2 tbsp Olive Oil

Salt

Pheasant Brine

8 cup(s) Water

1/2 cup(s) Salt

1/2 cup(s) Light Brown Sugar

2 tbsp Turkish Seasoning Mix

2 Bay leaf

Pheasant Sharma

2-3 lb Whole Pheasant

Pita Bread

Arugula

Red Onion

Turkish Seasoning Mix

Butchers Twine

1 Lemon

Instructions

Turkish Seasoning Mix

Step #1 Measure out all the different spices in a bowl.

Step #2 Put in a small jar and give it a good shake.

Pheasant Brine

Step #1 Add two cups of water to a small sauce pan. Add salt, brown sugar, Turkish seasoning mix and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Let simmer for ten minutes.

Step #2 Remove small saucepan from the stove top and pour contents into a large stock pot. Add 6 cups of cold water and allow to cool to room temperature. Once cool, add pheasant to brine and place in the refrigerator for four to six hours.

Red Pepper Paste

Step #1 Wash the peppers, then place on a baking sheet.

Step #2 Set the oven to HI broil and place the peppers in the oven. Keeping a close eye on them, turning them as they start to blacken up.

Step #3 Take the peppers out of the oven once all sides have charred.

Step #4 Place the peppers on a cutting board and remove the steams with a sharp knife.

Step #5 Remove any seeds, then cut the peppers into large pieces.

Step #6 Add peppers to a small sauce pan, filled with enough water to cover them. Sprinkle in a little salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for five to six minutes, until soft.

Step #7 Allow to cool then add to a food processor.

Step #8 Pulse a few times, then add salt and pepper.

Step #9 Drizzle in a small amount of Olive oil. Then pulse on high setting a little more.

Step #10 Pour the contents back into your small sauce pan.

Step #11 Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook off some of the moisture.

Step #12 Remove from the stove, when you have a thick paste

Step #13 Pour the red pepper paste into a small jar and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Step #1 Add lemon juice to a measuring cup.

Step #2 Measure out Tahini, then add to your measuring cup.

Step #3 Using a fork or small whisk, combine the Tahini and lemon juice.

Step #4 Add Tahini and Lemon Juice mixture to food processor.

Step #5 Open the can of garbanzo beans and rinse them with cool water.

Step #6 Add beans to small sauce pan and heat on medium heat for six to seven minutes.

Step #7 Add the hot, soften beans and garlic to the food processor.

Step #8 Turn the food processor on and let run for half a minute, drizzling in a little olive oil while it runs.

Step #9 Open food processor and scrap down the sides.

Step #10 Turn the food process back on for another minute, this time, drop in a couple of ice cubes.

Step #11 It should be starting to resemble a thick dip.

Step #12 Scrap down the sides again.

Step #13 Sprinkle in salt.

Step #14 Turn the food processor back on, this time drizzle in a little cool water.

Step #15 Using a spatula, pour the hummus into a serving bowl.

Step #16 Chop up a few Pistachios

Step #17 Add a few spoonfuls of the Roasted Red Pepper paste to the top of the hummus. Sprinkle with chopped Pistachios and Ground Sumac.

Tzatziki sauce

Step #1 Add yogurt to mixing bowl.

Step #2 Chop cucumber into small pieces.

Step #3 Add cucumber and olive oil to yogurt.

Step #4 Grate garlic into mixing bowl.

Step #5 Add a little fresh dill and lemon juice.

Step #6 Combine.

Pheasant Sharma

Step #1 Remove Pheasant from brine. Dry off with paper towels or place back in the fridge for another hour to dry.

Step #2 Drizzle with a little olive oil or cooking spray.

Step #3 Liberally coat the Turkish Seasoning mix, inside and out.

Step #4 Cut a lemon in half and place in the cavity of the bird.

Step #5 Truss legs together with butchers twine and place in rotisserie.

Step #6 Cook at 350 for about an hour or until the internal temperature is around 155 to 160.

Step #7 Remove from oven and allow to rest for 15 minutes.

Step #8 Shave the Pheasant meat off onto a piece of pita bread. Top with fresh arugula, Tzatziki or Roasted Red Pepper Hummus.

Recipe Card

Pheasant Shawarma with Roasted Pepper Hummus

Written by Jeff Davis Visit : Visit authors website

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Prep Time: 4 to 6 Hours - Cook Time: 1 Hour