The Greatest Ever Pheasant Pot Pie Recipe

Name: The Greatest Ever Pheasant Pot Pie Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 75 min
Total time: 90 min
Ingredients: 6 pheasant legs and thighs (from 3 birds); 2 teaspoons kosher salt; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 2 cups chicken broth; 6 tablespoons butter; 1 medium yellow onion, diced; 2 cups carrots, peeled and diced; 1 cup celery stalks, diced; 1 tablespoon minced garlic; 1 teaspoon thyme leaves; 1/3 cup all purpose flour; 2 cups half and half; juice from 1/2 lemon; 1 10-ounce bag frozen peas; 1 7-ounce bag Pillsbury Biscuit Mix "Just Add Milk"

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Pheasant Pot Pie with Pillsbury Biscuits

The Greatest Ever Pheasant Pot Pie Recipe

Jeff Benda

My Pheasant Pot Pie Recipe is the essence of comfort food! And to make it even more comforting and connect with my Southern roots, I made it with a biscuit topping.

I can't think of any situations that are not drastically improved by a pheasant pot pie. Got an unexpected $2,000 car repair bill – make this pheasant pot pie! Your 8-year-old daughter announces she has a boyfriend – make this pheasant pot pie!! Sauteed onion, celery, carrots, garlic, creamy pheasant, and peas all baked under a biscuit topping make tough days end better.

To keep this pheasant dish weeknight friendly, I used a Pillsbury Cheddar Garlic Biscuit Mix instead of making homemade biscuits, saving lots of time while yielding an irresistibly flaky pot pie topping.

For an impressive presentation, brush the biscuits with melted butter (this will make them a beautiful golden brown). The biscuits will be infused with flavor and photo-worthy so you can share it on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! When you do, be sure and hashtag #wildgameandfish

Make sure to let the Pheasant Pot Pie stand for at least 5 minutes before serving so the filling has time to cool and thicken. This will make it easier and neater when scooping it up and dividing it among hungry family members at the table. Sure, this recipe requires a bit of time to braise the pheasant legs and thighs in the pressure cooker. But once that's out of the way, it's a breeze to assemble, just 30 minutes of hands-on work and this delicious pheasant recipe is on the table.

PHEASANT LEG RECIPES

I love eating smoked or fried chicken drumsticks. However, eating a pheasant or grouse drumstick is a completely different thing and can be extremely unpleasant because of the rock-hard tendons.

Upland bird legs and thighs were made for braising. Pheasants have to walk and run for a living, so their legs are notoriously tough and full of those sharp tendons. When cooking the legs and thighs, a slow, low, and long braise creates meat that falls off the bones so you can easily remove the tendons. I developed this pheasant pot pie recipe with busy parents in mind so I used a pressure cooker to transform these pheasant legs and thighs into something incredibly delicious and tender in just one hour. It's incredibly simple and, although I used pheasant in this instance, you can use any set of upland bird thighs. Grouse Pot Pie is amazing!

HOW TO MAKE PHEASANT POT PIE

1. Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in an oven-safe Dutch oven or pan (at least 3 quarts in size) over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery and 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the minced garlic and sauté another 2 minutes.

2. Stir in the flour and another 1 tablespoon of butter and cook another 2 minutes.

3. Now add 2 cups of the reserved chicken broth you used to pressure cook the pheasant legs and thighs. Then stir in the half and half until the mixture resembles a thick, creamy soup.

4. Add lemon juice, peas, and the reserved cooked and shredded pheasant meat. Season to taste with remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt if needed.

5. Combine the biscuit mix and milk in a mixing bowl until a soft dough forms. Arrange four 1/4 cup size scoops of the dough on top of the pot pie filling. Bake for 15 minutes, until hot, bubbly, and the biscuits are cooked through.

6. Let rest for 5 minutes before brushing the top of the biscuits with the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and serving.

MORE PHEASANT RECIPES

If you are looking for more great ways to use pheasant in your diet, be sure and check out my Pheasant Florentine and Buffalo Pheasant Dip and Pheasant Salad Sandwich and Pheasant Olive Garden Gnocchi Soup. Or you can find all my upland bird recipes here.

If you are headed our way to hunt pheasants in North Dakota, check out the Top 5 Places in North Dakota to Hunt Pheasants. And if you want me to come along with you as your camp cook, photographer, or butcher, you can find out more details here.

CONNECT WITH ME AND JOIN OUR WILD GAME COOKING COMMUNITY

If you make this Pheasant Pot Pie recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #wildgameandfish

Did you enjoy this Pheasant Pot Pie Recipe? Be sure to leave a 5-star rating RIGHT HERE!

5 from 20 votes

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 1 15

Total Time 1 30

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Ingredients

6 pheasant legs and thighs (from 3 birds)
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chicken broth
6 tablespoons butter
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 cups carrots, peeled and diced
1 cup celery stalks, diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/3 cup all purpose flour
2 cups half and half
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 10-ounce bag frozen peas
1 7-ounce bag Pillsbury Biscuit Mix "Just Add Milk"

Instructions

Pheasant Leg Instructions

Season the pheasant legs with 1 teaspoon of the kosher salt.
Set instant pot or other pressure cooker to sauté setting. Add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the pheasant legs, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until meat is nicely browned.
Add chicken broth to the pressure cooker. Now secure lid on the pressure cooker and pressure cook for 30 minutes. Then allow the pressure to release naturally for 15 minutes.
Reserve all the liquid and transfer it to a bowl to use later. Then allow the pheasant meat and bones to rest and cool for 10 minutes before pulling the meat off the bones using your fingers or tongs. Discard the bones and tendons and transfer the meat to a bowl and save for later. You can cook and shred the pheasant meat a day or two in advance, then cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Pot Pie Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter in an oven-safe Dutch oven or pan (at least 3 quarts in size) over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery and 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt and sauté for 5 minutes.
Add the minced garlic and sauté another 2 minutes.
Stir in the flour and another 1 tablespoon of butter and cook another 2 minutes. The mixture will be sticky and thick. That's ok! You are doing it right!
Now add 2 cups of the reserved chicken broth you used to pressure cook the pheasant legs. Then stir in the half and half until the mixture resembles a thick, creamy soup.
Add lemon juice, peas, and the reserved cooked and shredded pheasant meat. Season to taste with remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt if needed.
Combine the biscuit mix and milk in a mixing bowl until a soft dough forms.
Arrange four 1/4 cup size scoops of the dough on top of the pot pie filling. Bake for 15 minutes, until hot, bubbly, and the biscuits are cooked through.
Let rest for 5 minutes before brushing the top of the biscuits with the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and serving.