The Best Southwestern Smoked Pheasant Tacos Recipe
Southwestern Smoked Pheasant Tacos combine a super juicy and delicious smoked pheasant recipe with all your favorite taco ingredients, making it perfect for your next Taco Tuesday!
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
Smoked Pheasant Ingredients
- 1 Whole pheasant
- 6 cups water
- ⅓ cup kosher salt
- ⅓ cup brown sugar
- 1 cup honey
Pheasant Taco Ingredients
- Smoked and shredded pheasant meat
- 1 cup cooked white rice
- 1 15-ounce can of black beans
- 2 green onions
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tablespoons Taco Bell Creamy Chipotle Sauce
- 1 Tablespoon lime juice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon cumin
Instructions
Smoked Pheasant Instructions
- Cut the legs and thighs away from the pheasants. Leave the breast meat attached to the ribcage but cut away the backbone using game shears.
- Allow to cool completely, then place pheasant pieces in the chilled brine. Cover and refrigerate for 6 to 8 hours.
- Take pheasant out of brine and place on a cooling rack over a rimmed baking sheet, uncovered, in the fridge for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
- Smoke pheasants at 200 degrees F over the wood chips of your choice – we prefer hickory. Baste the pieces with a little honey about every 45 minutes. I usually do this the same time I am adding new wood chips to my electric smoker.
- Take pheasant breasts out when internal temperature hits 150 degrees F using an instant-read meat thermometer. Take legs and thighs out when their internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F. Baste them with honey one last time and let them cool for about 20 minutes.
- Use your fingers or two forks and shred the pheasant meat off the bones. Keep the meat and discard the bones.
Taco Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the cooked rice, black beans, green onions, and cilantro.
- In a small bowl, make the sauce by combining the Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, Taco Bell sauce, lime juice, salt, sugar, and cumin.
- Add the smoked pheasant and sauce to the large bowl with the cooked rice mixture, and toss everything together until well combined.
- Serve right away on warm tortillas with your favorite taco toppings such as shredded cheese, Pico de Gallo, or guacamole. The mixture will also keep well if covered and refrigerated for a day ahead of time if you want to bring it along to your next potluck.
