Recipe: Ginger And Citrus-Rubbed Dove Breasts

Let’s Lose the Bacon Dove Breasts and Try a Fresh Approach With This Ginger And Citrus-Rubbed Recipe.

The subtle, rich nature from the pearl of the upland bird community — our famous September 1st tradition — the dove! Doves are so often overprocessed and covered up with the “habanero, teriyaki, honey, sake, soy glaze syndrome,” or the historic jalapeno, cream cheese, and bacon wrap ’n’ roll. It’s a shame. With just the slightest of handling procedure, one can really enjoy dove meat for what they are, not what they’re turned into.

Dove’s red meat contains a reasonable amount of capillary blood, hence their color. This meat isn’t as saturated as their migratory cousins (ducks and geese), but certainly have more than most other upland birds. A simple racking (dry aging) of cleaned doves for a day or two will allow this blood to drain as well as evaporate some of the internal moisture, helping to breakdown these hard-worked muscle systems and making them very tender (see article in CARNIVORE Issue 6).

Many of us who harvest doves don’t find the time to pluck them necessary, fun, or required, but even if you just pull the breasts off whole, on the bone, and just deal with those feathers, it’ll be more than worth the time. This is the first step to removing the culinary Band-Aids mentioned before.

Don’t forget to save the hearts — you’ll need a very successful harvest to collect enough but it’s certainly worth it … a quick, fast sauté with your favorite seasoning will yield delicious nuggets of flavor to nosh on while you’re preparing the rest of your doves.

Get yourself a sheet pan with a stainless steel or plastic rack and arrange the dove breasts skin side up. Place the rack in the refrigerator for a day or two. Then, bone out the breast meat. At this point, the simplest flavoring agent is all that’s needed to enhance the true natural flavor of these birds.

Ginger and Citrus-Rubbed Dove Breasts

Ingredients

• 12 to 18 dry-aged dove breasts
• 2 oz. olive oil
• 2 to 3 tbsp. WildEats Ginger Citrus & Peppercorn Rub (or the peel of 1 orange, 3 slices of fresh ginger, rough chopped, pinch of allspice, 1 tsp. garlic, ½ tsp. black pepper)

My go-to seasoning for dove is my WildEats Ginger, Citrus and Pepper Rub; it’s subtle, refreshing, and won’t overpower these delicate pieces of meat. You can certainly use or make your own subtle seasoning as well. Throw the dove breasts into a Ziploc bag with a light coating of olive oil and dusting of rub or seasoning. Mix well and throw it in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight (or freeze it for use down the road).

A hot cast-iron skillet or high heat grill on doves or any upland bird breasts will sear these lean muscles and lock in their juices. Apply high heat to start on both sides, then remove to rest. These muscles will continue to slowly cook, but in a very passive way. This passive cooking allows for much of the internal moisture to remain in the meat and not evaporate from continued high heat cooking. This technique is applicable to any wild game meat. When you’re ready to serve your dove, throw them back on the grill to just heat up and finish the cooking process to a uniform rare/medium rare, approximately 125 to 130 degrees F. Pull the breasts off the grill or pan and let rest for 4 to 5 minutes before cutting. Resting is critical to allow the internal moisture to redistribute throughout the meat, so it doesn’t simply pour out on to the plate.

Now, what do we serve with our subtle dove breasts? The sides for a dish of this nature are endless, as are the garnishes.

My favorite team member to a dish like this comes from the fresh produce section of your local market. Fresh is always a good thing. When you team that up with free range and organic wild game meat, you have something very nutritious and memorable.

These recipes will adapt to whatever fresh produce is available in your markets, be it organic baby field greens, grilled spring asparagus, charred summer corn, roasted fall squash, or shaved winter fennel.

Apricot Gastrique

Ingredients

• 1 large red onion, small dice
• 1 tbsp. minced fresh garlic
• 1 tsp. finely minced fresh ginger (or 1/2 tsp. dried ground ginger)
• 6 to 8 tbsp. honey
• 8 to 10 fresh apricots* or 18 dried apricots cut in half
• 1 cup orange juice
• 1 cup champagne vinegar
• Juice and zest of 2 lemons
• 1/4 tsp. ground allspice
• Pinch of crushed red chili flakes (depending on your taste)
• Salt to taste

*Cut the apricots in half and roast in a 300 degree F oven for about 45 minutes. This evaporates the moisture and concentrates the flavors.

Place all ingredients in a stainless steel pot and bring to a simmer. Cover and slowly simmer for about an hour. Stir occasionally to avoid scorching. Adjust the seasonings with salt and additional lemon juice to suit your personal taste. You can puree the gastrique smooth or leave it chunky. Serve warm or cold. This gastrique will store for months under refrigeration or indefinitely in the freezer.

The slight sweet, acidic profile of this gastrique bridges the subtle nuances of the dove meat and whatever fresh produce you team it up with. You’ll certainly find a host of other applications for it as well. It’s one of my stores that I always have on hand.

Of course, you’ll need a foundational starch that goes well with succulent dove breasts, such as herbal polenta, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, or chili stir-fried noodles.

The moral of this story is that if you understand why, you can always figure out how to maximize the subtle nature of each and every by-product of your hard-earned efforts in the field. Live to eat!

Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared in Carnivore Magazine Issue 7.

More Great Wild Game Recipes:

• Venison Philly Cheesesteak
• Sous Vide Wild Boar Shank
• Elk Jerky
• Easter Bear by Hank Shaw
• Mediterranean Spiced Ground Venison Kofta