Pigeon or Dove Tortellini
User Reviews
5.0
15 reviews
Excellent
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Prep Time
1 hr 30 mins
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Cook Time
30 mins
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Total Time
1 hr 40 mins
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Servings
6 people
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Calories
345 kcal
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Course
Main Course
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Cuisine
Italian
Pigeon or Dove Tortellini
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Note that you will need to cook these tortellini within a couple hours after making them -- or you can freeze them and have them ready to rock whenever, although frozen tortellini only keep for 3 to 4 months before deteriorating. To properly freeze, put the whole baking sheet in the freezer for a few hours, then you can put them all in a freezer bag. Once they're made, this recipe comes together in minutes. This is also a recipe you can use for any red meat: Pigeon, squab and dove of course, but duck, goose, sharptail grouse, ptarmigan, woodcock, are all good substitutes. Or you could use venison, lamb, goat or beef, too.
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Ingredients
DOUGH
- 10 ounces of all-purpose flour, about 2 cups
- 2 eggs
- 1 ounce of water, about 3 tablespoons
FILLING
- 3 pigeons or teal, or 6 doves
- salt
- 3 tablespoons duck fat, butter or olive oil
- 4 large garlic cloves, unpeeled
- 1/4 cup sweet white wine or sherry
- A small pinch of celery seed
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
- Black pepper to taste
SAUCE
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon fresh Rosemary
- 8 juniper berries, mashed
- Grated pecorino or parmesan cheese, or garnish
Instructions
- To make the dough, make a well in the flour and drop the eggs and water in. scramble the eggs in the center with a fork and then incorporate the flour until you get a shaggy mass. Knead this well for 6 to 8 minutes, then wrap the dough in plastic wrap and set aside for an hour. Alternatively, if you have a vacuum sealer, you can seal the dough, which will hydrate the dough instantly.
- To make the filling, salt the pigeons well while you heat up the duck fat in an ovenproof pan. Pat the birds dry and brown them well on all sides. Take your time to do this: You want them well browned. When you start this process, preheat the oven to 350°F. Once the pigeons are browned, add the garlic cloves to the pan and pop it into the oven and roast for 30 minutes.
- When the pigeons have cooked, remove the pigeons and garlic to a plate to cool. Set the pan on the stove (remember the handle is hot!!) and deglaze all that browned goodness with the sweet wine. Use a wooden spoon to scrape down the pan to incorporate everything. Let this boil for a few minutes, then turn off the heat. Pick off all the meat from the pigeons (use what's left for stock if you want.) and remove the skins from the garlic.
- Chop the meat and garlic roughly and add it to a food processor. Add the celery seed, rosemary and black pepper, as well as some of the liquid and fat from the roasting pan and buzz everything into a fairly smooth paste. Taste and add salt if you need to. You might need all of the pan liquid, you might not. Eyeball it.
- Roll out the dough in a pasta maker or with a rolling pin. I roll mine out to No. 7 on my Atlas, with is two stops from the thinnest setting. You don't want it ultra thin or the filling will soak through. Use something round to cut out circles of about 3 inches across -- these are largish tortelli, not strictly tortellini. Put a heaping teaspoon of filling in the center of the circle and fold it into a half-moon, removing as much air as possible. You might need to wet the edges with a little water. Bring the ends of the half moon together and squish them to make the tortelli. You might need to flip the edges up to get that shape. This recipe makes about 40 to 45 tortelli, or twice that many tortellini if you make them small. Set each one on a baking sheet that you've dusted with semolina flour or fine cornmeal.
- To finish, melt the butter in a wide pan and add the juniper and rosemary. Keep this over low heat while you boil some water; this allows the flavors to infuse in the butter. Boil the tortellini until they float, and then for 1 minute more. Move to the butter, toss to coat and put them on the plate. Grate some cheese over them and serve at once.
Notes
- I like a mid-range red wine to drink with this, like a Chianti or a French Cotes du Rhone. As for beer, go with something bold and malty like a Scottish ale or an English brown ale or a German dunkelweizen.
Nutrition Information
Show Details
Calories
345kcal
(17%)
Carbohydrates
37g
(12%)
Protein
7g
(14%)
Fat
18g
(28%)
Saturated Fat
9g
(45%)
Cholesterol
86mg
(29%)
Sodium
24mg
(1%)
Potassium
86mg
(2%)
Fiber
1g
(4%)
Sugar
1g
(2%)
Vitamin A
380IU
(8%)
Vitamin C
1mg
(1%)
Calcium
22mg
(2%)
Iron
2mg
(11%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 6people
Amount Per Serving
Calories 345 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 345kcal | 17% |
| Carbohydrates | 37g | 12% |
| Protein | 7g | 14% |
| Fat | 18g | 28% |
| Saturated Fat | 9g | 45% |
| Cholesterol | 86mg | 29% |
| Sodium | 24mg | 1% |
| Potassium | 86mg | 2% |
| Fiber | 1g | 4% |
| Sugar | 1g | 2% |
| Vitamin A | 380IU | 8% |
| Vitamin C | 1mg | 1% |
| Calcium | 22mg | 2% |
| Iron | 2mg | 11% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Genuine Reviews
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5.0
15 reviews
Excellent
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