Mr. Romig: Rebecca Grey agrees with your assessment of the delicate flavors of the bird. If one only bags one or two birds per year then by all means, pan fry them in butter and savor the delicacy fully. Up in Nowhere, MN however, we tend to harvest between 30 to 60 birds a season in a good year (that'd be alot of just pan-fried grouse) so over the years several recipes have been developed there to capitalize on this rather unique resource.
I age my birds carefully now (for 3-4 days undrawn in a refrigerator to enhance that singular flavor) and to make them even-more tender. Aging, brining, and then pairing them with sauces and other complimentary flavors (that enhance the experience) is how we celebrate the Fall season up there.
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