The Wild Chef

Book excerpt: Field & Stream magazine’s Jonathan Miles brings us from field to table with the best recipes, techniques, and tools from his hugely popular column, along with new content for every wild game fan and budding hunter-chef. Learn how to butcher and braise, forage and flavor, and cook the best food your campsite or home kitchen has ever seen. A wild game cookbook for every hunter—from the aspiring chef to the seasoned shot who does his own butchering—this collection of at-home and in-the-field recipes and kitchen tricks is everything that a modern wild game cookbook should be. Organized seasonally, The Wild Chef brings the reader over 130 recipes, tips, techniques, and tools of the trade from the magazine’s writers and editors, including new content from "Wild Chef” columnist and award-winning writer Jonathan Miles, the ever-popular Field & Stream “Wild Chef” blog, and recipes from first-rate chefs and top-tier restaurants across the world. This cookbook delivers a contemporary take on traditional wild-game fare, updating game and fish cookery to reflect the monumental changes in American dining and cooking that have occurred over the past few decades. Table of Contents: FALL Venison Tenderloin | Thanksgiving Wild Turkey | Venison Sausage, Apple & Cranberry Dressing | Hungarian Fisherman’s Soup | Field Dressing & Aging Deer | Venison Shoulder Roast with Wild Mushrooms | Buttermilk-Poached Walleye | Dress Up Your Venison | Venison & Pumpkin Curry | Wild Boar Stew | Essential Kitchen Tools | Cider-Braised Rabbit | Salt-Crusted Fish | Butchering Deer | Venison-Stuffed Tamales | The Joy of Squirrels | Squirrel, Biscuits, & Gravy | Grill-Roasted Fish | Partridge Two Ways | Irish Angler’s Pie | Venison Pierogi | Adventures in Venison | Grilled Marinated Venison Heart | Seared Venison Liver | Venison Steak & Kidney Empanadas | Braised Venison Tongue | Buttermilk-Fried Quail | Blackened Venison Steaks | Root Beer–Glazed Duck | Seared Pheasant Breasts WINTER Venison Backstrap with Red Pears | Wild Game Ravioli | Braised Rabbit with Rosemary | Field Dressing Small Game | Wild Game Mincemeat Cobbler | Roasted Grouse with Mushrooms & Bacon | Essential Salts | Duck Prosciutto | Elk & Toasted Chile Stew | Roasted Goose with Cranberry, Oyster & Chestnut Stuffing | Citrus-Glazed Fish | Roasted Leg of Venison | Venison Osso Buco | Butchering Birds | Duck Salmi | Braised & Barbecued Venison Ribs | Venison Nachos | Goose Leg Sliders | Braised Squirrel | Moose Stew | Venison Cassoulet | History of Chili | Ultimate Camp Chili | Mary of Agreda’s Chili | Christmas (Beer-Can) Goose | Stewed Duck with Apples & Turnips | Rabbit Sott’olio | Elk Carbonnade | Backcountry Paella | The Ice Fisherman’s Breakfast SPRING Trout, Fiddlehead Ferns & Scrambled Eggs | Freezer-Raid Gumbo | Black Bear Empanadas | Little Fish, Big Flavor | Ultimate Fried Bream | Oat-Crusted Trout with Stovies | Prepping Your Catch | Pickled Pike | Wild-Game Banh Mi | Essential Knives | Wild Turkey Potpie | Deer Dogs with Pea Soup Sauce | Hawaiian Fish Jerky | Largemouth Bass Tacos | Wild Turkey Roulades | Morels: The Turkey Hunter’s Mushroom | Turkey Soup with Morels | Braised Bear Shanks | Green Chile Venison Stew | Trout on a Nail | Wild Turkey Scallops | Fix the Perfect Shore Lunch | Panfish Chowder SUMMER Venison Sliders | The Lake Erie Monster | Essential Camp Kitchen Gear | Salmon Kebabs with Horseradish Butter | Grilled Venison Backstrap with Deer Rub | The Montauk Burger | Deckside Ceviche | Open Fire Cooking | Grilled Dove Pizza | Perfectly Grilled Whole Fish | Doves from Hell | The Willow Skillet | Trucker’s Rice with Venison Jerky | Fried Crappie | Eat More Bass | Pan-Roasted Largemouth Bass | Wok-Steamed Whole Fish | The Ultimate Summer Gig | Cedar-Roasted Char | Whole Fried Catfish with Green Onions | Butter-Braised Fish | The Sweet Life