This content is presented by Walton's - Everything but the Meat
With pheasant, olives, lemon, Roma tomatoes, English cucumbers and orzo this recipe is sure to have something that everyone will love! This recipe for Pheasant Greek Orzo Salad is perfect for anytime of year, make it with cold pheasant and pasta in the summer and still warm pheasant and pasta in the winter! The light freshness of this salad lends itself to any type of poultry.
For additional authenticity and flavor try adding feta cheese as that will add a salty creaminess to the dish, or make try adding some pepperoni for a bit of spice.
Recipe: Pheasant Greek Orzo Salad
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
Cyclops Greek Marinade
8 oz of pheasant breast (240 cal)
8 oz of dry Orzo (800 cal)
1/4 Cup Olive Oil (480 cal)
20 Kalamata Olives (180 cal)
8 Roma tomatoes (280 Cal)
1 English cucumber (40 cal)
1 Lemon
METHOD
Cut pheasant breast into small, bite sized pieces. We like to cut the breast across the width of the breast instead of the length.
Measure out 1/2 oz of the Cyclops Greek Marinade and thoroughly dissolve it in 2 oz of cold water.
Place cut up pheasant breast in a vacuum bag, pour in marinade, vacuum seal and place in refrigerator for 4 hours. If you do not have a vacuum sealer then marinate pheasant the night before and leave in refrigerator.
Cook 8 oz of orzo pasta al dente, or just short of being fully soft. Remove from heat and run cool water over pasta to chill. (If desired add Feta Cheese to pasta once it has cooled)
Slice up 20 Kalamata olives into slices as thin or thick as desired.
Slice your cucumber and Roma tomatoes into small pieces and mix all vegetables and orzo pasta in a large bowl.
Mix 1/4 cup of olive oil with the juice of one freshly squeezed lemon and add salt and pepper to taste, then drizzle over the pasta and vegetables and mix thoroughly.
Heat up 2 tsp of olive in in a cast iron or nonstick pan over medium heat and add your cut up pheasant. Cook slowly, we want the pheasant to remain moist and prevent it from drying out, so take your time but make sure internal temperatures reach 165 degrees; for food safety.
Once pheasant is fully cooked you can either chill pheasant in the fridge or add it to your pasta hot. We like adding it hot as it creates a nice contrast with the cooled pasta.