Grilled Northamptonshire Wood Pigeon and Kohlrabi Salad

Ingredients (serves 4)

4 Wood pigeon
3 Medium kohlrabi
1 Teaspoon English mustard
6 Tablespoons of Farrington’s mayonnaise
Ground white pepper

Selection of mixed salad leaves (rocket, curly endive, and baby red chard)

4 sprigs of fresh thyme
200ml Mellow Yellow rapeseed oil
200ml Veal or brown chicken stock
¼ Chives (finely cut)

To Grill the Wood Pigeon:
• Preheat the oven to 180°C and place a tray in oven to preheat
• Remove the breasts from the wood pigeon, leaving the skin on.
• Chop the excess carcase bones from the wood pigeon and place the bones on a tray and place in a pre heated oven.
• Roast the bones until golden brown and then place the bones into a colander to remove any excess fat/oil.
• Place the drained wood pigeon bones and fresh thyme into a saucepan and cover with the chicken or veal stock. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 20 minutes.
• Season the wood pigeon breasts with salt and pepper and place them skin side down on to a pre-heated griddle pan.
• Grill for 4 – 5minutes on each side, and then remove from griddle pan to rest for 3-4 minutes on a tray with kitchen paper.

To Make the Kohlrabi Salad:
• Peel the kohlrabi and then slice finely on a sharp mandolin.
• Cut the sliced kohlrabi into thin strips.
• Mix the mustard and the Farrington’s mayonnaise together.
• Add the mayonnaise and mustard mixture gradually to the shredded kohlrabi, ensuring that final mix is not too wet.
• Add the chopped chives to the mixture.
• DO NOT season the kohlrabi mix until immediately before serving as it will break down and become too mushy.

To Make the Wood Pigeon Dressing
• Drain the wood pigeon stock through a fine sieve and keep warm.
• Place the wood pigeon stock into a suitable container and then gradually incorporate the remaining Mellow Yellow rapeseed oil into the stock either by using a whisk or an electric hand blender.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper.