Grouse pie (highly recommended)

(Recipe #14, page 149)

Cut the bird into small pieces, remove all the bones and cook the pieces a bit in butter. Then place them in wine vinegar with pepper, nutmeg, and pearl onions for a few hours.

Wood grouse

(Recipe #13, page 149)

Only young birds should be roasted. With rare exceptions, older birds remain tough even if they are buried in a sack for 8–10 days under 2–3 feet of soil (the recommended way of tenderizing the flesh); they are best used in a ragout or fricassee. Stuff the bird with the following stuffing: mince a piece of good veal with some raw ham, including the fat; add a few egg yolks, a couple of ground cloves, some crème fraîche, salt, white bread crumbs, and the beaten egg whites. Mix thoroughly, stuff the grouse, and roast like turkey.

Translated by David Green.

Heron

(Recipe #12, page 149)

Only the breast of a heron is edible; it is delicious, but the rest of the flesh is oily. Sprinkle the necessary amount of salt on the breast, wrap it in slices of good pork fat, place it in a generous amount of hot butter, and cook it over moderate heat until tender and lightly browned, basting frequently and after a while adding a cup of cream. Make gravy as in cooking rabbit.

Translated by David Green.

Ed.Note: Please be sure to read the comment posted by Babsje below. What was legal in the 19th century is not legal in the 21st, so please do NOT try this recipe with heron!

Guinea fowl

(Recipe #11, page 149)

Guinea fowl are fit to use only when they are young; prepare like partridge. [See also partridge Saxony style.]

Translated by David Green.

Coot

(Recipe #10, page 149)

The skin of a coot has an oily taste and must be removed. Wrap the bird with slices of pork fat and braise like wild duck.

Translated by David Green.

Ptarmigan

(Recipe #9, page 149)

Prepare like partridge, but the entire skin with its feathers must first be removed.

Translated by David Green.

Ed. Note: A ptarmigan is also known as a rock ptarmigan and is part of the grouse family. – An alternate partridge recipe is found here.

Wild duck

(Recipe #8, page 149)

Regarding the age of the duck, see the discussion of goose above. If the duck is to be cooked whole, rub it with fine salt and pepper and set it tightly covered on the stove with a generous amount of butter and suet, with two bay leaves, 2 lemon slices, and 8 juniper berries added; after it has begun to brown on both sides, pour in a little boiling water and simmer the duck until it is tender and lightly browned. Some thick cream is a good addition to the preparation.

Wild goose

(Recipe #7, page 149)

An old wild goose is even tougher than an old domestic goose. Therefore roast a whole goose only when it is young. If it is older, cut it into small pieces as described in section I, pour boiling vinegar with bay leaves and cloves over it, and marinate it for 8 days, turning the pieces daily. Then prepare it like jugged hare, but omitting the sugar.

Otter in fine herbs

(Recipe #6, page 149)

Prepare the otter and let it stand overnight as described above. Then take a few shallots or another onion, a bit of garlic, some parsley, 1 ounce of capers, 4 anchovies, a little thyme and basil, mince them all, stew them in a casserole with 4 tablespoons of olive oil, add the pieces of otter and stew them, turning once, then pour a glass of white wine over them.

Fried otter

(Recipe #5, pages 148 – 149)

Cut the otter in pieces, remove the head, and let the pieces stand overnight with all kinds of herbs, diced carrots, onions, garlic, a few bay leaves, salt, coarsely ground spices, and a glass of vinegar. Then heat a knob of butter, add a couple of sliced onions and a few diced carrots, lay the pieces of otter on top, cover, and let them stew.