November is the month to celebrate Great British Game. It’s peak game season and the perfect time to be eating more wild game meat here in Scotland and across the UK.

Scotland has phenomenal game meat, venison being my favourite. But wild game meat includes pheasant, partridge, mallard, wood pigeon, grouse, rabbit, hare and squirrel. I know many of you will feel a little squeamish about eating Bambi or Thumper, but we consume chicken, beef, pork and lamb everyday so why not game?!

WHY CHOOSE WILD GAME MEAT?

Eating wild game meat is one of the easiest ways to reduce your carbon footprint. We have an abundance of wild game here in Scotland, right on our doorstep. Game meat is sustainable as it requires less land, animal feed and energy than traditional farm animals.

It’s also very healthy providing you with an abundance of nutrients like iron, vitamin B6 and selenium; it’s lower in fat and cholesterol and the meat is leaner due to the animal being more active and free roaming.

But the big drawcard to game meat is that it is tasty and packed full of flavour.

Swap a beef steak for a wild venison steak, use pheasant or partridge instead of chicken or try roasted wild duck instead of roast pork! Swops are easy to make and I promise you, once you’ve tried it, you won’t look back.

GREAT BRITISH GAME DINNER, CELEBRATING BRITISH GAME MEAT IN SCOTLAND

From the 7th-13th November is was the Great British Game Week with several Celebration Dinners held across the UK. I was invited to attend the Scottish dinner at Finzean Farm Shop and Restaurant in Aberdeenshire.

Finzean is a working estate that harvests, butchers, and sells all of their game in the farmshop. Their gamekeeper, Hedge Shand, sources all the wild game meat including Scottish venison, partridge and pheasant and they also have a forager who regularly brings in wild garlic, mushrooms, flowers etc.

The wild game for the Celebration of Game Dinner was provided by Finzean Farm Estate and cooked by Head Chef, Sanjay Bhattacharya who most definitely put a twist on the traditional game dishes.

STARTERS - Partridge Tikka and Venison Seekh Kebabs with spicy onions, cucumber riata and mint & coriander chutney.

What a culinary surprise. Game meat absolutely lends itself so well to spices and absorbs them throughout.

PARTRIDGE

This bird is a great introduction to game. The flavours are mild and moreish and slightly sweet. Replace chicken with partridge - try them in curries, stews, casseroles or roasted.

Pairs well with : apples and pears, cumin and cinnamon, parsnips and pumpkin.

VENISON

You’ll find venison on the menu in many good Scottish restaurants. It’s absolutely delicious, rich in flavour with a slight herbaceous taste. It’s incredibly lean and makes for a superb Sunday Roast, minced up for burgers, sausages or just as a beautiful steak.

Pairs well with : cherries and blackberries, rosemary and garlic, celeriac and beetroot

MAINS - Pheasant and Wild Mushroom Stroganoff with chanterelles and chestnut mushrooms with herby mash potatoes and vegetables.

This dish was rich and hearty, the perfect winter warmer.

PHEASANT

Very similar to partridge, with a light buttery taste. Pheasant really lends itself to roasting but do keep basting it as it is easy for it to become dry, and because they are so lean they have very little fat on them so before cooking try marinating them, rubbing the skin with butter or covering it with bacon! Just imagine all that flavour!

Pairs well with : apricots and elderberries, bay and sage, leeks and chicory.

We couldn’t tuck into a very Scottish meal without having a very Scottish dessert and so it was Sticky Toffee Pudding with loads of cream. Fabulous!

FINZEAN FARM SHOP AND RESTAURANT

This place is the heart of the community around this area. It’s a place to sell local produce from the surrounding farms, small enterprises, local producers, artists and crafters.

Inside you’ll find home-reared beef, seasonal wild venison and game, locally supplied meat, vegetables and fruit, artisan cheeses, eggs, freshly baked bread, Finzean honey, preserves and ready-made meals are on sale with a wide selection of delicatessen and other food sundries. There’s foodie books, works from local writers, paintings by regional artists, soaps and other crafts.

The restaurant serves breakfasts, lunches, Afternoon Teas, Coffees and Teas and loads of cakes and traybakes.

It’s got a little bit of everything but a lot of soul and so worthy of a visit if you are up in Aberdeenshire.

I WANT TO TRY WILD GAME

If you’re keen to try wild game do check out for the BGA (British Game Assurance) stamp which will give you peace of mind that the game has come from a BGA producer.

I urge you to give it a try, or even if you love a particular wild meat, try something else. Switch it up. Let’s eat more wild!

If you want to purchase wild game here are a few stockists

EDINBURGH - George Bower Butchers in Stockbridge

FIFE - Woodmill Game in Lindores

ABERDEENSHIRE - Finzean Farm Shop in Balchory

ONLINE - Donald Russell Butchers

SUPERMARKET - Sainsbury

For recipe inspiration head to - Lets Eat Wild

For more info on British Game Assurance head to - www.britishgameassurance.co.uk