Roast pheasant

Put a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a cast iron pan or flame-proof casserole pot on medium heat.

Rub olive oil generously over the skin of the pheasant and then season skin lightly with sea salt and pepper.

Place the pheasant into the pan and work the pheasant around the pan making sure it is evenly caramelized and has a nice golden colour. Place particular attention and emphasis on the legs. The legs, on all poultry, generally take longer to cook than the breast. So, make sure the legs have been caramelized, or pan-fried, for longer than any other part of the bird.

After caramelizing the skin of the bird, take it out of the pan and place it on a chopping board. Slide the fois gras between the outside skin of the pheasant and the breast meat. Then place the garlic, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaf into the cavity of the pheasant.

Place the pheasant back in cast iron pan in a pre-heated 200C (fan-forced) oven for 15 to 20 minutes until juices run clear.

Remove from oven.

After you have taken the bird out of the oven, you need to baste it. Position the bird breast down in the pan juices and spoon some of the juices into the cavity of the bird. This moistens the breast with the pan juices and infuses the bird with all the lovely flavours from the pan. Do this several times to really moisten the bird, and then let rest for 10 minutes.

Carve and serve with roasted vegetables and potatoes.