Partridge meat adds a great, gamey twist to the classic caesar salad. This makes an impressive shoot lunch if you get the crunch just right on your croutons. Follow Philippa Davis’ recipe for partridge breast caesar-style salad.

For more partridge recipe inspiration, read the 10 best partridge recipes. The birds mainly may be from just across the channel, but they are excellent with flavours from all around the world. And when the thought of another stew sinks the heart, robust and hearty salads make excellent shoot lunches. Read 7 best salads for shooting lunches. They are certainly macho enough for guns’ lunch.

PARTRIDGE BREAST CAESAR-STYLE SALAD

This really is a top shoot lunch, the partridge meat adding a twist to this classic salad. The critical elements of a caesar salad are to get the croutons crunchy and to make a really tasty dressing.

Serves 2

• 4 partridge breasts
• 1  tsp fresh chopped thyme
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 slices cooked crispy streaky bacon cut into 1cm pieces
• 30g parmesan shavings
• 1 head romaine lettuce washed and roughly chopped

For the croutons

• 1 slice of bread cut into pound-coin-size pieces
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 4 basil leaves, finely chopped

For the dressing

• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp grated parmesan
• 2 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp apple or orange juice
• 3 anchovies, finely chopped

To make the croutons: preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. Toss the bread in the garlic, oil and basil then lay flat on a tray. Roast for 10 minutes or until golden and crisp (it may need turning half way through).

To make the dressing: in a bowl, sprinkle some salt then whisk in, in this order, the lemon, mustard, parmesan, mayonnaise and olive oil then the juice and anchovies. Season with pepper.

Toss the partridge breasts in the thyme and olive oil and season. Fry in a pan on a high heat for a couple of minutes each side.  Leave to rest for one minute then slice into threes.

To serve, toss the lettuce through the dressing with the parmesan, bacon, partridge and croutons. Pile onto a dish and eat straight away, as there is nothing worse than a soggy crouton.