With the season fast approaching it’s never too early to start planning your game suppers. From roast grouse for a special occasion to pheasant Kiev to share with the smalls,  there are infinite ways to get your game from shot to pot. Which is why The Field is delighted to be sponsoring The Field Kitchen Theatre at The Game Fair this year, to turn traditional cookery demos on their head and create an immersive, unmissable experience. So do make your way to H1354 to join us over the weekend.

If there’s one demo not to miss, it will be The Beautiful Game: The Game Fair Chef’s Table, hosted by The Field’s very own cookery writer, Philippa Davis and chef Tim Maddams. Head to H1354 at 12pm on Saturday 29 July to learn cooking skills that will see you through the season.

PHILIPPA DAVIS

Philippa Davis is the cookery writer for The Field Magazine and an international private chef.   When not cooking for client’s shoots, stalking and fishing parties and hunt teas here in the UK she travels the globe whipping up feasts wherever her clients take her.

Philippa  grew up in Dorset then moved to London at 18 and worked at Lidgate the Butchers, The River Cafe and Moro restaurants. After 10 years on the restaurant scene she embarked on her private chef career that has taken her all over the world cooking for some incredible people.

Visit Philippa’s blog Postcard Recipes for stories of her travels and more delicious recipes. And stay up-to-date by following Philippa on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

5 MINUTES WITH PHILIPPA DAVIS

What is your favourite game dish?

It changes regularly depending where I am and who I am cooking for but at the moment its my pappardelle pasta with hare ragu – now up on The Field website. I use lots of white wine, butter and rocket which keeps the dish rich but still fresh and has made even my non-shooting clients hare converts.

Do you stalk/shoot/hunt what you cook?

I cook on various estates all over the U.K. and as the chef you are always very much part of the action from getting the latest news from the ghillies and game keepers to hearing direct from the rods, guns and stalkers how well ( or occasionally not) their day went.  So although I haven’t shot my own supper yet I feel totally part of the process, and I certainly enjoy busting the clays. I did however catch my first striped bass near Boston recently and that did taste extra-specially delicious!

One top tip for cooking game / encouraging people to try game?

Apart from telling people it’s delicious and nutritious?!… It still surprises me how many people are unsure about trying game and that it will be somehow unpleasantly strong or tough.  I find cooking familiar dishes (but with game) is a great way to introduce people to it with recipes like Pheasant au Vin, venison sausage rolls or partridge mini kiev.

What is your go-to game dish to impress (your wooing dish!)?

Nothing says love like a heart on a plate… right?  So I love grilling a spiced venison heart and serving it with chopped salad and tahini sauce, delicious, fresh and bound to help set the scene.

Which wild food is best for beginners to cook and why?

Wild garlic is without a doubt one of my favourite things to forage. Picked young it’s incredibly tender and delicious, very versatile and unlike mushrooms – which are also delicious – its relatively safe for the novice as it has few poisonous look-a-likes ( only lilly of the valley). Its hard to miss due to the garlicky smell and is also generally found in old deciduous woodland so makes for a pleasant and scenic trip out.

Do you have any tips for plucking?

Delegate! Or if you are stuck with the task of plucking endless birds do it in a big black bin liner as its much easier to clean up.

What are you most excited to cook this season / anything new coming up to promote?

Seasonality is very much part of what gets a chef like me excited and no more so with game and anticipating its particular seasons. It is hard to beat though the excitement of getting my hands on the  first brace of grouse. That wonderful and totally unique smell gets me every time and of course signals the start of British autumn produce beginning to arrive in the kitchen.

Describe your cooking style in three words.

Fresh, flavoursome and fun.