Dove season opened this past week in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi.
For mid-Southerners, dove hunting has a long tradition of being a social event and is a time for fun and comradery with friends and family outdoors.
I turned to Chris Jennings at Ducks Unlimited Magazine for advice on how to prepare and store these delicious birds.
“My favorite way to cook doves is to remove the breasts from the breast plate and marinate. And then grill to a medium-rare. One thing to remember is that overcooking these small boneless breasts is disastrous.”
Dove are dark meat birds with very little fat on them … making them perfect for marinating. “When you are putting the dove in the marinade, I recommend at least 3 to 5 hours at a minimum. But leaving them in overnight, really brings out the flavor from the marinades.”
“My go-to marinade is soy sauce, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, and freshly grated ginger.” Chris also will occasionally mix it up by using pantry staples. One of his favorite pantry marinades is simply Coca-Cola and a ton of minced garlic.
To save your dove meat for a later date, Chris offers some sage advice. “When I prepare my doves for the freezer, many times what I will do is that I will leave the breast on the breast plate with the skin on. That preserves the meat and allows it to stay in the freezer a little while longer.”
Lastly, if sharing your dove with folks who have never had it before, Chris recommends serving it with a dipping sauce. “It really allows people to get into and try the dove when normally they wouldn’t.”
This is Jennifer Chandler with The Weekly Dish. Happy Grilling!
Chris’s Dove Marinade
- ¾ cup soy sauce
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup of apple cider vinegar or seasoned rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 5 tablespoons freshly grated ginger root
In a bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, garlic and grated ginger.
Place the prepared dove breasts in a re-sealable plastic bag or a glass bowl. Pour the marinade over the meat, turning to coat.
Seal the bag (or cover the bowl), place in the refrigerator, and allow to marinate for at least 3 hours or overnight.
To cook, shake off the excess marinade. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Grill over medium-high heat until medium rare, roughly 5 minutes on each side. Be careful not to over cook. Serve warm.
Makes about 2 cups marinade.
