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Recipes Involving an Endangered Kosher Bird

The Scroll Cooking Series gets underway

by
Adam Chandler
February 05, 2013
(About.com)
(About.com)

If you haven’t read Michael Orbach’s piece on Tablet today about the Philby’s Partridge, you’re missing out on a great story.

Perhaps the only person in the world whose mission is to save these ugly birds, in fact, is Rabbi Chaim Loike, a rabbinic coordinator at the Orthodox Union. And his concern is less ecological than gastronomical: Philby’s Partridge, Loike says, may be kosher—and he wants to make sure the species survives so that future generations of Jews might eat it.

And so I wondered: What if the Philby’s Patridge became a trendy new main course? It’s clear that we’d have to come up with some recipes to go with it. I racked my brain and consulted my recipe nook (such is life in Brooklyn) and have come up with the perfect recipe for Kosher Partridge. Now, this recipe has never been tested (unfortunately I’ve never been to Yemen), but I’ve done the measurements and I’m sure it’ll work.

Beer Can Philby’s Partridge a la Scroll

What you’ll need:

1 (three-pound) whole Philby’s Patridge
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons Kosher salt
2 teaspoons black pepper
3 tablespoons paprika-espresso-garlic powder rub
1 can Goldstar or He’brew beer

Instructions:

Find and capture a Philby’s Partridge in northern Yemen. If you can’t capture it without killing it, bring a licensed shochet with you (he will no doubt be welcome in Yemen) and be sure to have plenty of dry ice with you. Convince the Yemeni fuzz and the immigration officials in your home country that the endangered bird on your persons is totally not illegal. Return home. Arrange for kosher slaughter.

Remove feathers, neck, and giblets from the bird and toss. Rinse the partridge and pat dry with paper towels. Rub the bird lightly with oil then rub inside and out with salt, pepper, and the special rub. Set aside.

Crack can of beer and drink until the can is half-full (I’m assuming if you’re an optimist if you’re undertaking this mission). Place beer can on a solid surface. Grabbing a partridge leg in each hand, put the bird over the beer can. Move the partridge onto your grill and place in the middle, keeping the bird upright like in the cartoons.

Cook the partridge with the cover on over indirect heat (but not too hot!), for approximately an hour or until your thermometer reads 165 degrees. Carve, enjoy, and tell absolutely no one what you’ve just done.

Adam Chandler was previously a staff writer at Tablet. His work has appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Atlantic, Slate, Esquire, New York, and elsewhere. He tweets @allmychandler.