cleaning Dove
 

Ok i have seen people just pull off the breast of the dove like it was nothing. How do you do this. I usualy just pluck the breast and then fillet it. But if there is an easier way im all for it.

RE: cleaning Dove
 

It is really simple, if you do it once you wont pluck anymore. This is the way I have always done it (I am sure there are many ways).With feathers already off the breast (don'tneed to pluck the whole bird)as well as wings pulled or clipped.With your hands around the bird so that both thumbs are in the center of the breast, apply pressure to theloose skin with your thumbs and begin to push your thumbs apart from each other to each side of the breast removing the loose skin (basicallyyou are ripping the skin apart)to expose thepretty red meat of the breast.Oncethe breast is exposedyou will want to find where the breast comes to a point (the point is at the bottom of the breast opposite end of the head),you will take your thumb under the point and wind up with your thumb behind the breast then you just use both handsto seperate the breast from the bird. It really is easy, I might not have described it good but it is really simple.Once you do a few you should easily be able tohavethe breast off the bird in 30 seconds...

Guess I should also add, I get a plastic container and as I de-breast the birds I just put them in the container and then once I am done with all the birds Iclean them all off with water at the same time and bag in freezer bags...

RE: cleaning Dove
 

In the field I pull the wings off and pull the head off. Then I hold the bird's back with my left hand and put my right thumb right under the sternum of the bird and just push it in. Once you break through the skin you just keep going with your thumb and pull the entire breast of the bird free. Toss the rest of the bird and pull the remaining feathers off the breast. Don't pluck anything, just pull the skin off and the feathers will come too. At the end of this step you end up with a bone-in breast that I just put back in a bag to take to the house. This whole process takes 20 or 30 seconds per bird depending on how shot up the bird is and how good of a job you do getting all the feathers off that like to stick to the meat.

At the house I put the breasts in the sink and clip the wings all the way off with a good pair of meat scissors. Then I start from the top of the breast (toward where the head would have been) and dig my thumb down into the meat between where the wing bone and the breast bone. Get this started on both sides then you dig you thumb and forefinger down to the breast bone on both sides at once and start pulling the breast off the bone. It should come off in one piece attached in the middle. I usually then use the meat scissors to snip the wishbone off, sometimes it pulls off without cutting it but usually I just snip it out. This process takes about 20 or 30 seconds also.

I do this with all the breasts and then wash them really good. No point in washing them before you get them deboned because alot of the feathers stick to the underside of the breast bone and you end up throwing that part away anyway. I then pack them into the little ziplock snack bags. 4 or 5 fit in there perfect depending on how big they are. You end up with nice skinless boneless breasts that are perfect for making BBQ shiskabobs with. I typically wrap the dove breast around a slice of jalepeno pepper then wrap 1/2 a piece of bacon around each dove breast. When the bacon is done then the dove is done.

That's my method. I might try to do a youtube video of the process sometime.

RE: cleaning Dove
 

howdy neighbor!


i was thinking the same thing, ill do one this weekend if you don't beat me to it...

i use a pair of dikes to clip the wings, the only thing about dove is that their feathers are very downish, and stick to anything compaired to pheasant and quail

RE: cleaning Dove
 

crash

this was on the home page, scroll down to the video

http://www.huntingnet.com/fieldjourn...l.aspx?nID=966

RE: cleaning Dove
 

It is so easy.
Clip the wings, move the feathers and skin away from the breast meat and pull. Wash and done.
Recipes:
Mairinate in Itailian Dressing 24hrs wrap in bacon and grill till done.
(Also works well with other seasonings and any type of mairinade)
Trim each side off of bone.Batter with seafood breader.
(I like house of autry mildly hot seafood breader) Fry untill done. (Awesome appiterzier)
Dove pie: Soak breast meat in salty water for 24hrs debone and boil. add to pieand cook. Use same recpie as chicken pot pie. Unforgetable...
Dove Sushi: Cut breast in thin strips season with old bay, balck peeper, salt,and warp around uncooked tunawith pre-cooked rice in the middle. No-one will know what hit them.Servwe with hot sauce or wasabbie VERY RICH This is my signature apipetizer that everyone leaves talking about.
Can aslo be made with quail, pheasant, duck, or other fowl.
Happy Cooking

RE: cleaning Dove
 

I like when they taste like something else. Doves Suck ASS. aby bakcs taste good and so do and so do bbq pigions.

RE: cleaning Dove
 

Got 6 more birds today tried the method all told me. Man is it so much easier to clean then the way i was doing it. It seems like i get more meat this way as well. Thanks yall for the help

RE: cleaning Dove
 

I forgot one CRITICAL part of the process that I remembered as I was breasting some doves tonight.

When you pull the breast out of the dove in the field, pull the liver and heart out and give them you your dogs!! :D