Flaming Partridge Flatbread Recipe

This recipe was thrown together just as the sun was starting to set at Gartur on a crisp March evening. We had about 45 minutes until sundown and we had all of the feels it was going to be a good one.

We’d been run off our feet all day, trying to juggle production for Goat Rodeo Goods, an upcoming event and general farm work. None of us had eaten all day and were getting ratty. With a handful of ingredients, a portable bbq and a beer for each of us, we wandered out to spend the last bit of daylight doing what we love.

If you haven’t had it before, partridge is very tender, with slightly sweet undertones and is generally less gamey than other game birds. This recipe works with with pheasant or chicken as well.

If you’re a legend cooking this over a fire, light your fire/ BBQ and stoke it up (I prefer to use a mixture of local lump wood charcoal and seasoned wood). Let your fire get roaring hot whilst you prep the below so by the time you come to cook on it the wood and charcoal is glowing with flakey white and greyness and ready to put a grill on top.

Of course you can cook this in a frying pan in your kitchen too, but it’s just not quite as fun.

Prepare the Partridge:
Place 2 pieces of baking parchment over the partridge breasts a give them a wee whack with a rolling pin or a meat tenderiser; one of the more menacing looking kitchen utensils. You’re not trying to knock it into next Tuesday, just to soften the ode bird up a bit and flatten it out so it cooks evenly. It should be roughly 1cm thick.
Generously cover the partridge in the BBQ Rodeo Rub and leave to marinate for 15 minutes whilst you crack on with the rest.

Make the Flatbread Dough:
In a bowl, add the flour, 3 tablespoons of greek yoghurt, and a pinch of salt, and mix with your hands to make a dough. If it's too wet, add more flour, if it's too dry and doesn’t want to come together then add more yoghurt.

Bring it together into a ball and then knead it on the work surface until it's smooth, only about a minute—it really doesn’t need much kneading.

Split your dough ball into four, and gently stretch the dough out to form a circular(ish) shape. It should be roughly the thickness of a pound coin (¼ inch). Dust each side with a little flour and rest under a tea towel until you are ready to cook.

For the Tzatziki Style Base:
Coarsely grate the cucumber, add a pinch of salt and then squeeze as much liquid out of it as you can.

Chop up your Hell or Highwater Hotdog pickles into chunky wee pieces.

Mix in a bowl with approx half the pot of greek yoghurt, fresh herbs, lemon, and black pepper.

To Cook:
When your fire/ bbq is ready, add a drizzle of olive oil to the marinated partridge breasts and stick them on the grill for about 2-3 minutes until they have browned on one side.

Flip them over and do the same again. The internal temperature needs to reach 62℃.

Take them off the grill and let them rest—always rest the breast!

If cooking indoors, heat a splash of oil in a nonstick pan on medium heat. Cook the partridge breasts until brown on one side (approx 2-3 minutes).

Flip over and do the same again until the internal temperature reaches 62℃.
Take them out and leave them to rest.

Drizzle a little oil over your flatbreads and add those to the grill (or the pan) while the breasts are resting.

After a minute or so, flip them over and do the same again. You want them to start to brown in parts. It is one of the reasons I love stretching these by hand rather than with a rolling pin as they have an uneven texture that browns in parts beautifully.

Build the Flatbreads:
To serve, add a small handful of salad, a dollop of the tzatziki mix, and some rodeo disco pickles on top of the flatbread.

Slice your partridge breast and pile on top. Garnish with a few coriander leaves and a squeeze of lime.

Enjoy the sunset (or whatever is on the box) and scran away!