How was everyone's dove opener?

[CaptJgray]

we actually went out and shot some sporting clays and skeet this weekend, Im going to take take my 20 Gauge Charles Daily in this week to have the stock shortened. I did this with my wife 20 and I am able to add length back to it with pads if needed. She was really good with the .410 but was even better with the 20. she just cant shoulder the 20 as quickly, she's a small girl for 11.

its fun watching how natural she is with a shotgun, but she is deadly with a bow...

 

[CaptJgray]

After we processed all of the birds I taught her about utilizing every bit of the harvest and not to just breast them out and waste the rest. we made a wonderful dove stock from the birds we didn't pluck and leave whole. This is 45 dove hearts skewered onto sticks from my Rosemary plant in the garden with rosemary, olive oil, salt and pepper, seared very quickly over mesquite. She didn't even save me one...

If you guys have never taken the time to pluck your birds and roast them whole you are really missing out, there is so much more to do than just poppers... I fillet the breast meat off of some as well but I use the rest of the bird for stock, the ones I breast out I usually make dove stroganoff. you would be very hard pressed to find someone who thought it was something other than fillet mignon...

 

[Bonejour]

That is absolutely awesome. Great to see new ways to use the entire dove. Do you dip the birds in paraffin to pluck them? Sounds like you have a better way.

 

[SurfNHuntSD]

Great job, nice to see the kids loving the other bits. Funny u mention this, as it made me think why exactly we breast out most, if not all our doves. Every other game bird I dress out whole, but not dove for some reason. Just a habit maybe.

 

[CaptJgray]

no paraffin needed, doves are super easy to pluck once cold. They go straight into a cooler of ice and then get plucked. most of the small feathers just rub right off with your thumb. wings are super easy as well. I usually pluck the whole thing and put the wing tips into the stock pot.

 

[CaptJgray]

Ive always eaten the hearts from my deer, and upland birds. My daughter calls them the wobbly bits. I believe she got that from Hank Shaw.

 

[ilovesprig]

Very cool.....We talked about that today.

ps......Great shirt on your daughter.......

 

[Shot Slinger]

She is quite a shooter with her .410 , I sometime shoot a 28 ga on doves and understand she even has fewer pellets than I do, that is quite a feat. It is great that she enjoys eating the birds as much as hunting them. Thanks for the great posts.

 

[longbowhunter2]

Awesome day , I may take break and go too. Again outstanding work wit young ones. Definitely a natural shooter.

 

[longbowhunter2]

Not the best flight around here on opening day, but you just can't beat September 1st! Took my Weim Bandit out, I love to see a good birddog work. Check out the trailer for this upcoming full-length film... Haha






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Good job. Awesome.