Pheasant Tikka Masala
This easy pheasant dish is made with tender chunks of pheasant cooked in a creamy and aromatic yogurt-tomato sauce.
I had heard of tikka masala for so long, and basically never gave it the time of day. Major regrets! It’s so buttery creamy and flavorful. I could drink the sauce it’s so good. It’s great with pheasant but you could also swap the pheasant for wild turkey or even chicken.

Swaps:
Don’t have pheasant in the freezer? No problem. Give one of these a try:
- Wild Turkey
- Grouse
- Quail
- Chicken
Im sure there’s more, but you get the idea. Use what you have. Let me know if you make this recipe with a meat thats not on the list!

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PrintPheasant Tikka Masala
Tikka masala is a popular curried dish traditionally made with chicken, so we’re mixing things up and using pheasant. It’s creamy and delicious, you’ve gotta try it!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 1 pound Pheasant Breasts, Cut into 1 inch Chunks
- ½ cup Plain Greek Yogurt (Full Fat)
- 1 tablespoon Minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon Freshly Grated Ginger, Divided
- 1 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 Medium Onion, Diced
- 1 (8 ounce) can Tomato Puree
- 1/2 cup Heavy Cream (or Coconut Milk)
- ¼ cup Chicken Broth
- Basmati Rice, For Serving
- Naan Bread, For Serving (Optional)
- ¼ cup Freshly Chopped Cilantro, To Garnish
For the Spice Mixture
- 2 teaspoons Garam Marsala
- 2 teaspoons Coriander
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric
- 1 teaspoon Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper (Plus more to taste)
Instructions
- Mix together the ingredients for the spice mixture into a small bowl then set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine pheasant chunks, yogurt, half of the garlic, half of the ginger and half of the spice mixture. Reserving the remaining ingredients for later. Stir well and marinate for 15 minutes, or overnight.
- In a large deep skillet, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Remove the pheasant from the marinade and add it to the skillet in batches. Cook until browned on both sides, about 1-2 minutes per side. Remove from the pan and set onto a plate.
- In the same skillet, add in diced onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Then add in the remaining garlic, ginger and spices. Stir well for one minute.
- Add in tomato purée, heavy cream and chicken broth. And stir well, scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan.
- Pour in heavy cream and add back in the pheasant. Stir and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until the pheasant is fully cooked, stirring occasionally. Garnish with cilantro and serve over basmati rice with naan.