How to Tenderize Upland Game Birds

During my four-year stint at the Elk Public House in Spokane, Washington, I likely pounded out thousands of chicken breasts to prep for the grill. As line cooks—mostly greasy-haired, chain-smoking, beer-guzzling proletariat—we had our own terminology for such a process, which I’ll leave to your imagination. Nevertheless, taking a meat mallet to a chicken breast had a couple of distinct purposes. Yes, it tenderized the meat, but more importantly—for the purpose of short ticket times—it made sure that the meat cooked faster. With upland birds, both of these functions apply just as they do with chicken, but the tenderizing process brings with it a few additional benefits as well.