Whodunnit Dinners podcast 14 Season 2 #4 Arthur Conan Doyle: Indian intrigue, puzzling pearls and glorious grouse

In episode #4 of Season 2 of the Whodunnit Dinners podcast, Katie brought out the big guns and introduced Helen to The Sign of the Four, the second novel featuring the global icon Sherlock Holmes.  The Sign of the Four, also called The Sign of Four, is a 1890 detective novel by British writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. 

In the book, Miss Mary Morstan arrives at 221B, Baker Street to request help with the mystery of her missing father, her anonymous gifts of pearls and a letter requesting her to meet an unknown person that evening. Holmes takes on her case and the adventure begins, with Doctor Watson narrating. 

Katie had previously challenged Helen to come up with some recipes involving grouse, thinking this obscure, traditional British ingredient would prove way beyond her culinary experience . The bird was a popular dish in the Victorian period but is not very common today. Little did Katie know that Helen had an ace up her sleeve: her late grandmother’s cook books… Thank you Alice Knight! 

What is grouse?

Grouse are ground-dwelling birds that thrive in forests, grasslands, tundra, and mountainous regions across North America, Europe, and Asia. Known for their camouflaged plumage and hardy ability to cope in different climates, there are 15 different types of grouse, from the Ruffed Grouse of North America to the Hazel Grouse of Eurasia, highlighting their diversity and adaptations. The grouse of Scotland and northern England, which Sherlock Holmes would have enjoyed, are Red Grouse. These large, wild birds are sometimes called the King of Game. 

Grouse shooting grew in popularity during the 1850s, when the introduction of widespread railway networks across the UK suddenly allowed more people than ever to reach the moors where grouse live. During the 1940s and 1950s, when food was being rationed as a result of WW2, game shooting went from being an aristocratic hobby to a necessary countryside pursuit. 

A recent petition to the British government by environmentalists received over 100,000 signatures. Many people think that driven grouse shooting is harmful to people, the environment and wildlife. 

What is the Glorious Twelfth? 

The grouse shooting season in the UK runs from 12 August to 10 December for red grouse in England, Wales and Scotland an until 30 November in Northern Ireland. 

The Glorious Twelfth is the name for which the first date of the hunting season is known. It's a significant part of the UK's countryside heritage, with hunters, gamekeepers and trained dogs venturing into heathered moors to hunt red grouse. The date is enshrined in law under the Game Act of 1831. 

Good Housekeeping Cook Book 1944

Good Housekeeping was - and still is - a very popular magazine for women in the UK. This cookbook was a much-used recipe collection for Helen’s grandmother, and gives a real insight into cooking trends and available ingredients at the time. Toast seems to have been a popular accompaniment back then. 

Cooking grouse today

The Field is another traditional British magazine, but this one was set up for those who, in their own words:  “loved shooting, fishing, hunting and could sniff out a decent claret at 1,000 paces.” Charles Dickens is likely to have been one of the first Field readers – he was a drinking buddy of The Field’s first editor. 

According to The Field magazine, you have to know whether a grouse is early or late in the season to decide how to cook it. If it’s young then you can simply roast it in the oven, but if it’s a late-season grouse, you have to pot cook it for a long time to get the best out of them. They have more flavour and are bigger, so that’s the upside. 

The Field website has some great recipes for both late-season and young grouse, like the one below. You can find more grouse cooking ideas by clicking here.

How to make Warm smoked grouse salad with beetroot and wild mushrooms

Serves 4
■ 4 grouse breasts
■ Sea salt and peppercorns
■ 50g (2oz) butter
■ 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
■ 12 small peeled shallots
■ 100g (31⁄2oz) chanterelles
■ 2 large cooked beetroots
■ 2 handfuls salad leaves
■ 2 tbsp vinaigrette (or other dressing)

Sprinkle grouse breasts with some sea salt and some crushed peppercorns and place in a freezer bag in the fridge for two hours. Remove after this time and wash off the brine. Find a deep roasting dish and a trivet that will fit inside it. Sprinkle the bottom with hay and lay the trivet on top. Find a sheet of tinfoil big enough to fit over the dish.
Lay the breasts on to the trivet and light the hay. Immediately cover tightly with the foil and leave it for 15 minutes. After this time, relight any hay that has not fully ignited and cover again. The idea is to cold-smoke the grouse so they don’t dry out.
After this smoking process is complete, place the breasts in a freezer bag in the fridge or freeze the breasts until you are ready to use them.
To make the salad, melt half the butter until foaming in a heavy pan and sear the breasts until golden. About 90 seconds on each side should be about right. Deglaze the meat with the vinegar for a further 20 seconds and remove. Place the remaining butter in the pan and caramelise the shallots for five minutes, then add the chanterelles and beetroot. Meanwhile, rest the grouse on a wooden board.
To serve, dress the salad leaves, add the beetroot, chanterelles and shallots, and add a little more vinaigrette.

Listen to the podcast

If you want to hear more about Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes or glorious grouse, check out Whodunnit Dinners podcast Season 2: Ep #4!