Uvalco Blog

Hopefully you’ve started the Texas dove season with a bang, bagged a limit or two and are looking for a few good dove recipes to fully enjoy the results of your labors. Here are some of our favorites:

Bacon-Wrapped Jalapeno-Stuffed Grilled Dove Breasts

• 10 dove breasts
• 10 slices bacon
• 5 pickled jalapenos, sliced lengthwise
• 2 T melted butter
• 1 t minced garlic
• 1 t ground black pepper
• 1 t salt

Mix butter, garlic, pepper and salt together. Pour over dove breasts and marinade at least 4 hours.

Place a jalapeno half inside the cavity. Wrap each dove breast with a slice of bacon and hold all together with a toothpick.

Grill over medium heat, about 4 minutes per side, until bacon is crisp and dove breasts are brown.

Dove Au Vin

• 12 dove breasts
• 1 cup flour
• 1 t salt
• 1 t pepper
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 small green bell pepper; chopped
• 1 can beef consommé
(10.5 oz.)
• 1/2 cup dry red wine

Preheat oven to 350.

Combine flour, salt and pepper in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add doves, a few at a time; seal and shake to coat.

Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; add doves, and cook until browned, turning once. Place doves in a lightly greased 13″ x 9″ x 2″ baking dish, spread celery, onion, and bell pepper evenly over doves and add consommé. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350F for 1 ½ hours. Remove from oven, pour wine over doves, and bake, covered, 30 additional minutes. Serve with noodles or rice. Serves 6.

Dove Enchiladas

• 8 whole dove breasts; boned and coarsely chopped
• 3/4 cup onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 T vegetable oil
• 2 10-ounce cans enchilada sauce
• 8 corn tortillas
• 2 T + 2 t olives, chopped
• 1 c cheddar cheese, shredded
• Whole ripe olives

Preheat oven to 350F.  Sauté dove, onion and garlic in oil until dove is browned; set aside.

Warm enchilada sauce in a skillet; remove from heat. Place tortillas, one at a time, in sauce. Let stand 1 minute or just until tortillas are softened. Set remaining sauce aside.

Spoon dove mixture evenly over each tortilla; sprinkle each with 1 teaspoon chopped olives and 1 tablespoon cheese. Roll up tortillas, and place in a lightly greased 13″ x 9″ x 2″ baking dish, seam side down. Pour remaining sauce over tortillas; bake at 350F for 15 minutes. Top with remaining cheese, and bake an additional 5 minutes. Garnish with olives. Serves 4.

Dove Tetrazzini

• 6 cooked whole dove breasts, chopped
• 3 t butter or margarine
• 3 t onion, chopped
• 1/3 cup mushrooms, sliced
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 2 T cornstarch
• 2 cups thin spaghetti
• 1 cup shredded cheese

To cook dove breasts: fill large cooking pot with water and turn heat on high to boil. Add bay leaf and dove breasts. Boil uncovered for 15+ minutes, or until dove breasts are cooked through. Remove from water and set aside to cool.

Melt butter in saucepan; cook onions and mushrooms over low heat until tender. Add chicken broth and cornstarch and stir until thickened. Add dove and spaghetti. Heat mixture until bubbling, stirring frequently. Turn into baking dish and top with cheese. Place under broiler until cheese melts.

Remember to visit Uvalco or shop online at uvalco.com to stock up on cooking utensils and outdoor cooking gear.

Dove season opens today in Texas’ Central and North Zones; if you’re in the South Zone, you’ll need to wait until Friday, Sept. 18:

A new statewide bag limit of 15 and a longer season of 70 days means there’s plenty of opportunity for some great dove hunting action this year.

The good news about this year’s dove season is that it’s not expected to be affected by recent drought conditions. Since crops were poor in some parts of the state, you may have to look a little further afield to find them – your best bet is to hunt over a water source, since all birds have to water and doves will be looking for a water hole every day.

Of course, having your own source of water is a handy way to get the birds to come to you. Uvalco has a wide range of water tanks, with 120- to 3,000-gallon capacity.

We also have everything you need to outfit yourself for a new season of hunting, including cooking and camping gear, coolers and ice chests and hunting blinds.

We’d love to hear about your dove hunting adventures this year – you can post your hunting report for free on our website to share with friends, family and other hunters.