Tricks in Cleaning and Breasting a Dove without Using a Knife

I’m sure you guys enjoy your dove hunting season this year, how is it? How many dove did you bad in the first season of your dove hunting? Make sure to do better next, open dates you can check on dates when will be the next dove hunting season in your states.

Dove hunting not ends with shooting those fast flying doves, the dove should end with everyone stomach since dove mourning doves are among the tastiest of all upland gamebirds. Am I right? There are mouth waterfull dishes you can choose from: different flavored drilled and marinated doves they can even baked. Check out this huge list of dove recipes, and pigeon recipes. But first things first, learn how to clean dove properly.

I’ve talked some hunters and some of them are having difficult in how to clean a dove. So here’s a trick in cleaning a dove.

TIPS: To avoid dove meat spoilage you must bring your cooler with you and gut doves in the field or immediately after the hunt.

How To Clean Dove without Using Knife

There are two major steps in cleaning the dove or getting the dove meat: plucking and breasting. Some hunters still do the gutting and skinning but this is the optional since you breasting is the fastest method especially when you are cleaning 45 doves in a single hunt. Here is quick steps in how to clean to pluck and breast the dove without using knife.

NOTE: Cutting the head off and plucking all the feathers is optional depends in how you cook your dove. If you plan to cook for a stuffed doves you will need to pluck all the feathers, cut off the head and remove the internal organs carefully.

1. Plucking. This is the easiest step. Grab the feathers and pull them off until the breast is exposed.
2. Breasting. Place your thumb under the tail end of the breast bone and press firmly until it pops through to the body cavity.
3. Push your thumb all the way up until you reach the other end of the breast bone.
4. Place your pointer finger at the top of the breast bone, grabbing the breast firmly.
5. Firmly grasp the body of the bird while pivoting the breast on the wing bones and lifting it upwards away from the rest of the body until the breast is only attached by the wing joints.
6. Peel the skin back from the breast at both ends.
7. Firmly grasp the breast in one hand and the body in the other.
8. Twist the breast, breaking the wing joints loose and lift the breast away.
9. Clean and now ready to cook.

Here’s another tricks in cleaning dove, video credit to Ryan Aller – Huntingnet.com Field Journal