Courtesy of Jon Hollinger, Aspen Outfitting Co.

Dove shooting is exciting and fast. The birds come from all angles and the shots vary in distance from 15 to 40 yards. The quality of meat for the table depends on the amount of pellets that each individual dove has contacted. Colorado has a oneday limit of 15 doves per hunter. Birds should be field dressed and put on ice as soon as possible after harvest. To clean doves, use sharp kitchen shears to remove the head, wings and feet. Pluck each bird, being careful not to tear the skin. Use shears to cut along both sides of the backbone. Remove backbone along with all viscera (internal organs), saving the heart and gizzard for use in other dishes if desired. Rinse cavity well, being careful to remove any and all remnants of viscera.

For heavily shot birds, we suggest the following preparation:
15 dove breasts, skins removed
Kosher salt
4 Anaheim peppers
1⁄4 pound Monterey Jack cheese
1⁄2 pound inexpensive, fatty breakfaststyle
bacon
Savory barbecue sauce of your choice
30 quality wooden toothpicks

With a sharp boning-type knife, remove the breast meat from both sides of the keel bone of each dove. Discard all badly shot portions. Using salt and water, prepare enough brine solution to soak the remaining useable filets for 5–10 minutes. While the filets are soaking, wash peppers and remove all seeds. Cut peppers and thinly slice the cheese into pieces roughly the same area as the breast filets.

Cut strips of bacon into halves. Remove filets from the brine and pat dry on paper towels. Make “sandwiches” in the following manner: one breast filet, one piece of pepper, one piece of cheese,
second breast filet. Wrap each “sandwich” in a half strip of bacon and secure with a toothpick through the center. Apply barbecue sauce liberally, and arrange on a cookie sheet or plate for transport to the grill. Grill at medium heat for approximately 3 minutes per side.