Gene,
The pheasant was quite tender.

Your lovely wifes stew looks and sounds remarkably like my Irish Mothers stew, which, she used a pressure cooker to soften tougher cuts of meat for the stew.

My mother always made a big pot of mashed potatoes, and served the stew over them.
Moms would not have had chili pepper in it, otherwise, the recipes would interchange.

Good stuff.

Best,
Ted