Quail recipes or home butchered fowl

[Andrew Cumberland]

I wanted to start a place where we could share recipes for quail.  Then I figured that chicken would be much the same.  I know a brave soul who also keeps pigeon so those recipes would fit in here too, along with duck etc.  I will assume it will mostly be the smaller birds who lack personality. 

[Andrew Cumberland]

I'll start with a video showing steamed garlic and ginger Cantonese quail.  I intend to adapt this to can my quail. I'm reasonably confident that it will work well. 

Cantonese garlic and ginger quail

[Dave Riley]

I am all feathers! I am mulling over the prospect of raising quail for slaughter. So get my gastronomical juices flowing you'all.

Steamed quail: hubber hubber!

[Andrew Cumberland]

I preserved some limes from Mark at Eatons Hill using a salt and vinegar Indian recipe spiced up with a bit of chilli.  I found a very interesting roast Quail with preserved lemon recipe that I'll try with my limes.  If it works, I'll post it.  

[Andrew Cumberland]

Steamed Quail With Ginger And Garlic 鵪鶉

6 whole quail

12 cloves garlic

3 to 4 tablespoons sliced ginger

1 teaspoon salt

1 chicken stock cube

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon sesame oil

2 teaspoons light soy sauce

1 tablespoon Chinese oyster sauce

1 to 2 teaspoon Shaoxing wine

1/2 cup chopped green onions

Method:

Rub salt on the surface of each quail. Rinse with cold water.

Put quail into a large, deep sided bowl.

To make marinade, add the following ingredients into a mixing bowl. Add salt, chicken soup base, sugar, sesame oil, light soy sauce, Chinese oyster sauce and Shaoxing wine. Mix well and spread the marinade over the quail. Add the ginger slices and garlic.

In a pan, bring the water to a boil. Put the dish of quail in the pan and cover with a cover. Steam for 30 minutes or more until quail are cooked all the way through. Sprinkle chopped green onions over the quail. Cover with lid and steam final 10 minutes. Enjoy!

[Doug Hanning]

Salt and pepper quail.

1 cup brown rice flour

1 tbsp salt

1 tbsp sichuan pepper

1 tbsp chinese five spice

Cut quail in half.

Mix the flour and spice together.

Roll quail in flour mix then dunk in an egg wash then reroll in the flour.

Pop in the deep fryer for 4 minutes.

[Andrew Cumberland]

Thanks mate 

[Andrew Cumberland]

Rub (all sides of the birds):

1 tbl brown sugar

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp smoked paprika 

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

pinch of chili powder

This amount did 4 for me. 

Air-fry at 200c for 10 minutes.  

Kept lovely and moist.

[Barbara Tealby]

All these recipes seem delicious. Trouble is, I don't think I am ready to do away with my old ladies - they all have names, and now they're giving me 4 or 5 eggs a day from the five hens.

[Andrew Cumberland]

I wouldn't kill those ones either Barb.  It's mostly young males that get sent to freezer camp.  Your current birds are pets.  My incubator is a runnin'!  

[Andrew Cumberland]

I think there is a lot to be said for the cooking by the age of your birds.  I've done a fantastic quail cacciatore in the pressure cooker using old birds. The steamed recipe is the same.  For quick cook, like deep fried or air fried, use younger birds.  My air fryer run was very moist inside and crispy outside.  But, the old birds were still tough.  I need to embark on a breeding program. 

[Doug Hanning]

I have chewed my way through a few of my older birds( 1 year) and found the breast meat is still pretty good but the legs were a lot tougher. Have stewed some and they were pretty tender. Another 1.5 weeks till I process this lot of 90. Keep getting people wanting to buy them, I just want to eat them!