Quail with chutney and garlic, and a quail egg Mediterranean salad

Steve Saunders -

A delicious and light combination, perfect for a balmy summer night meal.

Serves two.

  • 4 x jumbo quail, partially de-boned
  • 2 x baby beetroot, cut as a cube (rest discarded) and then cut into 1cm cubes x 8
  • 2 x bunch asparagus, cut into 1.5cm logs, woody end discarded
  • 75g Minerva organic fetta
  • 1tbps continental parsley, ripped up, leaves only
  • 5 x cherry tomato, quartered
  • Lemon dressing 1tsp lemon juice, 2tsp olive oil, cracked pepper & salt
  • 9 x quail eggs, keep out of fridge to retain flavour
  • 50ml Chardonnay
  • 50ml chicken stock
  • 2tsp Baxters Classic Tomato Chutney, 3cm length of chunky garlic from a squeezy tube

Eggs

Cook quail eggs soft boiled. Start with eggs at room temperature, 02:25 in barely boiling water, then into ice bath, then peel, leave whole until serving. Trick to peel is to gently crack eggs all over with the flat of a knife – if the albumen rips apart they are not cooked enough (cook 03:00 for hard boiled.)

Salad

Cook asparagus from room temperature 2 minutes in boiling water, drain, set aside
Parsley and tomato in salad bowl, leave until serving
Keep beetroot cubes separate and drained, and fetta, asparagus and lemon dressing and quail eggs separate until serving. When serving, asparagus in microwave 20 seconds to warm up. Halve four quail eggs and into the bowl with the rest of the ingredients, mix, serve immediately.

Quail

De-bone, then brush skin with Baxters chutney & garlic mix, leave for 10 minutes
Cook quail for ~5-8 minutes skin side down, medium heat until nicely caramelised, flip over and cook for 2-3, remove and rest. Raise pan heat to high & pour Chardonnay and stock in pan to deglaze, reduces to saucing consistency.

Serve

On warm plates. Salad in the centre of plate, three quail egg halves north side, two the south side, quartered quail breast and leg on east and west sides. Drizzle with sauce. Cracked pepper over the lot.

Super nom.