In this recipe, I will show you how to handle poultry properly. We need to prepare breasts and thighs differently. While quail breast do not need much cooking, legs need baking or confiting: just cook them longer and slower. As a side dish, I recommend choosing beans, spelt or humble mashed potatoes.For 2 portions
2 quails
200 g red beans
40 g bacon
2 chestnut mushrooms
1 small courgette
50 g brussels sprouts
1 carrot
1 onion
200 ml red wine
50 g celeriac
50 g leek
30 g tomato purée
2 garlic cloves
2 bay leaves
5 black peppercorns
3 allspice
1 l chicken stock
salt and pepper
sunflower oil
Debone the quails: remove the breasts and legs, set them aside and chop the rest of the bones into really small pieces. Heat a frying pan, add a little bit of oil and put the bones in. Season the legs and fry in the same pan until golden brown. Take the legs out and put them aside.
Add the carrots into the pan with the bones and fry them. Then add the rest of chopped vegetables (leeks, celeriac, onion) and fry until golden brown. Add the purée, wine and let the alcohol evaporate. Add the spices, broth and cook slowly for about two hours.
After two hours of cooking, strain the broth and eventually reduce it to a suitable consistency – when you dip the spoon into the sauce and pull it out, the sauce should be thick – covering the bottom side of the spoon without any dripping. Put the legs back into the sauce and simmer until tender, which takes about 15-20 minutes. We are waiting for the beans, anyway!
It is definitely better to soak the beans overnight in cold water, but you can cook them straight away. I recommend using a pressure cooker, you will save a lot of time. Indeed, without soaking the beans, they will cook for at least three hours. First, fry the slices of bacon, take them away and cook the beans in the same pan (per 100 g of beans you need about 500 ml of chicken stock). It is also good to use some vegetables, they will give the beans a better taste. Finally, let the beans relax and cool in the broth.
Season the breasts with salt and pepper and fry on the skin side for about two minutes. Then turn over and leave them to finish for about 15 to 20 seconds. Set aside and let them rest for a while. They should be medium rare. Peel the brussels sprouts with small knife, so they look like small boats. When you decide to cook them whole, it is better add a little sugar to boiling water (if not, they might get bitter). This preparation takes more time.
Thinly slice the courgette and chestnut mushroom. You can use the trimmings for the sauce, right at the beginning. Blanch the brussels sprouts for about 5 seconds and serve immediately. Arrange the quail, beans, bacon and mushrooms on the plate. Pour over the sauce and serve. Enjoy your meal!
