Best Southern Stuffed Quail Recipes

SOUTHERN FRIED QUAIL

Steps:

• Rinse the quail and pat dry thoroughly with paper towels.
• Generously season each bird with salt and pepper both inside and out.
• Place quail in a pan and sprinkle over a generous amount of flour, turning the quail in the flour to thoroughly coat the birds.
• Meanwhile, in a well-seasoned black iron skillet, add enough oil to cover the pan to a depth of about 1 inch.
• Bring the oil to frying temperature (about 325) over medium-high heat.
• Add prepared quail to the hot oil and fry 4 to 5 minutes on each side until golden brown all over.
• Remove to a paper towel lined plate to drain.

GRANDMA'S QUAIL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Heat the shortening in a large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat.
• Season the quail with the garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste. Place the flour in a shallow dish; roll the quail in the flour.
• Working in batches, brown the quail on all sides in the preheated shortening. Place the browned quail in a large roasting pan or casserole dish; pour the water over the quail and cover with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour, or to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F (75 degrees C), taken in the thickest part of the thigh. Spoon the sour cream over the quails, allow the sour cream to melt before serving.

STUFFED QUAIL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
• Place the bread on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and salt. Toast for 5 to 8 minutes, until crisp. Transfer to a large bowl.
• In a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat, heat the butter until it's melted and foamy. Add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley, sage and chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper. Add the toasted bread and toss to combine. If you need more liquid for the bread, add more chicken stock 1/4 cup at a time. Remove pan from heat and allow to cool to room temperature
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Once the stuffing is cool, wear kitchen rubber gloves to stuff the cavity of the quails with about 1 cup of stuffing per quail. Place the remaining stuffing on the bottom of a roasting pan or large cast-iron skillet. Season the quail with salt and pepper and rest on top of the stuffing. Roast the quail for 15 to 20 minutes or until juices run clear when you pierce the skin. Serve right away.

SAUSAGE STUFFED QUAIL

Steps:

• Coat a large saute pan lightly with olive oil. Toss in the fennel, onions and crushed red pepper. Season with salt and bring the pan to a medium-high heat. Cook the onions and fennel until they are soft and wilted but don't have any color, 7 to 8 minutes. Turn off the heat and let them cool.
• In a bowl, combine the sausage, breadcrumbs, Parmigiano, egg, parsley and cooked onions and fennel. Mix well to combine.
• Divide the stuffing among the 4 quail. Press each quail to lightly flatten and evenly disperse the stuffing. Wrap each quail with a bacon slice and secure the bacon with a toothpick. Tie the quail's legs together with butcher's twine (otherwise they will look like road kill).
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Coat a large saute pan with olive oil and bring the pan to a medium-high heat. Sprinkle the quail with salt and add it to the pan. Brown them really well on each side, 3 to 4 minutes. When the quail are brown on both sides, transfer the quail to a baking sheet and put them in the oven for 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from the oven, remove the toothpicks and reserve the quail.
• Meanwhile, ditch the fat from the pan and add the port wine. Cook the wine over medium heat until it has reduced by half. Add 3/4 cup chicken stock, season with salt and reduce by half. Add the remaining chicken stock and reduce it by about three-quarters, or until it seems a little bit thickened. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
• Divide the arugula among 4 serving plates. Place a quail on each pile of arugula and spoon some of the sauce on the quail and the arugula. Serve immediately.

SOUTHERN STUFFED QUAIL

Steps:

• Preheat the oven broiler.
• In a bowl, mix the pork, parsley, carrots, celery, garlic, bread crumbs, and pepper.
• Arrange the quail in a baking dish. Separate the skin from the breast of each quail, and stuff with equal amounts of the stuffing mixture. Brush with bacon drippings.
• Broil the quail 7 minutes on each side in the preheated oven, or to a minimum internal temperature of 180 degrees F (85 degrees C).

SOUTHERN-FRIED QUAIL WITH BLUE CHEESE DRESSING

Steps:

• Mix the 100ml buttermilk, cumin and a large pinch of salt together in a bowl. Put the quail halves in the buttermilk mix so they are completely covered, then chill for at least 6 hrs or overnight.
• To make the dressing, beat the mayonnaise, buttermilk, cheese and celery salt together - don't worry if it's not totally smooth. Keep chilled.
• When ready to cook, mix all the spiced flour ingredients together. Heat a deep-fat fryer or a deep pan with sunflower oil to 175C. Remove the quail from the fridge, then dip each half in the spiced our and carefully drop them in the fryer.
• Fry for about 6 mins until golden and crisp, then drain on kitchen paper and leave to rest for 2 mins or so. Pile onto a large serving plate, put the blue cheese sauce on the side for dipping, and scatter over the celery leaves, if you like.