![]() Check carefully before you buy, avoiding packages with freezer burn. Look for quail at Asian and Mexican markets, where they are often sold frozen in six-pack trays. The moment you bite into one of these freshly fried birds, the tangled aromas of rice wine and ginger come wafting out. After the coating dries, I quickly deep-fry them. Then I coat the quail with seasonings that help to color and crisp their skin. Rather than boiling the birds, I steam them, which better preserves the flavors of the marinade while gently cooking the meat. This recipe is the result of my experiments. The recipe sounded so simple and delicious that I decided to try to re-create the dish using quail. The cooks never revealed their trade secrets, but several times Mom spied them dunking the birds in boiling water before frying them. They were prepared by itinerant Chinese cooks who would stop by her parents’ home and offer various specialties, the best of which was this crunchy delicacy, eaten bones and all. Several years ago, my mom told me about one of the most memorable foods of her childhood: deep-fried birds the size of sparrows. Watch the birds carefully as they grill, so they don’t overcook and dry out. If your barbecue is too small to accommodate all twelve birds at once, grill them in batches and reheat in a very hot oven just before serving. Build a large fire, and spread the coals to heat the entire surface of the grill. Grilling the quail gives them a smokiness you can’t achieve in the oven. And last but not least, currants and pine nuts are a classic Sicilian combination, bringing sweetness and earthiness to the dish. Olive oil–toasted breadcrumbs are the crunchy finish, a tasty result of the Sicilians’ thrifty mentality. Pancetta, the essential flavoring of so many things Italian, gives the wilted spinach its salty punch. Ricotta is the favored soft cheese of the south, and here I’ve blended it into a hearty, savory pudding. On this platter, you’ll find all of my favorite Sicilian ingredients. These smaller birds don’t have as much meat as others, but they make up for their size in flavor. ![]() I hope this quail recipe tempts you to venture away from the usual poultry mainstays. Luscious to carry on a picnic, one might prepare the quail-or game hens, a chicken, or a fat capon, adjusting the poaching times accordingly-the evening before, and next day carry along the sack of birds readied for lunch. A few cloves of barely crushed garlic seem to invigorate the herbs. Lacking myrtle bushes, use whole branches of rosemary and thyme, fat leaves of sage, and the fronds of wild or cultivated fennel as lush surrogate bedding for the little birds. By fastening the sack securely, one creates a vaporous chamber in which they rest and cool, breathing in the sweet steam. Yet another cunning Sard prescription is to tuck the birds inside a paper or cloth sack fitted with the herbs. The game birds called grive that are the Sards’ quarry in the macchia are too small to cook over the open fire, hence they are often poached in white wine, then laid to cool on a palette of myrtle leaves and twigs, with a coverlet of yet more of the leaves, all of them scenting the flesh with soft perfumes, a reprise of the machinations of the old bracconiere (page 226). ![]()
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