
Italian Recipes: Cooking Traditional “Cucina Italiana” Foods: Drowned Quail
The final result of this recipe will be so tender that the taste will please your mouth and fill joy in your heart!’
Quails are actually grown in the farms, sometimes the Quails were hunted in the wild, you can try this recipe with Wild Birds, too.
Ingredients: (6 persons)
six Quails
1 liter (34 ounces or 1/4 of gallon) of Tomato Sauce
few Leaves of Sage – few Leaves of Laurel
60 grams (2 ounces) of Dried Mushroom (heads of “Porcini” are the best!)
one fist of Pine-Cones
half glass of Extra Virgin Olive Oil – Marine Salt
half glass of White Wine – one glass of Red Wine “Barolo” is the best for this recipe
two cloves of “Scallion” – 100 grams (3 and half ounces) of “Prosciutto Crudo” (or Pancetta: you don’t have? make it! see my Videos!!!)
2 spoons of “Onion & Carrot Mix” – 2 spoons of “Garlic & Parsley Mix”
the aforementioned “Mix” are in category “Preparations – Sauces”
start reviving the dried Mushrooms in to a bowl with warm water
after 10-15 minutes the Mushrooms are soft & ready
squeeze the water off the Mushrooms
squeeze well, we don’t want water make the boiling oil to jump to our face!
keep the Mushrooms water apart
chop the Mushrooms small
Italian Recipes: Cooking Traditional “Cucina Italiana” Foods: Drowned Quail
Meanwhile you have burnt the residuals of feathers from the Quail, here I use one of my instruments, you can simply use the fire of your kitchen hot top (category “Preparations – Get Rid of Chicken Feathers”)
cut off the ending part of the Quail wings
cut also the tail off
and eventually the last part of the leg: see the pictures
we are going to discard this part, I use it to make a good soup for my dogs: they simply love it!
wash the Quails under running water
check if there is any residual to be discarded inside: pay particular attention to the plastic labels applied through the skin
wash well where you burnt the residuals of feathers
Italian Recipes: Cooking Traditional “Cucina Italiana” Foods: Drowned Quail
let’s go back to our Mushrooms let’s make a good soffritto….
start “soffritto” adding two spoons of chopped Onion and Carrots to boiling Extra Virgin Olive Oil (half glass)
cut “Prosciutto Crudo” (or Pancetta Salata) in small cubes
add to the “Soffritto”
add the Scallion, too, after you chopped or sliced it!
if you don’t have Scallion doesn’t matter: use a small Onion instead!
now you add one spoon of chopped Garlic & Parsley
stir well and let the Vegetables to fade
it’s time to add the Mushrooms
Italian Recipes: Cooking Traditional “Cucina Italiana” Foods: Drowned Quail
clean the Sage Leaves from their stems (discard the stems)
cut the Sage Leaves in tiny pieces
add to your “Soffritto”
drop down the Pine-Cones
stir and add the Laurel Leaves
add the Mushroom Water: pay attention to avoid residual from Mushroom to drop in your “Soffritto” (find my kindle book “soffritto” in Amazon.com) !
Italian Recipes: Cooking Traditional “Cucina Italiana” Foods: Drowned Quail
add the Tomato Sauce
mix well with a wooden stirrer
two-three pinches of Marine Salt are needed here!
add the White Wine (half glass)
Italian Recipes: Cooking Traditional “Cucina Italiana” Foods: Drowned Quail
drown the Quails….
…well under the Sauce…. if you need more sauce simply add more Tomato Sauce or White Wine or more of both!
move the Quail: in order to let the sauce to go everywhere
now you can cover with a lid and wait…
let cook for 10-15 minutes, after that open and move again the Quails, stir the sauce and….
Italian Recipes: Cooking Traditional “Cucina Italiana” Foods: Drowned Quail
….add the Red Wine (one glass): if “Barolo” it’s better !!! eh, eh, eh !!! “Barolo” will “boost” your fire!
move the Quails so the wine goes everywhere
and then…
…after you made the Quails happy drowned in to the Red Wine…
cover with a lid…
and let cook for other 10-15 minutes covered
Italian Recipes: Cooking Traditional “Cucina Italiana” Foods: Drowned Quail
after that time open and check, stir and move…try a bit with a small spoon to check the salinity: add more Marine Salt if needed!
The Quails must be cooked already: you should check with a fork if the meat is tender. By the way usually you cook few hours before the meal time, then you will warm up again to make this dish ready, so the Quail will cook a little bit more…
seat one Quail in each plate, or half if you cut in the middle, garnish with the sauce…it is so tender, tasty and so good…………..
Italian Recipes: Cooking Traditional “Cucina Italiana” Foods: Drowned Quail