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Quail Starter with Kale Served on a Crispy Polenta Cake
The quail is really easy to prepare and cook. You can sauté or bake quail but you will want to cook it while the polenta is in the oven so sauté it until it is done. When you can see the bare bone through the little drumsticks, it is ready. The meat should still be a little pink in the thickest part. The outside of the quail should be golden brown and crispy.
You can substitute other greens for the kale. Broccoli rabe, dandelion, escarole, or Swiss chard would all work. Make sure you remove any tough stems before you begin.
It is important to heat the pan or baking dish before you add the polenta mixture. This helps the polenta form a crusty bottom. If you prefer, you can divide the polenta between eight small custard cups or similar, rather than making one large polenta cake and cutting it into serving portions. The flavor will be the same so it just depends what kind of cookware you have and how you want to present this recipe.
Sautéed Quail with Polenta and Garlic Kale
Ingredients -
8 quail
6 cups water
11 oz coarse or medium polenta
1 package mixed salad leaves, for garnish
1 oz shaved parmesan, for garnish
Olive oil, as needed
Salt and black pepper, to taste
For the Kale:
2 lbs kale, tough stems removed
4 finely chopped garlic cloves
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and red pepper flakes, to taste
Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Put a metal-handled 12 inch skillet or baking dish in the oven to heat up.
Whisk the polenta with the water in a pot over a moderate heat, bringing the mixture to a boil slowly.
Keep whisking it, so lumps do not form.
Turn the heat down to low and simmer the polenta uncovered, stirring a few times, for about 4 minutes or until smooth.
Season with salt and pepper and pour into the skillet or baking dish.
Bake for 35 minutes or until the polenta cake pulls away from the pan.
Rinse the quail and pat dry.
Arrange them breast-up on a cutting board and insert a knife into the cavity. Cut down the backbone and discard the wing tips.
Pound the quail with the flat side of a meat mallet to flatten them a bit.
Rub 2 teaspoons of oil over the quail and season with salt and pepper.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a skillet and cook the quail, 4 at a time, skin-side down, for 7 minutes, or until golden.
If you have 2 skillets, you can cook all 8 at the same time.
Turn the birds over and cook the other side for 5 minutes or until you can see the leg bone through the drumstick.
Boil the kale in salted water for 20 minutes or until very tender.
Drain it through a colander or sieve, forcing out the excess moisture with the back of a wooden spoon.
Chop the kale coarsely, then sauté it with the garlic and extra virgin olive oil for 5 minutes.
Stir in the red pepper flakes, vinegar, and salt to taste.
Slice the polenta cake into 8 wedges and put a wedge on each of 8 serving plates.
Top the polenta with the kale and top that with a quail.
Divide the salad leaves and shaved parmesan between the serving plates.
(Makes 8)
Wine Suggestion:
What Wine Goes with Ahi This Quail Starter
Team this exciting quail recipe with Pinot Noir. This red wine smells like black cherry or ripe grape, and it often features a mint or cinnamon aroma too. This wine is full-bodied and rich but it still manages to be velvety and soft. Pinot Noir is beautiful with duck and pheasant, as well as quail. Some spices can mask the delicate flavors you find in Pinot Noir so do not serve this wine with anything too spicy. It is perfect with this quail recipe however.
Quail Starter
Photo Description:
This photo shows you what the finished dish will look like and you can see how mouthwatering this is. The crispy-skinned quail sits on top of the garlic kale and then on the bottom you have a crispy polenta cake. You can see how the garlic oil drips from the kale, through the polenta cake, giving it plenty of moisture and flavor. This is a gourmet recipe which dinner guests will love. It also makes a nice family dinner if you want to serve something a little unusual.
What-is-Polenta
This tasty staple of northern Italy is a coarse ground yellow cornmeal, which can be served with recipes like a quail starter, as an alternative to potatoes or pasta, or served by itself with some kind of sauce. This ingredient is versatile and if you have never cooked polenta before, you will find it very easy to work with.
This maize porridge can be made with white or yellow cornmeal and the coarseness of the grind depends on the region and the recipe. Grits are made from coarse ground cornmeal, for example, and these are a Southern delicacy, often served for breakfast. Polenta used to be a bland corn mush, only eaten by peasants, and it has been consumed since Roman times. Today, however, it is a popular part of Italian cuisine and you can do a lot with it. There are plenty of recipes for polenta that you might like to make.
Many polenta recipes will tell you to combine one part polenta with four parts water. You can use chicken, fish, or veal stock instead of the water, depending what you plan to serve with your polenta. Dark-colored stocks will make your polenta darker, as well as flavoring it.
Some restaurants choose to add a chicken base paste to the water to give the polenta a chicken flavor. Chicken base is different from chicken stock and it is also very salty. Regular chicken stock is also good to use but chicken base will keep your polenta bright yellow and chicken stock will darken it a bit. Both flavors are good if you are making a quail starter recipe.
How to Make It
Bring the correct amount of liquid to a simmer and then add the polenta. Cook the mixture for about twenty five minutes on a low heat, stirring it frequently. You might prefer to stir it continually for the first five minutes and then cover it with aluminum foil and let it finish cooking by itself.
Some people choose to stir it until it is done and this is the old-fashioned way. If you leave it, you will need to give it a good stir at the end of the cooking time, to loosen it back up. Add some cream or butter and season the polenta with salt and black pepper before you serve it.
How to Serve It
You can serve polenta alone or with some Italian tomato sauce or you can make it into a side dish for your chosen recipe. If you want to make the polenta the main event, you might like to serve it with goat cheese, mascarpone, or freshly grated parmesan. Stirring in some fresh basil, tarragon or thyme might be a nice idea and some tomato sauce poured over the top is always good.
You can also serve the polenta with meat, serving the reduction sauce with the meat and the polenta. To add a gourmet flavor to your polenta recipes, you might like to stir in some truffle oil or freshly shaved truffle, some sautéed wild mushrooms, or some caramelized onions. Your quail starter is sure to impress everyone if you get the polenta perfect.
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