Quail legs are actually pretty easy to find in the frozen food section. This is a fairly simple recipe and they make an unusual appetizer for your next cocktail party. Note: make the Green Goddess Dressing at least 2 hours before serving.
Time 4 hrs: 3 hrs for brining, 1 hr prep
and cooking
- Quail legs – figure 4 – 8 per person depending on what else your serving
- 2 Tbls sugar
- 2 Tbls. salt
- 1 quart water
- Regular thickness bacon – 1/2 piece per leg
- Jalapenos – stemmed, seeded and sliced lengthwise in 1/4 pieces
- Green Goddess Dressing – see below
- Dissolve the sugar and salt in the water and pour over the quail legs in a one gallon baggie. Refrigerate for 3 hours or over night.
- Preheat the oven to 350
- Remove the leg sections from the brine. Cut away the backbone if present so that you have leg/thigh sections. You can use these leg/thigh sections as is or you can remove the thigh bone and fold the thigh meat over the leg. It may seem like an extra step, but removing the thigh bone makes it easier to wrap it with bacon. If you want, use sharp kitchen scissors to remove the thigh bone.
- Lay a piece of jalapeno on each leg section and wrap with 1/2 piece of bacon. Place the wrapped legs on a foil lined baking sheet fitted with a rack
- Roast the legs for 30 – 40 minutes until the bacon is crisp and the legs are cooked through.
- Serve with the Green Goddess Dressing
Green Goddess Dressing
This is our version of the classic. You should adjust the herbs to align with your own taste preferences. Note that tarragon is the classic herb for this dressing. It will keep in the refrigerator for 3 – 5 days.
- 1 – 2 oz. can anchovy fillets well drained
- 2 Tbls. Chopped shallot
- 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves coarsely chopped
- 3 Tbls. chopped fresh chives
- 3 Tbls. chopped mixed fresh herbs such as tarragon (classic), basil, thyme and/or oregano
- 3 Tbls. white wine vinegar
- 1 Tbls. lemon juice
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 cup sour cream
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
- Combine first 7 ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth
- With the blender running, stream in the olive oil
- In a mixing bowl, combine the contents of the blender with the sour cream and black pepper.
- Allow to rest in the refrigerator for a couple of hours before serving.
