Eating one year old quail?

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

My birds are almost a year old. I cooked one up a month or so ago and it was so chewy we fed it to the dogs. Could have been my cooking...or do they get like that when they are older? Would it be a waste of time to process the rest of them?

 

[Mosti]

I think one year is a bit too much. You should keep in mind that quails mature before chickens.
How much cooking time did you give it though?

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

That's pretty much what I was thinking. I've eaten them at 10-16 weeks and they were fine. This last time I cooked them the way I did previously - lightly browned the breasts, legs, thighs in oil in a casserole dish then added cream of chicken soup, onions, garlic, spices, etc. Baked covered for about 45 minutes at 350 degrees and served over pasta. They were not tender at all like the previous ones.

 

[Mosti]

Quote:
Do you mean oven baked or cooked over the hob?
When I cook wild caught quail (i.e: unknown age) I leave them for about 1hr to 1hr15mins and thay get tender that way.

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

I meant oven baked. Not sure what a "hob" is! Maybe you're right and the older they are, the longer they need to be cooked

 

[Mosti]

By 'hob' I mean the burner, you know? That's what we call it here.
Maybe you should try a bit longer cooking time so, any way good luck