My roommate and I culled our first Coturnix this weekend and would have been lost without this thread! Thanks for posting it up!!! we're cooking them tonight I can't wait to have my first taste of quail!
Processing Quail Pictures- WARNING Graphic!
- Thread starter monarc23
- Start date
i have 7 seven week old males, is it really best to butcher at 12 weeks, i thought i read 8 or 9 someplace. also how hard is it to take off the head with scissors, i don't want to be hacking at the poor things neck, i practiced on one that had a bad leg a few weeks ago and i slit the neck, is that ok too. I could also use some more details on how to gut them, the pictures are great, i'm just a little slow and want to get this right the fist time.
Do you really need 5 quails per person? What if it is Jumbo Brown or a larger (like 12-13 oz.) quail? Thanks! GREAT tutorial! I wish I had some quail now...lol.
I'm not going all the way back to see where you read '5 quails per person. i'll just tell you that my ds and hubby eat two quail each, Hubby is 6'2"-210ish, and ds is 6'--160ish.(so fairly big guys to give you an idea of appetite. Dd and i have one each. My birds after processed are about 6 oz each.
As for processing them, I use actual butchering type scissors (bought them at cabela's). I just snip their head off and pull. It is not difficult at all. for gutting, just use your fingers and scrape out all the innards--making sure you break through the diaphragm to get the lungs and heart out. Easy peasy.
eta--they are full grown at 8ish weeks, but I usually keep some of mine around just to get a new batch of eggs for the bator, and then butcher them. I rotate my stock this way.
As for processing them, I use actual butchering type scissors (bought them at cabela's). I just snip their head off and pull. It is not difficult at all. for gutting, just use your fingers and scrape out all the innards--making sure you break through the diaphragm to get the lungs and heart out. Easy peasy.
eta--they are full grown at 8ish weeks, but I usually keep some of mine around just to get a new batch of eggs for the bator, and then butcher them. I rotate my stock this way.
Last edited:
- Oct 19, 2010
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B. Saffles Farms :
Quote:
What's mean?
Killing that poor innocent quail.
Quote:
What's mean?
Killing that poor innocent quail.
LOL. There's no easy way to do it..... as far as separating your emotions from what you are actually doing. The quicker you do it, the better you feel about it. The longer you stare at the bird not wanting to do it, the harder it is. Mean would be torturing it or killing it for no reason.... This isn't mean.
Quote:
Killing that poor innocent quail.
LOL. There's no easy way to do it..... as far as separating your emotions from what you are actually doing. The quicker you do it, the better you feel about it. The longer you stare at the bird not wanting to do it, the harder it is. Mean would be torturing it or killing it for no reason.... This isn't mean.
the guy was joking. it was a joke.
i do agree w/ what you said though
Killing that poor innocent quail.
LOL. There's no easy way to do it..... as far as separating your emotions from what you are actually doing. The quicker you do it, the better you feel about it. The longer you stare at the bird not wanting to do it, the harder it is. Mean would be torturing it or killing it for no reason.... This isn't mean.
the guy was joking. it was a joke.
i do agree w/ what you said though
I had to cull about 6 or 7 coturnix about a month ago mostly males and some females who were not good enough for breeding. I didn't think to knock them out.
It would have made it go easier as a few freaked when the scissors were coming at them. I got good by the last one of sneaking up quickly and they didn't see it coming.
I do the pluck the feathers off and leave the skin. Then to clean out the innards I turn the bird breast down and starting on one side of the tail with the kitchen shears/scissors, go up that side of the backbone around the neck between the neckbones and the breast. I keep going with the kitchen shears back down the other side of the backbone until get back to the tail then trim the extra skin off the belly. If I do it right all I have the do is pull on the neck and all the innards come out. If some stay behind I push them off/out with the closed scissors. I don't like touching the innards!
When I set them down with the back down you can't even tell the backbone is gone.
This last time I left the wings on and I did it because I was going to put them in the crockpot.
I have a some big eaters and it wasn't going to be enough for four cooked the regular way I do in the big skillet with mushrooms. So I seasoned them with salt, pepper and some of the chicken spice blend I had in the cabinet and put them to cook for 8 hours on low in the crockpot. 8 hours later the meat was falling off the bones and was meltly tender. I scooped them out to the platter and let them cool enough to handle. Meanwhile while they was cooling after getting all the meat and bones out of the broth that had pooled in the bottom. I started the sushi rice to soak. I poured the broth into a storage bowl and put that in the frig. While the sushi rice cooked, I pulled all the meat off the bones and sorted out the breasts/bigger thigh pieces into one pile and the rest of the smaller pieces into a bowl. The smaller pieces got some mayo, mustard and spices to make it into quail salad. The larger pieces went into maki sushi rolls with some pickled japanese radish and carrots. The quail salad was put into rice balls. The broth was my lunch the next day with some carrots and egg noodles microwaved in it.
No one but me was getting any broth! No help with processing! No broth for you!
We got about 3 days of lunchs/snacks out of doing it this way and that is saying alot with two teens and a hubby that could have eat 4 by himself.
I meant to take a picture of one of them on a little plate with our cat looking at it, but I remembered after I had finished pulling off all the meat.
The cat watched me process the quail and now when I get the kitchen shears out and there are no quail in the holding cage she runs. Why could that be?
LOL
This last time I left the wings on and I did it because I was going to put them in the crockpot.
I have a some big eaters and it wasn't going to be enough for four cooked the regular way I do in the big skillet with mushrooms. So I seasoned them with salt, pepper and some of the chicken spice blend I had in the cabinet and put them to cook for 8 hours on low in the crockpot. 8 hours later the meat was falling off the bones and was meltly tender. I scooped them out to the platter and let them cool enough to handle. Meanwhile while they was cooling after getting all the meat and bones out of the broth that had pooled in the bottom. I started the sushi rice to soak. I poured the broth into a storage bowl and put that in the frig. While the sushi rice cooked, I pulled all the meat off the bones and sorted out the breasts/bigger thigh pieces into one pile and the rest of the smaller pieces into a bowl. The smaller pieces got some mayo, mustard and spices to make it into quail salad. The larger pieces went into maki sushi rolls with some pickled japanese radish and carrots. The quail salad was put into rice balls. The broth was my lunch the next day with some carrots and egg noodles microwaved in it.
No one but me was getting any broth! No help with processing! No broth for you!
We got about 3 days of lunchs/snacks out of doing it this way and that is saying alot with two teens and a hubby that could have eat 4 by himself.
I meant to take a picture of one of them on a little plate with our cat looking at it, but I remembered after I had finished pulling off all the meat.
The cat watched me process the quail and now when I get the kitchen shears out and there are no quail in the holding cage she runs. Why could that be?
LOL
Quote:
I like staring into their eyes and saying "You are gonna die!"
But I bet you say it in cheerful baby talk!
-Spooky
I almost fell off my chair laughing at you knuckleheads after reading the first couple pagesof this thread, good stuff.
thanks!
I like staring into their eyes and saying "You are gonna die!"
But I bet you say it in cheerful baby talk!
-Spooky
I almost fell off my chair laughing at you knuckleheads after reading the first couple pagesof this thread, good stuff.
thanks!
- Oct 9, 2010
- 3,710
- 15
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I was searching for this thread all night! Thankyou, so much for posting this, I can't wait to butcher mine!!
Yes thank you for this thread!!! processed my first 2 quail today... I have them marinating in the frig. they will be dinner tonight!!!
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