very interested in quail.....flood me with pros and cons!

[Acre4Me]

I bought a small plucker on amazon for under $100. It works great. Before that I was skinning them, since it’s much easier, but they do taste better with skin on. They don’t have much fat so the skin helps. Plucking them with the plucker was faster than skinning.

Yes, I would agree that skin is good to retain moisture and protect meat while cooking. Maybe we will invest if we decide this is a thing we will do regularly. Here is a pic of my quail from last night. They were browned in a cast iron pan (3 min per side), followed by about 12 min in a 450F oven. Skin-free and they didn't dry out, but it would be easy to dry them out without the skin.

 

[lomine]

Yes, I would agree that skin is good to retain moisture and protect meat while cooking. Maybe we will invest if we decide this is a thing we will do regularly. Here is a pic of my quail from last night. They were browned in a cast iron pan (3 min per side), followed by about 12 min in a 450F oven. Skin-free and they didn't dry out, but it would be easy to dry them out without the skin.
View attachment 1261808

Looks yummy!

 

[Acre4Me]

And just to round out my quail food posting, here are the quail eggs I pickled yesterday. Simple recipe: vinegar, salt, pickling spice. Processed in boiling water for 10 min, cooled then placed in fridge. I made 4 jars of 11-12 eggs each jar. These jars are the smallest wide-mouth jars usually used for jelly, and I think they are 8 ounces.

 

[jvls1942]

And just to round out my quail food posting, here are the quail eggs I pickled yesterday. Simple recipe: vinegar, salt, pickling spice. Processed in boiling water for 10 min, cooled then placed in fridge. I made 4 jars of 11-12 eggs each jar. These jars are the smallest wide-mouth jars usually used for jelly, and I think they are 8 ounces.

View attachment 1261813

that computes about right.
I used 40 eggs to make a quart of them.
I don't like pickled eggs, but my nephew was tickled pink to get them..
how do you peel the shells ?

 

[Acre4Me]

that computes about right.
I used 40 eggs to make a quart of them.
I don't like pickled eggs, but my nephew was tickled pink to get them..
how do you peel the shells ?

Once boiled and cooled, I put them in a glass bowl and cover the still-shelled eggs with vinegar. I've been impatient and only left them for 2-3 hours, but if left for 12 hours or so the shell essentially dissolves leaving the membrane, which needs to be removed. After only 3 hours, the shell is soft so I pinch it and peel it off pretty easily. It looks really gross tho...within a few minutes, the outer "paint" get removed but stays intact floating in the vinegar, then the reaction with the vinegar creates bubbles and if you don't stir it, it will be quite foamy relatively quickly. Yesterday I scooped off the foam and removed a lot of the "paint bits" from the vinegar, and my 10yo and I admired the various colors of the naked (still shelled) quail eggs. Light brown, white, pale blue and pale green! see pic.

 

[Diamond Dan]

Yes, I would agree that skin is good to retain moisture and protect meat while cooking. Maybe we will invest if we decide this is a thing we will do regularly. Here is a pic of my quail from last night. They were browned in a cast iron pan (3 min per side), followed by about 12 min in a 450F oven. Skin-free and they didn't dry out, but it would be easy to dry them out without the skin.
View attachment 1261808

Wow that looks delicious

 

[jvls1942]

thanks Acre4me, I had read about that a long time ago but forgot the timing of the soak.
and since then I do not have the quail anymore.
I should get some again. but not until I make the plucker.
when we cooked some, they seemed quite tough to chew.. I thought then of using a pressure cooker ? after browning them,.

 

[mistycolleen]

I see you are from wisconsin, too.
I am near wausau,
are you near me ?

im close to the fox cities. manawa/new london area ..if you know where that is.


yes i was in contact with the department of agriculture earlier. i think for riht now we are going to wait on quail. i have too many garden projects planned this year and would like to focus more on our land. i do have the contact information for our wildlife biologist in the department of agriculture if anyone in wisconsin would like his information. he did refer me to a few other departments as well. from what i can understand, unless you plan to raise them for hunting or releasing, you need certain permits. also with the bobtail, i believe but ill check for sure, you need a certain liscense since they are a wisconsin native. i could be mistaken. talking with so many people as i did there was a lot of information i myself do not honestly understand. i did find tho with inquiring on quail like i had, most the people i talked with were unsure and puzzled on most my questions. but i did find a lady not far from me that breeds them and i could reach out to her and find out what liscenses she carries if that helps anyone.

 

[MainelyQuail]

We raise them for the income they produce. Check out my videos and ask any questions you might have.

 

[CCUK]

Once boiled and cooled, I put them in a glass bowl and cover the still-shelled eggs with vinegar. I've been impatient and only left them for 2-3 hours, but if left for 12 hours or so the shell essentially dissolves leaving the membrane, which needs to be removed. After only 3 hours, the shell is soft so I pinch it and peel it off pretty easily. It looks really gross tho...within a few minutes, the outer "paint" get removed but stays intact floating in the vinegar, then the reaction with the vinegar creates bubbles and if you don't stir it, it will be quite foamy relatively quickly. Yesterday I scooped off the foam and removed a lot of the "paint bits" from the vinegar, and my 10yo and I admired the various colors of the naked (still shelled) quail eggs. Light brown, white, pale blue and pale green! see pic.
View attachment 1261838

I pickle quail eggs. I just boil them, cool them in water then peel the hard way! Straight into a jar of white vinegar. Lovely! I never thought about soaking them in vinegar to soften the Shell. That makes it alot easier! They do look like mini EE eggs there though!