Miserable weather outside today.   I decided to put the internet country music radio station on, put on my boots and go all cowboy on some quail, beheading them (why oh why do the French feel it’s necessary to leave the heads on their poultry products?) and boning them.  This was fun.  Listen to Big R Country Radio.

I found this recipe for Char Siu Quail on the Chubby Hubby site:  http://chubbyhubby.net/blog/?p=615  I love this site!   He really seems to like food and I like that.   Distracted by “She Was Hotter than a Two-dollar Pistol”, I didn’t exactly follow the recipe but still this was good and you can check out the original on the site.

One of the things I didn’t do was that I didn’t make the char sui marinade from scratch. “It be’s that way sometime.”  This is a good jar of ready made.

Char Sui Quail with Cucumber Lime Salad

4 quail, boned (maybe you can find the quail boned at your poultry shop/butcher)

1/4 cup char sui sauce

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp lemon juice

3 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp honey

Pulp from 4 small limes, in chunks

1 long cucumber, seeded and cut into ribbons

2 shallots, thinly slices

4 spring onions, thinly sliced

1 long red chilli, seeded and thinly sliced

1 cup mint leaves

1 cup coriander leaves

4 radish, cut into ribbons

35 grams rice vermicelli, softened in hot water, drained and rinsed

Put the quail in a zip lock, pour in the sauce, massage and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, soy sauce, honey and set aside.

Mix the cucumber, shallots, onions, chilli, mint leaves, coriander leaves, radish and vermicelli in a large bowl.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Cook the quail in a lightly oiled cast iron skillet on high for about 3 -4 minutes per side. Serve with the salad, passing the honey dressing separately.