MICHAEL WELDON’S KENTUCKY FRIED QUAIL

As some of you would know, Michael was my best mate on MasterChef and also the runner-up of the series. He seriously loves his food and we’ve shared some once-in-a-lifetime food experiences together. One of these was a slow old day with plenty of quail on hand. Michael came up with this dish and he’s been kind enough to let me feature it in this book — he knows how much I love it.

PREPARATION TIME: 10 MINUTES (PLUS 2 HOURS SOAKING TIME)

COOKING TIME: 10–15 MINUTES

SERVES: 4–6

WHAT’S IN IT?

8 whole quail, de-boned (leaving leg and wing bones in) and quartered (see note)

600 ml (21 fl oz) buttermilk

185 g (6½ oz/¾ cup) sour cream

2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce

vegetable oil, for deep-frying

lime wedges, to serve

Spiced flour mix

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3 teaspoons cayenne pepper (or to taste)

3 teaspoons ground ginger

3 teaspoons sweet paprika

3 teaspoons smoked paprika

1½ tablespoons garlic powder

450 g (1 lb/3 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour

2 tablespoons salt, plus 1 teaspoon extra

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

1.   Place the quail pieces in a large bowl, cover with the buttermilk and refrigerate for 2 hours.

2.   For the sauce, simply combine the sour cream and Tabasco in a small bowl and refrigerate until needed.

3.   For the spice mix, combine all the spices, the flour and 1 tablespoon of the salt in a large bowl.

4.   Remove the quail from the buttermilk, reserving the buttermilk. Toss the quail pieces through the spiced flour, then remove the quail (reserving the spiced flour mix) and place the pieces on a tray lined with baking paper. Sieve the reserved spiced flour mix back into the bowl, then dunk the quail pieces a second time in the buttermilk and coat again with the spiced flour. Dust off the excess flour and return the quail pieces to the tray.

5.   Fill a deep-fryer or large saucepan one-third full with vegetable oil and heat over medium heat to 180°C (350°F), or until a cube of bread dropped into the oil turns golden brown in 15 seconds. Working in batches, gently place the quail pieces into the hot oil and cook for 4–5 minutes or until cooked through and golden. Drain the quail on paper towel and serve with the sauce and lime wedges.

NOTE

* If you don’t feel up to de-boning the quail, simply cut down either side of the backbone with a pair of kitchen scissors, flatten the quail out, then cut into four.