Scotch Quail Eggs
Chef Brad Farmerie of Public – New York, NY
Adapted by Starchefs

Chef Farmerie’s quail eggs are fantastic for breakfast or anytime! Prepare a small salad of your favorite mixed greens and dress with an acidic vinaigrette to help cut the richness of the eggs. Chef Farmerie likes to serve them with a simple tart cucumber salad.

Yield: 8 Servings

Ingredients:

Pork rillettes:

• ½ a pork belly (about 2 ½ pounds)
• 3 thumbs ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• 8 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 cup rice wine vinegar
• ½ cup soy sauce
• 3 black cardamom pods
• 6 star anise
• 2 cinnamon sticks
  
  
  Quail eggs:
• 12 quail eggs
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 3 chicken eggs, well beaten
• 1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
• Canola oil for deep frying
• Mixed greens or cucumber salad, tossed with an acidic dressing

Method:
For pork rillettes:
Using a sharp knife, peel the skin off of the pork belly and cut the flesh and fat into 1 in cubes. Place in a heavy-bottomed pot.

Puree the chopped ginger, garlic, rice vinegar and soy sauce in a food processor. Pour mixture over pork.

Wrap the spices in a piece of cheesecloth to make a sachet and place in the pot with the other ingredients. Add enough cold water to cover ¾ of the pork. Cover and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Remove the lid and continue simmering until all of the water has evaporated and there is only fat in the pot with the pork (about 2- 2 ½ hours). Allow to cool, remove the spice bag, and puree pork mixture in a food processor until fairly smooth. Transfer to a covered container and refrigerate.

For quail eggs:
Allow quail eggs to come to room temperature. In the meantime, bring a pan of salted water to a boil. Lower the room-temperature quail eggs into the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes and 20 seconds (this will yield soft-boiled quail eggs).
Remove the eggs from the boiling water and place in an ice water bath to stop the cooking. When cool, carefully peel eggs and refrigerate.

Set up three bowls on the counter, one holding flour, one with whisked eggs, and the third with panko (Japanese bread crumbs). Dredge quail eggs into flour and dust off the excess. Take a golf ball-sized piece of rillettes and flatten it as thin as possible.
Place the floured egg into the middle of the flattened rillettes and mold the pork around it. Smooth any creases.

Dredge the pork-encrusted egg in flour, coating evenly. Dust off any excess flour. Place the floured Scotch egg into the whisked egg, rolling it to cover, then dip it in the panko, again rolling it around to evenly cover. Set aside and repeat with all of the remaining quail eggs.

Heat canola or other frying oil up to 375°F in a deep fryer. Working in batches, drop the breaded eggs into the hot oil and cook until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes. Remove and drain on a paper towel. They can be served hot or cold.

To serve:
Dress salad greens or cucumbers with vinaigrette and arrange on 8 serving plates. Slice the eggs in half, careful not to let the soft yolk flow out, and place 3 halves cut-side-up on top of the salad.

Wine Pairing:
A light-bodied red with high acidity such as the Hofstätter Pinot Nero Alto Adige 2003