Delicious golden pan fried quail and beans in a velvety salted butter sauce with a hint of strong whisky… Do you want me to go on? Enough said I would say…
Another quail recipe that I love to bits: my crispy quail and smooth white buttery beans!
You would be amazed how simple this recipe really is. Quail legs, canned white beans, a good knob of salted butter and a splash of whisky, just to spice it up a bit.
Quail and beans.
Cooking Quail
I know, you might ask yourself just how I came up with this rather unusual combo.
And I also have to admit that I don’t really have an airtight answer for it. All these ingredients happened to sit in my pantry for some reason and I thought I should try something funky.
It is not a risky recipe. I can clearly see how the white beans, qual and salted butter might be a great match for each other. But the whisky was a gamble that I was willing to make.
Anyway, it worked out just fine because we all loved this quail and beans dinner!
Finger licking good.
Quail and Beans with Salted Butter & Whisky
I love quail, such delicate meat!
How about you? Have you ever cooked quail before at home?
My local supermarket had this batch of frozen quail legs on offer a couple of weeks ago. And because I can never say no to a good food bargain, I bought a fair amount of those tiny little legs to put in the freezer.
No worries because I have quite a lot of quail recipes up my sleeve.
Quail Recipes
Last time I prepared the quails in a flavorful grape and cilantro sauce.
Yum!
Do you like the sound of that? Then you might also like my quail legs wrapped in bacon with miso risotto…
Sure you can prepare this quail and beans recipe with fresh whole quails. You can slice them in half which will make it easier for the birds to brown nicely. Count about one quail per person.
Enjoy!
Easy Quail and Beans Recipe
- 10 quail legs
- 9 oz canned white beans (250 g), drained weight
- 2 tbsp salted butter
- 2 tbsp whisky
- garlic powder
- 2 bay leaves
- pepper
- Add half of the salted butter to a large non-stick frying pan and place it over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the quail legs to it. Season with a little pinch of pepper and garlic powder.
- Fry the legs on one side for 4 to 5 minutes until golden. Then turn them over and lower the heat to medium. Bake the legs for another 4 to 5 minutes.
- Then remove them from the pan and place them on a clean plate until needed later. Don’t wipe the pan clean but leave the flavorful browned bits in it for the sauce. Add the bay leaves and the rest of the salted butter to the pan and place it over medium heat.
Then add the drained white beans, the whisky and another pinch of pepper and garlic powder.
- Stir the beans and bake them for 5 minutes until warmed through. Then add the browned quail legs back to the pan.
- Stir and cook for another 5 minutes. Then check the seasoning and add extra pepper to taste if necessary. Divide the beans and quail legs over deep plates. Drizzle with the remaining melted butter in the pan and serve immediately.
What are good alternatives for the whisky in this quail and beans recipe?
There are several good options available.
For instance, you can replace the whisky with almond extract (alcoholic or non-alcoholic) in a 1:2 ratio with water for bourbon. Alternatively, you can use vanilla extract (alcoholic or non-alcoholic) and water in a 1:2 ratio as a substitute for bourbon.
For brandy, you can try using apple juice, apple cider, or white grape juice. If you are looking for a replacement for rum, you can use a mixture of white grape juice, pineapple juice, apple juice, apple cider, or water with a small amount of almond extract.
These are just a few examples of the many alternatives available. Remember to adjust the quantities according to your taste preferences and the specific recipe requirements.
