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Quail (cailles)

Erken's basic quail recipe: the birds are brushed with butter, the breast covered with vine leaf and slices of pork, fried in butter 15–20 min while basting, arranged on fried white-bread slices with cress and bread sauce.

Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 329 (falt i det fri)

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About the dish

Quail was a sought-after delicacy in the bourgeois kitchen. Erken emphasizes that the birds should be fat with white and firm fat, and uses the classic French method with vine leaf and pork around the breast to keep it from drying out.

How to make it

  1. 1

    Prepare the birds

    Pluck and clean the quail and truss them. Brush them with warm butter and salt them.

  2. 2

    Vine leaves and pork

    Cover the breast with vine leaves and tie thin slices of pork around the birds with string.

  3. 3

    Frying

    Fry the quail in warm butter for 15–20 minutes, and baste them often with warm butter. Alternatively they can be cooked in a cocotte like small game birds, or steamed in veal stock.

  4. 4

    Arrangement

    Remove the string. The vine leaves and pork may stay on or be taken off. If the pork is removed, brush the birds with warm jus.

  5. 5

    Croûtes and serving

    Fry the bread slices in butter in a pan or deep fry them and place the quail on them. Put everything on a warm platter, garnish with cress and serve bread sauce alongside.

Changes from the original

The ingredient list in the original is without amounts; guiding amounts for four servings have been added. "Pork" is given as thin slices of fresh/lightly salted side pork (bacon), "the lard pot" as deep frying. Vine leaf can be omitted if not available.

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Time machine – what changed?

Pick two editions and see what Henriette Schønberg Erken added, removed or changed between them.

From19141949Modernised
To19141949Modernised
Modernised → 1949 (proofread, p. 364)~85% of the text changedremovedadded
8 stk vaktler (fete, plukket og renset). 8 stk vinblad (til å dekke brystet, kan utelates). 8 stk tynne Vaktler. (Cailles.) INGREDIENSER: Vaktler vinløv fleskeskiver (sideflesk eller bacon). 4 stk skiver loff (til crotonger). 100 g smør (til steking og pensling). 2 dl brødcroutons brun sky (varm). 2 ss knuste kavringsmuler. 1 ts salt. 1 potte karse (til garnering). 3 dl brødsaus (til servering). Plukk kavring smør salt karse. FREMGANGSMÅTE: Vaktler skal være fete og rens vaktlene fettet hvitt og bind dem opp. Pensle dem fast; de stekes som kramsfugl, i cocotte, eller de dampes i kalvebuljong. Fuglene plukkes, renses og settes op; pensles over med varmt smør og salt dem.. Dekk smør; dekk brystet med vinblad og bind ved å binde tynne fleskeskiver rundt fuglene med hyssing.. Stek vaktlene omkring. Stekes i varmt smør i 15–20 15—20 minutter, og drypp dem ofte med varmt smør. Alternativt kan de stekes i cocotte som kramsfugl, eller dampes i kalvekraft.. Fjern hyssingen. Vinblad og flesk kan bli sittende Ved anretningen fjernes tråden, men flesket blir på eller tas av. Tas ikke, som man vil. Hvis flesket av, ikke fjernes, skal der pensles fuglene over med varm sky.. Stek loffskivene sky. Anrettes på franskbrødskiver, enten stekt i smør smultgryte eller på panne eller i frityr og legg vaktlene på dem. Legg alt smør. Legges på varmt fat, garner omgis med karse og server karse; brødsaus ved siden av. serveres til.

Note on Modernised

Ingredienslisten i originalen er uten mengder; det er lagt inn veiledende mengder for fire porsjoner. «Flesk» er angitt som tynne skiver fersk/lettsaltet sideflesk (bacon), «smultgryte» som frityrsteking. Vinløv kan utelates om det ikke er tilgjengelig.

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Frequently asked questions

How long should the quail be fried?
15–20 minutes in warm butter. Baste them often with warm butter during frying.
How are the birds prepared before frying?
They are plucked, cleaned and trussed, brushed with warm butter, the breast covered with vine leaf and thin slices of pork tied around with string.
What is served with them?
The quail are arranged on slices of white bread fried in lard or butter, placed on a warm platter surrounded by cress, and bread sauce is served alongside. If the pork is not removed, the birds are brushed with warm jus.
How do you recognize good quail?
According to Schønberg Erken's Stor kokebok (1914, p. 329), the quail should be fat, with white and firm fat. They can also be cooked in a cocotte or steamed in veal broth.

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