Quail With Fregola and Olives

Name: Quail With Fregola and Olives
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Cuisine: italian
Ingredients: 12 quails, butterflied; Salt; pepper; 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; 3 tablespoons black-olive tapenade; 5 cups chicken stock, or as needed; 1/2 cup finely chopped fennel; 1 cup finely chopped onion; 3 garlic cloves, minced; 2 tablespoons tomato paste; Leaves from 3 rosemary sprigs; 1/3 cup pitted black Niçoise olives, chopped; 1 pound fregola (toasted pasta)

By Florence Fabricant

Total Time: one hour
Rating: 3(5)
Notes: Read community notes

Veering from quail, you could serve the fregola, scooped from the pot without baking, alongside lamb chops or a roast. As for those figs, they’ll honor a wedge of sharp cheese, with the last of the wine.

Featured in: An Economy Tour of Rhone Syrahs

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings

For the Quail With Fregola and Olives

12quails, butterflied
Salt
pepper
6tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3tablespoons black-olive tapenade
5cups chicken stock, or as needed
½cup finely chopped fennel
1cup finely chopped onion
3garlic cloves, minced
2tablespoons tomato paste
Leaves from 3 rosemary sprigs
⅓cup pitted black Niçoise olives, chopped
1pound fregola (toasted pasta)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

For the Quail With Fregola and Olives
1. Step 1
  Rinse the quails, pat them dry and season with salt and pepper. Heat one tablespoon of the oil over medium-high heat in a large sauté pan. Brown as many quails, skin side down, as will fit in one layer. Remove seared birds to a platter and repeat with the rest. Mix the tapenade with the remaining olive oil and spread on the uncooked side of each quail.
2. Step 2
  Heat the stock to a simmer in a saucepan. Meanwhile, turn the heat in the sauté pan to low, add the fennel, onion and garlic and sauté until soft. Stir in the tomato paste, rosemary and olives. Stir in the fregola. Begin adding warm stock, about ½ cup at a time, stirring while it is absorbed, as if making risotto. After 20 to 25 minutes, the fregola should be al dente. Add any quail juices from the platter and season with salt and pepper.
3. Step 3
  Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spoon the fregola into a large baking dish. On top of it, arrange the quails, skin side up, slightly overlapping. Bake 20 minutes.

Ratings

3 out of 5

5 user ratings

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Cooking Notes

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msms20183 years ago

Amazing flavors. The fregola mixture provides a wonderfully tasty base for the the quail. I doubled the add-ins to make it more of a proper side with the fennel becoming a nice ‘veggie.’ The tapenade which I whipped up in no time in a mini processor with black olives, anchovies, capers , garlic and lemon juice is key. It made the sometimes gamey, sometimes plain tasting quail pop! This is really the best recipe for quail I’ve tried

T in Boston3 years ago

I’m inspired to try fregola, where I think the toasted pasta could a great flavor. In lieu of quails, I’m thinking I could substitute skin on, bone in chicken thighs. I’ll post again after I try this.

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