Crispy Deep-Fried Quail
Yunnan-style raw-fried quail, with a golden-red hue, crispy outer skin, and savory, tender meat.
Ingredients
live quail
12
ground white pepper
1 g
tomato
200 g
five-spice powder
1 g
potato
200 g
Shaoxing wine
10 g
fine salt
15 g
sweet soy sauce
50 g
MSG
2 g
chicken broth
1000 g
rapeseed oil (about 100 g actually used)
1200 g
Instructions
1
Step 1
Slaughter the quail, let it bleed out, then scald with hot water at 68°C to loosen the feathers and pick them clean, and rinse well. Open the belly to remove the innards. Make a small incision at the chest and pull out the trachea, esophagus, and crop. Trim off the claw tips and rinse thoroughly in cold water. Bend both wings 180 degrees backward from the wrist joint toward the spine. Tuck the head and neck under the left wing's armpit, break the leg bones, and tuck them under the opposite armpit.
2
Step 2
Place a wok over high heat, pour in the chicken broth, and add salt, Shaoxing wine, five-spice powder, ground white pepper, and MSG. Lower the quail in and blanch for 1 minute, then lift out and drain off the broth. While still hot, brush a thin, even layer of sweet soy sauce over the entire surface.
3
Step 3
Peel the potatoes and cut them into fine shreds. Rinse in water to wash away the starch, drain well, and deep-fry in oil at about 40% heat until golden yellow. Arrange the fried potato shreds in the center of a serving plate. Briefly scald the tomatoes in boiling water, peel off the skin, cut them into flower shapes, and arrange them decoratively around the potato shreds.
4
Step 4
Place a wok over high heat, pour in the rapeseed oil, and heat to about 70% hot. Add the quail and deep-fry until they turn a rich golden red, then lift out and drain the oil. Place the quail breast-side up, arranging them in a circle around the bed of potato shreds on the plate.
