Name: Salt & pepper quails with Thai herb & bean salad
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Thai
Ingredients: 4 quails; thumb-size piece ginger roughly chopped; 4 coriander sprigs, roughly chopped; 1 garlic clove roughly chopped; 1 tsp white peppercorns; 2 tbsp vegetable oil plus extra for frying; 2 tsp flour; 1 large red chilli finely shredded; 6 snake beans or a good handful green beans, blanched (cut into lengths if using snake beans) - see tip; ½ tsp lime leaves finely shredded; small handful each coriander, Thai basil and flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked; few mint sprigs, leaves picked; 2 Thai shallots or 2 small shallots, sliced; 1 spring onion thinly sliced on an angle; 1 small red chilli shredded; 2 tbsp fish sauce; 2 tbsp lime juice; 4 tsp palm sugar or soft light brown sugar

Salt & pepper quails with Thai herb & bean salad

4 quails

For the rub

thumb-size piece ginger
roughly chopped
4 coriander
sprigs, roughly chopped
1 garlic clove
roughly chopped

For the paste

1 tsp white peppercorns
2 tbsp vegetable oil
plus extra for frying
2 tsp flour

For the salad

1 large red chilli
finely shredded
6 snake beans
or a good handful green beans, blanched (cut into lengths if using snake beans) - see tip
½ tsp lime leaves
finely shredded
small handful each coriander, Thai basil
and flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked
few mint
sprigs, leaves picked
2 Thai shallots
or 2 small shallots, sliced
1 spring onion
thinly sliced on an angle
1 small red chilli
shredded

For the dressing

2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp lime juice
4 tsp palm sugar
or soft light brown sugar

Method

step 1
Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Put all the rub ingredients in a mortar and use a pestle to grind them together, then rub some inside each quail.
step 2
For the paste, again grind 1 tsp sea salt and the pepper together in a mortar using a pestle, then stir in the oil and flour.
step 3
Heat a little vegetable oil in a heavybased frying pan and carefully brown the quails all over – in batches if you need. Lift into a roasting tin, rub all over with the salt and pepper paste, then roast in the oven for 10-15 mins until golden and cooked to your liking.
step 4
For the salad, pound the dressing ingredients together using a mortar and pestle. Mix all the salad ingredients in a bowl. Just before serving, toss the dressing with the salad and serve alongside the quail and rice.