Mystery ingredient: Quail eggs

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/04/2009 (6043 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

What is it?

The ovum of a small, dumpy game bird belonging to the same family as the partridge. Quail are raised commercially in large flocks for both their meat and their pretty speckled eggs, which were once a rare delicacy.

Look like:

They ought to have chocolate, or malted milk, centres. Small enough to sit on a teaspoon — they’re –about a quarter the size of a chicken egg — with mottled shells of brown and white, though there are also blue quail eggs.

Tastes like: 

Chicken eggs, but with a richer flavour and a higher yolk-to-white ratio. Quail eggs are also higher in cholesterol, although they’re said to have greater nutritional value. As with other edible ova, the quality, richness and depth of flavour can vary depending on the bird’s diet.

Used in:

Quail eggs are a traditional ingredient in Chinese and Japanese cuisines where they’re cooked in a variety of dishes such as soup, stews and desserts. They’ve been popping up in sushi in recent years. In Colombia, they’re less exotic; a single hard-boiled quail egg is a common topping on hot dogs and hamburgers, often held in place with a toothpick. Kwek-kwek, soft-boiled quail eggs dipped in orange-coloured batter and stuck on skewers before being deep-fried, is a popular street food in the Philippines.

Quail eggs can be used in miniaturized versions of standard egg dishes, taking into account, of course, that they cook faster than regular eggs. A soft-boiled quail egg takes three minutes, hard-boiled five.

For an attractive "miniature" salad, cut lettuce or other leaves into small pieces and toss some hard-boiled quail eggs in along with cherry tomatoes and baby sweetcorn.

Found at:

Dong Thai Ltd., 459 Notre Dame Ave.