These recipes are from the 11th annual Skills for Chefs conference which took place on 23-24 June at The Octagon Centre, The University of Sheffield. Serves 4 ·4 whole quail ·8 quail eggs ·100grms chicken mousse(see recipie) ·5 grms thyme leaves ·100mls veal jus ·10 mls truffle oil ·5 mls cabernet sauvignon vinegar ·3 large leeks ·2 large beet root (cooked in port until tender) ·40 grms mixed salad leaves
To make 1. Remove quail breast from the bird making sure to remove all bone and skin also trim the two legs cleaning the “drumb” stick bone to leave a well presented bone. seal the legs in a small pan and cover with the veal jus place in the oven and cook for approximately 25 minutes or until tender. Place the breasts between two layers of cling film and with a heavy pan or meat bat, bat them out so that they are thin place in the fridge until needed. 2. Take the leeks and remove the green tops and the root at the bottom split in half lengthways and separate out the individual leaves, in a pan of salted boiling water place the leeks and cook until you can place a thumb and forefinger through the leek refresh in ice water , Take leek sheets out and dry on a piece of jay cloth removing any membraine from the underneath of the strips. Place two layers of cling film onto a flat bench and layer your leek sheets on top (you will have enough leek sheets to do this process twice to make to separate rolls)spread a fine layer of the chicken mousse across the leeks take your flat breasts from the fridge and layer four of them across the leeks tip to tail, mix your remaining mousse with the thyme leaves and pipe a line of mousse down the center of the laid out quail breasts. 3. Roll the leeks and breasts together to form a cylinder and tie at either end to form a tight roll. Repeat process with the other breasts, poach the rolls in boiling water for twelve minutes refreshing in ice water once done. Remove quail legs from pan and glaze with the left over jus, cut your cooked beetroot into 2 cm discs you require twelve in total. Remove cling film from your quail rolls and cut each roll in to six evenly sized towers. To serve Place your quail on top of the beet root in a line on the middle tower place you legs on your other two towers place your fried quail eggs, with the rest of the jus from the legs add the truffle oil and the vinegar to make a dressing dress your mixed leaves with some of this and drizzle the rest around your quail. Place your leaves in between each quail tower.