Fire Roasted Glazed Quail
Whole quail hung over coals and brushed with a citrus glaze until the skin tightens.
- calories
- 520
- weight
- 9 oz
- cal / oz
- 58
- protein
- 42 g
- serves
- 4, scales
- prep
- 20 min
- cook
- 60 min
- total time
- 80 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Dairy free
- Gluten free
- Nut free
- Real dishes
- Pre-mix at home
- Needs a cooler
- Actual cooking
Ingredients
| Whole quail | 8 birds | plucked, not skinned; skin is what holds the glaze |
|---|---|---|
| Butcher's twine | 1 roll | long tag ends for hanging |
| Orange juice | 1 cup | shelf-stable carton or fresh squeezed |
| Honey | 1/3 cup | |
| Soy sauce | 1/4 cup | tamari if you need it gluten-free |
| Garlic | 3 cloves, minced | |
| Olive oil | 2 tbsp | |
| Salt and coarse black pepper | to taste | |
| Red pepper flakes | 1 tsp | optional |
Method
- Build a fire early and let it burn down to a deep bed of coals. Flames will scorch the glaze before the birds cook through.
- Rig a frame over the coals: two forked stakes and a green branch or a length of rebar works. It needs to hold weight and not burn.
- Truss each quail with twine, wings and legs tight to the body, and leave a long tag end on each bird for hanging.
- Simmer the juice, honey, soy sauce, garlic, oil, and pepper flakes in a small pot at the fire edge until it thickens enough to coat a spoon. Ten minutes or so.
- Salt and pepper the birds and hang them from the frame so they sit roughly a foot above the coals. Give them a spin every few minutes.
- Brush glaze on every ten minutes. Stop glazing for the last stretch so the sugar sets instead of burning.
- Roast about an hour, adjusting height as the coals fade. Thigh juices should run clear and the breast should read 165F.
- Cut the twine and eat them with your hands.
Frying quail is fine at a stove and miserable at a fire ring for a crowd. Hanging the birds over coals solves the problem: they cook from all sides at once, drip into the fire instead of into a pan, and you can run eight of them at a time with nothing but twine and a frame.
The glaze is the part that needs discipline. Sugar over a coal bed burns fast, so keep the birds high, keep the flames down, and quit brushing before the last ten minutes. The twine also has a job beyond hanging: a trussed bird holds a compact shape and cooks evenly instead of drying out its wings while the breast is still raw.
Packing
Quail travel frozen in the cooler and thaw on the drive. Mix the glaze ingredients into a screw-top jar at home so camp is one pour, one simmer. Bring twine and a knife you can cut it with.
Variations
- Swap the orange for a mix of lime and pineapple juice for a sharper glaze.
- No hanging frame: lay the birds on a grill grate over the coals and turn them every five minutes.
- Doves work the same way and cook faster, closer to forty minutes.
https://realtree.com/recipe/timber-2-table/fire-roasted-glazed-quail