Butterflied Quail with an Orange, Cumin and Brown Sugar Glaze

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 250°C (500°F). Line an oven tray with baking paper (saves on cleaning the glaze off later).

Step 2

For the Marinade: Add the extra virgin olive oil, orange juice, brown sugar, crushed garlic, cumin and sea salt to a small bowl and mix well with a small whisk or spoon to combine.

Step 3

Place the butterflied quails into a large glad bag or into a large lasagne dish and pour the marinade over them. Massage the marinade into the quail. This can be done by sealing the bag and massaging the outside of the bag or, use clean or gloved hands to massage the quail in the dish. At this stage, you can cook the quail straight away, or pop them into the refrigerator (cover the dish or place the glad bag onto a plate) for a few hours. I like to bring my quail out of the fridge and leave on the bench for 15 minutes to come to room temperature before cooking.

Step 4

When cooking, place the quail onto the oven tray so they are all flat and skin side down. Reserve the leftover marinade that is left in the bag for basting. Season the quail very lightly with extra salt(only lightly as there is salt in the marinade). Turn them over and season the skin side very lightly again.

Step 5

Place the tray into the preheated oven and cook for 10 minutes. At this stage, take them out of the oven and using a basting brush, baste the skin with the remainder of the marinade. When you put the tray back into the oven, rotate the tray so the quail can all cook as evenly as possible. Cook for a further 5-10 minutes until the skin is nicely coloured and the quail is cooked but still slightly pink (see notes). It only took 5 more minutes in my oven (ie total cook time was 15 mins).Rest the quail for 5 minutes before serving. Serve the quail hot or warm.