Recipes

Chorizo stuffed ballottine of Quail with soft Parmesan Polenta

Chorizo stuffed ballottine of Quail with soft Parmesan Polenta

THIS week I’m cooking up a classic French ballottine — a traditional dish of a stuffed and rolled joint of meat or whole boned bird. Budding chefs, don’t be put off by the description, it can be prepared within minutes and the result — pretty impressive.

Although small birds, quails are perfect for the ballotine. I first tried quail in Spain, cooked over hot coals and deliciously tender. I was hooked from there and often prepare it at Maze Grill — it is very popular with our customers.

I recommend spatchcock quails or butterflied quail for a unique twist. Your local butcher should stock these, plus a small cooking chorizo sausage for the stuffing. The chorizo you are looking for has not been hung or aged, as we want the soft meat and spices to make the stuffing for our ballottine.

Parmesan polenta is a perfect match with the spices of the chorizo and subtle game flavors of the quail. Polenta is a finely ground cornmeal and has been a staple in the Italian kitchen for centuries. In fact, a bonus of this dish is any left overs can be spread in a lined baking tray and placed in the fridge. Once chilled the polenta can be sliced, crumbled into salads or chargrilled with lamb cutlets with pesto for a tasty combination.

But back to this week’s dish:

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Chorizo stuffed ballottine of Quail with soft Parmesan Polenta

Recipe rating: 5.0 from 1 votes
Recipe by Chris Arkadieff Course: Lifestyle, Recipes
Servings

4

servings
Prep time

30

minutes
Cooking time

40

minutes

Ingredients

  • For The Ballottine

  • 2 quails with bones removed

  • 2 chorizo sausage

  • ½cup of steamed spinach

  • Salt and pepper

  • For The Parmesan Polenta

  • 1 cup of polenta

  • 1 cup of water

  • 2 cups of milk

  • 1 shallot

  • 2sprigs of thyme

  • 1 1 bay leaf

  • 1 tsp salt

  • 3 tsp butter

  • ¼cup grated Parmesan

Directions

  • For The Ballottine
  • Turn your oven on to 180 degrees.
  • Using a sharp knife slice the sausage casing of the chorizo and place into a bowl. Mix the chorizo with a folk to form a smooth paste and set aside.
  • Lay out a 40cm square of cling film on a cutting board and place the quail skin side down. Season lightly with pepper then spread the chorizo mousse over the quail flesh leaving a small edge all the way around. Finish the filling by laying two teaspoons of spinach over the mousse.
  • Take the bottom edge of the clingfilm and lift and roll the quail away from you into a sausage shape. Roll the bird as tight as you can, trying to avoid any catching from the clingfilm. Tie off the ends and wrap in tin foil before placing in the oven for 12 minutes.
  • For The Parmesan Polenta

  • Take a large, heavy based saucepan; add the water, milk, shallots, thyme, salt and pepper.
    Bring to a slow boil and slowly add the polenta whilst whisking constantly.

  • Lower the heat and bring to a slow simmer, stirring with a wooden spoon frequently. If the polenta becomes too lumpy and thick add more water, cook for 20 minutes or until the grains are soft.
  • Add the butter and stir then add the Parmesan cheese and mix well. Cover the dish with cling film and place it in a warm part of the stove, allowing the dish to rest before serving.

  • To Assemble

  • Take a small frying pan and place on a medium heat with a drop of vegetable oil.
  • Place the ballotine in the pan and lightly pan fry for 2 minutes, and then place in a baking tray and bake in the oven for a further 8 minutes.

  • Remove and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
    Meanwhile take you plates and place a serving spoon of polenta in the middle of the dish. If the polenta is too stiff, whisk in a ½ cup of warm milk.

  • Warm up the remaining steamed spinach and place in the centre of the polenta.
    Remove the foil and clingfilm from the ballottine and carefully slice into three, placing on top of the polenta and spinach.

Enjoy.

Chris Arkadieff

Chris Arkadieff was born and raised in Australia where he gathered his first cooking experiences and won an Ansett “Best Apprentice Chef of the Year ” award. He was cooking on the exclusive Hayman Island in Australia, voted number two resort in the world, later he worked in Italy and did two stages in New York. He moved to London in 1999 to start working with Gordon Ramsay Group. After working first as sous chef and then head chef in London, he was in 2014 sent to Hong Kong to become the head chef for Gordon Ramsay’s group there. He is now head chef of the Strand Dining Rooms. He is also chef contributor to one of Prague’s leading food specialists Roman Vanek who wrote also a best selling cook book.

Published by
Chris Arkadieff
Tags: Australians in LondonChris ArkChris's Kitchenfood & wineMaze Grillrecipes
27 September 2021 2:11 PM