How to make quails with Chinese sausage stuffing, not your average game dish

This is a great dinner party dish that will surprise your guests. They will think they are being served regular roasted quails, but when they cut the birds in half, they will realise that most of the bones have been removed.

I have to warn you that the recipe is a little more involved than usual, because it requires you to tunnel-bone the quails – remove most of the bones without cutting into the skin, leaving the meat and skin as a casing for the stuffing. But although it takes some time, it’s far easier done than said, because many of the quail bones are so thin and delicate, you can just pull them out with your fingers. In fact, a knife is required only at the beginning and end of the process, when you have to cut the tendons holding some of the larger bones in place.

Tunnel-boned quails with Chinese sausage stuffing and quail eggs

The first time you tunnel-bone a quail, it will take a bit of time, but after you have done a few, the subsequent ones will take 10 minutes or less. As you start to pull the bones out, the bird will turn itself inside out; when you finish, just turn it right-side out again. The only bones left in the quail will be the ones in the legs, thigh and wings. There should not be any cuts or tears in the flesh and skin.

I like to wrap the sausage mixture around a hard-boiled quail egg, so when you cut the bird in half to eat it, it’s another surprise. If you want to leave out the quail eggs, you’ll need to double the amount of stuffing, and you’ll have enough for five birds, not four.

You only need four quail eggs to stuff into the birds, but they can be difficult to peel, so I make extra. The leftover boiled eggs make a nice snack, especially if you dip them in a little celery salt.