18 Nebraskaland • November 2022
By Jenny Nguyen-Wheatley
SMOKED QUAIL
Servings: 4
Prep Time: 8-24 hours
Cooking Time: 1 hour
Ingredients:
•
8 whole quail, skin on
•
2 lemons, cut in half
Yogurt Marinade
•
8 ounces of plain Greek yogurt
•
8 cloves of garlic, minced
•
2 teaspoons of dried oregano
•
1 teaspoon of dried basil
•
Grated zest of 1 lemon
•
Juice of 1 lemon
•
1 tablespoon of olive oil
•
1½ teaspoons of kosher salt,
plus extra
Basting Sauce
•
¼ cup of olive oil
•
½ teaspoon of dried oregano
•
½ teaspoon of Hungarian
paprika
•
½ teaspoon of dried basil
•
¼ teaspoon of garlic powder
1. With kitchen shears, remove
the backbone from each quail. Turn
them breast-side up and flatten with
the palm of your hand to break the
wishbone, thus spatchcocking them.
This preparation will allow the quail
to sit flat on the smoker grates and
help them cook evenly.
2. In a bowl, combine marinade
ingredients. Transfer spatchcocked
birds to a zip-top bag and pour in
the marinade. Massage the bag
to evenly distribute the marinade
and refrigerate for at least 8 hours
but no longer than 24. Flip the bag
occasionally. Take the quail out
of the refrigerator 1 hour prior to
cooking.
3. Preheat smoker to 275°
Fahrenheit. Meanwhile, brush excess
yogurt marinade off each quail and
lay them on a cookie sheet or large
plate. Sprinkle a small amount of salt
over the quail.
In a small saucepan, combine the
basting sauce ingredients and heat
until warmed through.
4. When your smoker is ready,
brush each quail with the basting
sauce. Lay the birds onto the smoker
along with 2 halved lemons, close
the lid and smoke for 1 hour at 275°.
After the hour and before taking
the birds off the smoker, baste them
again with leftover sauce. Serve
immediately with smoked lemons on
the side.
IN THE FIELD
Marinated quail smoked with lemon halves. JENNY NGUYEN-WHEATLEY, NEBRASKALAND
