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Pottages with Mushrooms "Pottages" is Deriso speak for partridges, or, more c0mmonly known as quail. The best way to cook quail is to fry them like chicken. My wife and children complained about how difficult it was to eat the little wings, so I came up with a new way to prepare this definitely gourmet dish. The pottages will taste best if they have just been shot, behind the point of a lemon short-haired pointer. Failing that, buy some frozen ones and thaw them before cooking. If it bothers you to eat little-bitty birds then use six boneless, skinless fresh chicken breasts in place of the pottages. I hope my ancestors never find out I have profaned the good name of pottages every where by cooking them in a mushroom sauce. I'm sorry, y'all. You will need: 10 - fresh or thawed whole quail 1 - stick of salted butter 8 - ounces of dried wild mushrooms 3 - green onions, chopped 2 - cans of Golden Mushroom soup 6 - ounces of very dry sherry (don't even think about using cooking sherry) 1/2 - cup of chopped, toasted almonds Cooking instructions: Melt the butter in a large cast iron skillet; Brown the quail or chicken breasts in the butter over medium heat, careful to avoid burning the butter; Remove the browned quail and set aside; Sauté the mushrooms and onions in the butter for about four or five minutes; Place the quail or chicken breasts back into the skillet, resting on top of the mushrooms and onions; Spoon both cans of soup concentrate in "amongst" the birds, being careful to get very little of the soup on the birds; Bring to a slow boil and simmer covered for around thirty minutes, or until the birds are cooked through; Pour a little more than a generous shot glass of the dry sherry into the sauce, stirring the sherry into the sauce; Slowly sip on the remaining two shot glasses of dry sherry as the dish finishes cooking and mixing the flavors, about ten minutes, covered; Place the birds on a serving dish and ladle the rich mushroom sauce into a gravy boat. Serve the birds on mounds of brown rice, generously ladling the sauce onto the birds and rice. Sprinkle chopped almonds over the bird. Small English peas and fresh buttermilk biscuits will round out this absolutely delicious wild game dish. Don't worry about the calories and fat from the butter; the brown rice qualifies this as a health-food type dish. If you made and enjoyed this recipe, please let us know how much by going to our Visitor's Page and sharing your comments.
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