Scottish Eggs

Scottish Eggs

Items Needed

• 20-24 Quail Eggs - can substitute chicken eggs but will have to compensate for their size
• 1lb package of Sausage 
• Bread Crumbs of your choice (I use Italian seasoned bread crumbs and crushed Ritz crackers - about 2 parts breadcrumbs for 1 part crushed crackers)
• 2 Medium Chicken Eggs
• Salt
• Pepper
• Oil (for frying)
• Metal Tongues (used to remove Scottish eggs from fryer oil) 

First hard boil the quail eggs

• cover eggs completely with cool water. make sure there is about an inch or more of water covering all the eggs. add about 2 tablespoons of cooking oil to water to make peeling easier.
• bring water in pan to a rolling boil.
• turn off water and allow to cool for about 5 min.
• move pan to sink and run cold water directly into pan of hot water/eggs until eggs are cool when held.

Peel Eggs

• hit both the large/rounded end and the pointy/small end on a hard surface.  
• roll egg around on hard surface so shell is shattered all over egg.
• start peeling on small/pointy end by pinching egg shell and pulling (this is the hardest part in regards to peeling quail eggs). be sure you get some of the membrane with the shell and once you start pulling the shell should come off with the membrane in one solid ribbon like piece. 
• place eggs on a clean dry surface to allow them to dry completely. this will make it easier to apply the sausage. 

Prepare Fryer and Egg Covering

• turn on frier or heat oil in a large pan (will need to be about 4-5 inches deep) to about  350 degrees F.
• put the crumb mix in a bowl and set aside.
• put the contents of the 2 chicken eggs into a bowl with about 1/4  cup water along with salt and pepper (amount depends on taste preference).

   

Prepare Scottish Egg

• cover each egg with sausage.
• role in the crumb mix.
• role in the liquid egg mix.
• role again in the crumb mix.
• prepare Scottish eggs to be fried.   

  

Fry the Scottish Eggs

• once oil is heated put prepared Scottish eggs into oil. be sure that they are completely submerged.
• cook for 4-6 minutes or until they are golden brown.
• allow oil to drip from them then place on a paper towel.

Enjoy Now or Later

• great served with sautéed vegetables, biscuits, pancakes, waffles, or any other sides of your choice. 
• if you would like to prepare these ahead of time or for an easy feature meal they are great as leftovers either cold or reheated in the oven/toaster oven - avoid microwave in order to preserve taste and texture.  

Photos used are the property of Midnight Acres and if you would like permission to use any of them please contact the owner Ashley Knight to request it.

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Quick and Easy Pickled/Beet Eggs

Quick and Easy Pickled/Beet Eggs

We, like many people these days, do not like to let things go to waste. One of the things that us Americans waste more than anything else is food and food products. If you enjoy pickled beets but never know what to do with the juice OR you usually dump it down the sink STOP! I have a wonderful solution to help you get more out of that juice and the money you have spent on either making it or buying it.

We like to use quail eggs when making our pickled beet eggs. The reason is because these eggs are much richer and creamier in texture than standard chicken eggs. They also take up the flavor and color much better than chicken eggs do but if you do not have quail eggs available to you then good quality free range chicken eggs will do as well. 

Items used:

12 quail eggs

1 pint glass jar with a lid (larger jar for chicken eggs)

1/2 jar (16oz) of pickled beets, only juice is needed (we use Aunt Nellie’s pickled beets)

First you need to hard boil the eggs (this works for both standard chicken and quail eggs) 

• cover eggs completely with cool water. make sure there is about an inch or more of water covering all the eggs. add about 2 tablespoons of cooking oil to water to make peeling easier.
• bring water in pan to a rolling boil.
• turn off water and allow to cool for about 5min.
• move pan to sink and run cold water directly into pan of hot water/eggs until eggs are cool when held.   

Next you must peel eggs

• hit both the large/rounded end and the pointy/small end on a hard surface. 
• roll egg around on hard surface so shell is shattered all over egg.
• start peeling on small/pointy end by pinching egg shell and pulling (this is the hardest part in regards to peeling quail eggs). be sure you get some of the membrane with the shell and once you start pulling the shell should come off with the membrane in one solid ribbon like piece. 
• rinse egg off in a bowl of under running water and place in glass jar.       

Then you must add pickled/beet juice

• we like to pour the pickled/beet juice into egg jar over the sink due to risk of spills. pickled/beet juice STAINS not only the eggs in the liquid but everything it touches so try to not get it on your cloths or anything for that mater. also be sure to have a rag or paper towel handy so that you can wipe off the jar after putting its lid on and rinsing it    off in the sink.

Place in fridge and wait: 

(depending on how flavorful you like your eggs to be, not to mention how long you can bare to wait to eat these little morsels of goodness)

• Quail Eggs: 1-7 days depending on your preference in regards to taste 
• Chicken Eggs: 7-10 days depending on your preference  

Day 1                                

Day 2   

  

                                                      

Day 3         

Day 4

Day 5        

Day 6              

Day 7     

Enjoy your Pickled/Beet eggs alone, with crackers, on a sandwich, in a salad, or with pickled beet slices (our personal favorite)

Photos pictured here are the property of Midnight Acres Farm, if you would like to use any of these pictures please contact the owner to request use.

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How to Crack a Quail Egg

How to Crack Quail Eggs

I list 3 different techniques on how to do this using 3 different tools

Scissor Technique

1. Tool needed: Scissors, flat/clean surface, bowl(s), and quail egg(s)

1. use scissors to  cut around egg about a 1/4 of an inch from pointy (small) end of  egg. you want to be sure to go all the  way around the egg so there is a clear circle cracked around the shell.
   
2. once the circle is made use the tip of the  scissors to make a puncture in the eggs membrane. this will allow you to put your finger into it and lift the top of the eggs shell off. once the top has been removed dump the eggs contents into a clean bowl or cook pan. discard egg shells and clean work area/tools when finished.
   

Knife Technique

1. Tools needed: Knife, hard/clean surface, bowl(s), and quail egg(s)  

1. place knife on hard surface so that flat side is against hard surface. align egg so that about 1/4 inch of pointy (small) end is hanging over edge of knife. be sure that fingers are not in way of knife blade (this is more dangerous than other 2 ways described so please be very careful not to  hurt  yourself).
   
2. gently but firmly hit egg over blade part of knife until knife has penetrated egg shell completely. this may take a couple hits but does get easier and faster with practice.
   
3. remove egg from knife and pull “cap” off of egg. dump egg contents into bowl or   frying pan and discard egg shells. be sure to clean work area/tools when finished.

Quail Egg Scissor Technique: 

(This is how I prefer to crack my quail eggs due to its ease and quickness, you can buy these scissors from me for $10 or online) 

1. Tools needed: Quail Egg Scissors, bowl(s), and quail egg(s)
1. make sure scissors are open and place pointy (small) end through the hole of the   scissors. make sure the pointed/cutting part of scissors is going to close  underneath the part with the hole in it, this reduces mess and makes opening a little larger.
2. close scissors completely. this will result in the egg being “capped” and the top will be removed as you raise the scissors up off of the egg. i like to have a bowl to put shells in along with set the scissors into while grabbing another egg. this just helps keep the work environment cleaner.  
3. once cap has been removed egg contents can be dumped into a frying pan or bowl. with larger eggs you may have to gently squeeze them in order to get the contents to slide out more easily. discard egg shells and clean work area/tools when finished.

 All images are property of Midnight Acres Farm. If you wish to use any of these images please ask permission by emailing me. Thank you