You’ll need
¼ cup olive oil
6 figs
Buttered rice
100 gm butter, coarsely chopped
115 gmvermicelli, broken into 4cm lengths
400 gm basmati rice
Baharat spice mix
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 small cinnamon stick, roughly chopped
½ tsp whole cloves
½ tspground allspice
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp cardamom pods
½ nutmeg, finely grated
Method
- 01 For buttered rice, melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add vermicelli and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until golden brown. Add rice, 1 tsp salt and 1 litre water and stir to combine. Cover and bring to the boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 12 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed. Fluff up the rice with a fork.
- 02 For baharat spice mix, grind all the spices in a spice grinder or with a mortar to a fine powder. Store in an airtight container for up to 8 weeks.
- 03 Preheat oven to 220C. Place quail flesh-side up on a tray and pat dry with paper towels, then turn and season skin with sea salt and baharat. Heat oil in a large ovenproof frying pan over high heat, add quail skin-side up and fry for 1 minute, then transfer to the oven and cook until golden brown (about 15 minutes). Serve with rice and torn figs.
(Gourmet Traveller, 2012)