Quail as food facts for kids
Quail are small birds that people around the world enjoy eating. There are two main types: "Old World" quail from places like Europe and Asia, and "New World" quail from the Americas. Many different kinds of quail are eaten, but the Japanese quail is often raised on farms for food today.
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People often eat quail with the bones still in. This is because the bones are small and easy to chew. Plus, the birds themselves are tiny, so removing the bones would be tricky!
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Quail and Safety
Sometimes, quail can eat certain plants, like hemlock, that make their meat unsafe for people to eat. If someone eats quail that have eaten these plants, they can get very sick. This problem has a special name: "coturnism." It's important for quail to eat safe food.
The "Eating Quail Every Day" Myth
There's a fun myth that says you can't eat quail every day for a whole month. People have even made bets about it! But it turns out, some people have actually done it.
This idea might come from an old story found in the Bible. In this story, a group of people got tired of eating the same food every day. They asked for meat, and God gave them quail. But there was a warning: they would eat it for a whole month until they were sick of it. The story says that some people got very sick after eating the quail. This story might be why people think it's impossible to eat quail for a month.
Quail in Cooking
Quail is a popular food in many countries. The common quail used to be a favorite in French cooking. Today, quail raised on farms, like the Japanese quail, are more commonly eaten.
Quail is also a part of many other food traditions, including:
Old Recipes
In the 1800s, people in California had a special recipe called Codornices a la española, which means "Spanish-style quail." To make it, they would stuff the quail with a mix of mushrooms, green onions, parsley, butter, lemon juice, and thyme. Then, they brushed the birds with lard, bread crumbs, and beaten eggs before baking them.
Another old recipe was for a savory pie made with quail. This pie also included salt pork, eggs, and fresh herbs.
Kosher Quail
In some religions, like Judaism, certain foods are considered "kosher," meaning they follow specific rules for eating. Only certain types of quail are considered kosher. For example, the Orthodox Union, a group that checks if food is kosher, says that the Coturnix coturnix is kosher. This is based on a tradition from a religious leader named Rabbi Shlomo Zev Zweigenhaft.
