Grady Spears has three restaurants and has just published his cookbook A Cowboy in the Kitchen. Here he offers an unusual quail dish, for which you can prepare the Cider Adobo in advance.

Ingredients

For the Beer Batter:

• 1 cup club soda
• 1 cup good beer (Shiner Bock preferred)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 4 semi-boned quail, cut into quarters
• 6 cups peanut oil
• 1 cup Cider Adobo (to follow)

For the Cider Adobo:

• 3/4 cup red wine
• 3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup apricot preserves
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon peeled and minced fresh ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 scallion, thinly cut on the diagonal
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves.

Instructions

Prepare the Beer Batter:

Combine the soda, beer, salt and red pepper flakes in a large, stainless steel bowl. Using a whisk, gradually add the flour, blending to avoid lumps. Stick your finger into the batter. If the batter is thick and sticks to your finger, it is ready. Add more flour if the batter seems thin.

Cook the quail:

Heat 2 1/2 inches of oil in a large, heavy skillet to 350 degrees. Dip each piece of quail into the batter and slide it into the oil. Do not crowd pieces of quail.

Cook about 8 to 10 minutes turning once. Remove the quail to a paper towel-lined sheet pan to drain. Drizzle with Cider Adobo.

Prepare the Cider Adobo:

Place the red wine, apple cider vinegar, apricot preserves, honey, brown sugar, minced garlic, ginger, kosher salt, sliced scallion and chopped cilantro leaves in a large, heavy pan and stir well to combine. Place the pan over medium-high heat and bring the mixture to a boil, watching carefully so it does not boil over.

Reduce heat to medium and cook the adobo uncovered stirring occasionally, until reduced by about 50 percent (to 1 cup). This will take about 20 to 25 minutes, and the consistency should be like syrup.

Serve with the quail, or refrigerate for up to 5 days.

Foo Swasdee, a restaurant owner and sauce manufacturer in Austin, Texas, offers a unique and very flavorful appetizer that should be made a few hours before your party or dinner.

Ingredients

•    30 single spinach leaves, fresh, cleaned and dried
•    ¾ cup coconut flakes, unsweetened, toasted
•    1 tablespoon lime, whole, fresh, diced
•    1 tablespoon shallot, diced
•    1 tablespoon garlic, diced
•    1 tablespoon ginger root, peeled and diced
•    ½ cup peanuts, fresh roasted
•    ½ tablespoon Thai chile pepper, fresh, diced
•    4 ounces Satay Thai Roasted Coconut Salsa

Instructions

Place the spinach leaves flat on a serving platter.

Place 2-3 peanuts, one teaspoon of toasted coconut and a few pieces of all other fresh ingredients in the center of each spinach leaf.

To serve, add ½ teaspoon of Satay Thai Roasted Coconut Salsa on top of each spinach leaf; roll the leaf into a ball and eat the whole topped leaf in one bite. This results in an explosion of delicious varied flavors and textures.

This is a variation of a recipe Mike Kerslake developed to use for chicken. Here, he uses pheasant. But any game bird, chicken or a small turkey would work as well. The brine helps keep the meat from drying out when cooking. In the glaze, Kerslake used morita chiles, which are red chipotles that are smoked less that the typical dark brown variety. Note: This recipe requires advance preparation.

This recipe and others can be found in the following article:

Ingredients

For the Brine:

• 1 cup coarse/pickling salt

• 1/2 cup coarse-chopped onion

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

• 1/2 cup maple syrup

• 1 tablespoon peppercorns

• 5 or 6 hot peppers, each cut in half, variety of choice (de arbols suggested)

• 2 bay leaves

• 1 pheasant

• Mild, low-salt or salt-free poultry rub, optional

• Aromatics: Herbs, onions, garlic, apples and/or fresh or dried peppers, optional

• Apple juice or apple cider

For the Glaze:

• 1 cup maple syrup

• 1 tablespoon (about 3 pods) of ground dried red chile

Instructions

For the Brine:

Combine all the brine ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a rolling boil for 5 to10 minutes. Cool the mixture in the refrigerator.
When the brine is cooled to 40 degrees or below, add the pheasant, placing a plate on the top to keep the bird submerged. Allow to brine for 10 to12 hours.

After brining, rinse the bird, pat dry, then place it on a rack over a drip pan in the refrigerator to air-chill for about 3 to 4 hours. Rub with the poultry rub and place the aromatics in the bird’s cavity, if desired.

For the Bird:

Preheat the barbecue to 250 to 275 degrees and set up for indirect cooking (place firebricks on the cooking grid, then position the drip pan and rack with bird, on top of the bricks). Add a small piece of smoking wood if you wish. Suggested: use a 3″ by 3″ piece of pecan. Remember that poultry absorbs smoke like a sponge, so use it sparingly.) Add some apple juice or apple cider to the drip pan if you wish.

Cook for about 1 and a half hours or until breast meat registers 155 degrees Use a spray bottle to spritz apple juice onto the bird every 20 to 30 minutes. At this point, begin to glaze the bird with the warmed-up glaze. Baste once or twice until the breast temperature reads 165 degrees. Remove the bird from the barbecue and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes. Carve the bird and drizzle the remaining glazes over the slices.