Watercress Salad With Pickled Quail Eggs Recipes

Steps:

• Whisk together pickling liquid, mustard, salt, and pepper in a small bowl, then add oils in a slow stream, whisking until emulsified.
• Toss watercress with just enough dressing to coat in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Serve salad with eggs.

Steps:

• Cover beets with cold water by 1 inch in a 3-quart heavy saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer beets, partially covered with lid, until tender, about 40 minutes. Transfer beets to a bowl with a slotted spoon (reserving them for another use), then measure out 2 cups beet cooking liquid, discarding remainder. Bring beet liquid to a boil in a small saucepan along with vinegar, sugar, salt, bay leaves, and cloves, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cool pickling liquid completely, about 1 hour.
• While pickling liquid cools, cover eggs with cold water by 1 inch in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring gently (to help center the yolks in eggs). Reduce heat and gently boil eggs, uncovered and undisturbed, 3 minutes (or 10 minutes for regular eggs). Pour off water and shake pan so eggs hit each other, lightly cracking shells. Cover eggs with cold water and let stand 15 minutes (to stop cooking and facilitate peeling).
• Drain and peel eggs, then transfer to a glass jar or deep bowl. Reserve 2 tablespoons pickling liquid (for watercress salad vinaigrette; recipe precedes) and pour remaining liquid over eggs. Let eggs (quail or regular) pickle, covered, 24 hours.

Steps:

• Combine vinegar, salt, and pepper in a salad bowl. Slowly whisk in oil. Add watercress and toss with vinaigrette to evenly coat. Serve immediately.