Poached Quail - cooking recipe

Ingredients

4 quail
1/4 cup fresh ginger, sliced, 10cm piece
5 star anise
7 green onions
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 cup tamari soy sauce
1/2 cup Chinese wine, 125mil
1 bunch of small english spinach
270 g somen noodles (or noodles of your choice)

Preparation

Stuff each quail with a green onion and a slice of ginger. Place quail in a tight fitting saucepan, add the remaining ginger, green onion, star anise, brown sugar, soy sauce and Chinese wine. Then cover with water, place a plate on top[ to keep quail submerged. Bring to boil on medium heat and boil for 1 1/2 minutes. Turn off and cover with a tight fitting lid and leave for about 4 hours to cook. Then refrigerate overnight to allow flavours to develop.
Drain Quail - Reserve Broth.
Pull meat and skin off quail - try and keep the tiny legs and thighs together - more for aesthetic purposes than anything else.
Re-heat Broth to bubbling.
In a separate saucepan bring water to boil and add enough noodles for four people. Boil for 2 minutes. Best not to drain - just take noodles from water and place into 4 x separate bowls. Add quall meat - Add a small handful of spinach, approx 8 leaves per bowl or more if you prefer - then pour over bubbling broth.
Preparation time does not include refrigeration overnight.