Butter-roasted quail

Take the quails out of the fridge fifteen minutes before cooking. Cold meat seizes when it hits a hot oven and stays grey inside; tempered birds roast evenly with golden skin.

Crush a bay leaf into powder. Mash soft butter with bay-leaf powder, black pepper and salt until you have a uniform pale paste with a strong herbal aroma.

Tuck the second bay leaf inside each cavity. Push half the herb butter under the breast skin without tearing. Massage the rest over the entire surface, especially into the leg joints.

Heat the ghee in an oven-safe skillet over high heat. Sear the quails breast-side down two minutes until deep gold, flip and sear two minutes more. The seared crust seals the juices.

Transfer the skillet to a two-hundred-and-twenty-degree oven for fifteen minutes. The internal temperature should reach seventy-two degrees at the thickest part of the thigh.

Rest the quails five minutes on a warm plate, tented with foil. Pour the pan juices over the top. Serve on toasted whole bread that catches every drop, with the resting time the meat softens.