Pickled quail eggs with wild fennel.

Good morning !  My first recipe for you.

Ingredients: 
12 free range quail eggs
1 hand full off wild Fennel (roughly chopped)
3 garlic cloves
1 bay leaf
6 peppercorns
1 tsp yellow mustard seeds
2 cloves
Maldon sea salt (Just a pinch)
175ml of white wine vinegar or enough to cover the eggs 



First lets boil the eggs - place your eggs in a pan, cover with cold water and a splash of vinegar. (This helps soften the shells and makes peeling them easier). Bring to boil and let the eggs simmer for 3 minutes.  Take the eggs out and place them in ice cold water, and leave till they're cold. At this point we will make are pickle liquid.
 

Add the rest of the ingredients (apart from the fennel) to a pan and bring to boil. Leave this till cool and roughly chop your wild fennel.

Peel your eggs - I gently break the shell by tapping the egg on the work top, then start to peel from the rounded end first.  Once they are all done wash off any excess shell.

Place your eggs and fennel in a kilner jar and cover with the cooled liquid. 

                 Keep in the fridge and eat after 24hrs.  Yum !

Wild Fennel

Habitat- Roadsides and waste land
Season- Books say spring summer but I picked mine last week

Fennel spends a lot of time hanging around sea side car parks and other less then pristine locations.