The Scotch Egg: Sphere of Goodness...or Heart-Attack-on-a-Plate?
It all makes sense. I mean, if you're going to have eggs and sausage, why not put them together? Thus, the Scotch Egg. According to Wikipedia, this delicacy was invented in London in 1738 by department store Fortnum & Mason. And, don't be fooled, this isn't a breakfast dish, but a picnic food to be eaten cold, alongside salads and pickles. You'll also find them at pubs in the US, and, apparently on a stick at the Minnesota State Fair! And, by the way, it's not too late to sample them--the fair's just a few days away, so buy your plane tickets now!
This photo, from chotda on flickr, actually looks pretty good, but Scotch Eggs I've had in the past have often been a true heart-attack-on-a-plate. One restaurant must have misread the recipe and put the entire pound of sausage around just one egg. Yikes. Here's chotda's nicely-proportioned version (made with Panko, for lightness!):
If the mere idea of sausage-encased eggs has got your taste buds tap dancing, you might want chotda's recipe:
Scotch Eggs
Ingredients:
6 hard-boiled eggs, well chilled
1 pound good-quality sausage meat
1/2 cup flour
1-2 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup Panko
Vegetable oil for frying
Directions:
1. Peel eggs. Divide sausage into six portions.
2. Roll each egg in flour. Press and shape a portion of the sausage around each egg.
3. Dip sausage-wrapped eggs into beaten egg and roll in panko.
4. Heat oil to 350 degrees F. Cook each egg for 4-5 minutes (longer if shallow frying--constantly turn the eggs around for best results) or until sausage is cooked and browned.
--KitchenMaus
TootieLizardTush on September 21, 2008 at 04:58 PM
To the person who asked about the microwave;
These are British, generally baked and then cooled in the fridge. They are served cold with salads or sandwiches on picnics. Therefore you don't reheat them and in England they would be considered disgusting eaten warm.
To the person who inquired what temperature and how long in the oven to initially bake them. It's meat. Virtually any meat is good at 375F for 20 minutes per pound and 20 minutes over from chicken to beef and everything in between. You can use that estimate as a guide for almost any recipe you see. For something this small a good guesstimate would be 20 minutes.
I come from England where Scotch eggs are a virtual staple diet in picnics and on hot summer days. I have never seen them fried although the outer covering does have the crunch of appearing fried so I can see how an American cook trying to replicate the taste may have been confused.
I have to agree with the commenter who expressed difficultly finding good sausage meat in the USA to replicate the taste of these. I've been in the USA 20 years and never found the kind of sausage meat these require. USA sausage meat is too fatty to produce a non congealed scotch egg. I would highly recommend buying pork and grinding it yourself. They are worth the effort.
allison on September 27, 2008 at 05:58 PM
I tried these with corned beef wrapped around the egg instead of sausage and it was pretty good. I definitely could only eat one of these though.
Deborah Dowd on September 28, 2008 at 06:16 AM
I have seen these and wanted to try, but just have not done it. I think I will try with a low-fat sausage and since they are low-carb, they would actually fit in my diet (with moderation of course!)
katie on October 10, 2008 at 12:28 PM
to the person who asked how to microwave them. I wouldnt recomend microwaving them, I havnt tried it for this recipe, but had a boiled egg blow up on me microwaving it to warm up.
jsallison on December 31, 2008 at 09:19 PM
Pour scotch in glass, throw out eggs, drink scotch, repeat.
on February 03, 2009 at 05:26 PM
I love how people say how gross this recipe sounds however I am sure (Except for the vegitatian) most have eaten fried eggs, with sausage (fried) and toast. Which is less healthy then a hard boiled egg and panko bread crumbs. For the vegitarian (not vegan) try tofu meat (like a boca burger) and bake it. Healthier verison use turkey meat instead of sausage and bake instead of fry.
Jason E. on February 04, 2009 at 01:21 PM
@Steafan
Scotland and England are both part of the UK, so maybe there's a correlation there.
Veg on October 28, 2009 at 09:18 PM
I think I've enjoyed reading the above comments even more than finding the recipe. Thanks for the giggles. I was actually looking for a Scotch Egg recipe that I could sub veg. ingredients in and bake. This'll do, thanks!
Barbara on November 01, 2009 at 09:24 PM
OK .... here's the 411 on scotch eggs .... they are indeed originally from Scotland but the UK being all of Scotland, England, Wales, etc people from these countries eat them ... My Mum was Brittish ... and yes they are most wonderful if made correctly with a thin layer of sausage .... not all food is OK for everyone for example I am allergic to soy, or perhaps somebody else couldn't have the pork ... I have made them with turkey sausage you just have to be careful that they aren't too dry at any rate RELAX people and enjoy it or not
Sympathy Gifts on November 20, 2009 at 01:11 PM
Ooh, this looks delicious and dangerous at the same time. Would love to taste it in person so I think I will try your recipe this weekend.