Scotch Egg – A British Classic with a Twist

Scotch eggs are easy to make and to adapt to your taste in the home kitchen. No need to cross the Atlantic Ocean or go to a British-style pub to try this English classic.

Start with cooking eggs in boiling water for six minutes to reach a soft-boil state. Next, prepare the meat filling. Wrap that around the eggs. Coat the meat-wrapped scotch eggs through a procession of the flour/ egg/ bread crumb mixture. The final step is to deep fry the eggs until golden brown. A soft egg is now dressed with this appealing crispy shell. Wait until you hear the crunch as you bite into it! A classic has been deliciously transformed into an instant hit in my house. This is comfort food at its best and intuitive to make at home. It’s fun for young children to participate in molding the eggs.

I borrowed Huge Fearnley-Whittingstall’s black pudding scotch egg recipe to make it more our own. Too bad I’ve never tasted one before; so many good things are said about this British classic. Much credits to our friends at IHCC in challenging us to look into all kinds of pub favorites. Please visit the cooking group to see more pub grubs.

Black pudding is a type of blood sausage that is not readily available in our area. I substituted black pudding with cooked black bean. For meat, I used a pork sausage instead of minced pork. My twist is to use readily available generic ingredients so that no one would object to try one of these. The method is the same as what Hugh has outlined in the recipe. With this adaptation, I can make scotch eggs, eat them, and serve them to a wider audience. I’d imagine the black pudding scotch eggs, made with black beans, turning into a food culture conversation when you serve them as appetizers at a gathering.

A few quick tips:

• Mix sausage, black bean and herb in a food processor so that it becomes a fine and cohesive paste that adheres well to the surface of the egg.
• Chill the uncooked scotch eggs until firm before deep frying them.
• I prefer using Panko for a light and crispy exterior.

The black filling is a mixture of black bean and sausage

Like a soft-boil egg with a runny yolk

Print Recipe

Black pudding Scotch eggs

Serves: 4-6

Cooking Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

• 400g homemade or good-quality shop-bought black pudding (or cooked black beans)
• 200g fatty minced pork (or any kind of sausage)
• 50g breadcrumbs
• 1 tbsp chopped parsley (or chive)
• 6 medium eggs, at room temperature
• Sunflower oil, for deep-frying
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• For the coating:
• 100g all-purpose flour
• 1–2 medium eggs
• 200g coarse breadcrumbs (or panko)

Instructions

1

Put the black pudding, minced pork, breadcrumbs and parsley into a large bowl and mix until evenly combined, seasoning well with salt and pepper. Divide the mixture into 12 even-sized balls.

2

Bring a pan of water to the boil, add the 6 eggs and cook for 6 minutes, which should give you a soft-set yolk. Drain the eggs and run them under the cold tap until cool enough to handle. Carefully shell them.

3

For the coating, set out three bowls. Put the flour into one bowl and season it with salt and pepper. Break an egg into the next and beat it lightly. Put the coarse breadcrumbs into the third bowl.

4

Take two of the black pudding balls and flatten them out to rough discs, about 3 inch in diameter. Place one disc in the palm of your hand, set a boiled egg in the middle, then top with the second disc. Mould the black pudding around the egg, sealing the joins well. Repeat with the remaining black pudding and eggs.

5

Coat each Scotch egg with seasoned flour. Next, dip it in the beaten egg (lightly beat in another egg if you need to) and finally roll it in the breadcrumbs. Chill the eggs until you’re ready to cook them.

6

Heat a 3-4 inch depth of oil in a deep pan to 350°F, or until hot enough to turn a few breadcrumbs golden in 30–40 seconds and air bubbles start to rise to the surface. Cook 2 or 3 eggs at a time. Lower them into the oil and fry for 6–8 minutes, turning regularly until golden and crisp. Drain on kitchen paper and leave to stand for 5–10 minutes before tucking in.

Notes

Recipe from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's The River Cottage site. My substitutions are in brackets. Use about 300 grams of black beans; they are heavier.