How to make Scotch Eggs

In this Instructable, we're going to learn how to make Scotch Eggs. This little delicacy was made out of necessity in the Middle Ages by Scottish farmers and shepherds as a means of taking food out to the fields without having to return home for lunch. It was a portable means of having nourishment on the go, so to speak. Designed to be wrapped up in a napkin and put in your pocket or pouch, this snack, along with a small loaf of bread and something to drink, has now become a favorite pub meal, and while it looks extremely complicated when you first eat one, they are incredibly easy to make!

Step 1 Ingredients

6 Hard boiled eggs, cooled and peeled. (Keep submerged in a bowl of water in the fridge)
1 pound tube sausage. (Use a good quality sausage with sage added to it. I prefer Jimmy Dean sage sausage. )
2 eggs
1 Tbl water
Salt
1 cup crushed bread crumbs

Good so far?

Comments

[fuzzyeagles]

how well do you think this would hold up if i were to skip the bread crumbs and bake them? i see you told pard the texture would be all wrong, and im ok with that. i was just wondering if it would be likely to fall appart?

[oilitright]

I tried this with Panko bread crumbs as the only other ones I had were store bought Italian flavored and that didn't sound good to me. I put season salt and mccormick pepper medley in the crumbs. I'm thinking they were mighty good. Also when I handle sausage I wear gloves.

[nhthom]

How long do you place the sausage wrapped eggs in the freezer and what is the purpose?

[lancer525]

I usually put them in the freezer for about 7-10 minutes or so, or however long it takes me to get set up for the next step. Beating the 2 eggs, fixing the bread crumbs (I normally use store-bought bread crumbs, but I like the idea of mashing up flavoured croutons) and getting the oil going in the pan. Those things usually take around ten minutes.
The reason you put the sausage-wrapped eggs in the freezer is to let the sausage "set" around the eggs. The heat of your hands will warm it up and make it loose and "squishy" which you don't want. You want them to be firm and solid, but not frozen. If you can poke the sausage wrapper around the egg, and leave a big indentation, the sausage is too soft to work with. If it's frozen, you've gone far too long. No more than 10-12 minutes.

Hope that helps!

[RavingMadStudios]

Nice one. I love Scotch Eggs, but they're not exactly easy to find in The Hellmouth, GA. Thanks for posting this!

Next, could you post one for haggis?

[lancer525]

Raving, I feel for you. I used to live in Disgusta, Ga. If there is a bright center of the Universe, this is one of the cities farthest from it. But, there's this nifty little British Pub across the river, and the guy who owns it is a Brit expat. He makes the best eggs I've ever had, because he makes his own sausage... Thank you for the kind comment. Oh, and I'm not Scottish, so I can't imagine eating (much less making) Haggis... Sorry about that!

[mhodge2]

Hey, I was in Disgusta too and the name of that pub is the Heidelberg. That's where I got my first one years ago. Thanks for the recipe. Will be making them again tomorrow!!

[lancer525]

MHodge: Actually, it's called "The Highlander" and the owner is Dave. If you get there early enough in the evening (say around 9) he should have some real Bangers & Mash. If he's still making the bangers. Right!

[RavingMadStudios]

I wish we had a pub. We have 100 different places to get buffalo wings, and not one single place to get a scotch egg or bangers & mash, and the only fish & chips I ever see involves catfish. It's not remotely the same.
Oh well, enough complaining, Thanks again for the great work, and Give Haggis A Chance (It's like eating a hot dog at the ballpark. The trick is to not think too much about what's in it).

[jaseinatl]

Just wanted to say that I followed your instructions and changed a couple of things and my Scotch Eggs came out great thanks to you. In case anyone was interested, I used garlic/butter flavored croutons to add to my breading along with some parsley and basil flakes for the first coat. The second coat, I used the crushed croutons with breadcrumbs and left out the flakes. I also used a Fry Baby (kinda like a Fry Daddy, only smaller) and found that 10 minutes was a good amount of time to ensure that the sausage cooked all the way through. My first egg was about halfway done, but I stuck it in the oven at 375 for about 20 minutes and it cooked the meat to perfection. I can't wait until morning to try them cold/reheated. I will definitely be making these often. Thanks again for sharing your instructable.

[samorris]

My husband and I just attended the Longspeak Scottish-Irish Festival in Estes Park, Colorado this past weekend ( Sept 9, 10 & 11, 2011) and came across the Scotch Eggs. They were good but a bit pricy (fair food prices). I can't wait to make them at home now and I do have a cast iron pan to make them in. Thank you for the recipe and pictures.

[Hiroak]

I just got back from Scotland and didn’t see these anywhere but then I was focused more on beer and food. These look great and will be served at my BBQ this weekend wrapped in some Moose Sausage.

[harumania]

They're actually a dish that was originally inspired by a Mongolian food by a British Department Store in the 1700's... though why they're called 'Scotch' Eggs is still something I don't understand.

[lancer525]

Cliff Claven to the rescue...

They're called "Scotch Eggs'' because they were made by Scottish farmers in the 17th century... Duh.

[harumania]

But all the research I've ever done on it has pointed to the British Department Store as the origin of the dish.

Heck, even a British Cartoonist has made a short about how silly the idea of the eggs being called 'scotch' is ( http://www.weebls-stuff.com/songs/Scotch+Egg/ ).

[lancer525]

You don't have anything constructive to add, so you want to quibble over the name? Why don't we call them Martian Eggs, or Covered Eggs, or something silly like that? Why criticize the name? I just don't get the point of your post... Would you rather I removed the entire Instructable? Would that make you happy?

[Wyra]

harumania is absolutely right they were started by Fortnum and Mason, a department store, just for the sake of clarity and history but I have to say you are extremely rude lancer525. S/He wasnt trying to "quibble" over the name but sharing notes. If you're going to start instructive pages it would best suit you to add a bit of maturity and not lash out like a toddler.

[harumania]

I... wasn't quibbling just sharing the information I found about the name of a dish that was made in one country and named after another.

And my post was constructive if only adding to the mystery of the scotch egg. The original poster spoke of not seeing scotch eggs in scotland, and I shared the info I found on the subject of their origin (which, from what I found, is not actually Scotland).

I apologize if it seemed like I was trying to cause trouble, I honestly wasn't. If anything your less than friendly '...duh.' you added to your original post was where the childishness began.

Anywho, I really thought my second post there was very clearly a joke-y one since I linked to just about one of the goofiest flashes on the interent.

[honeylocs]

@harumania, I found your input interesting. Sometimes, though, if people feel challenged, they will strike out at you and try to discredit you due to their own self-esteem issues.

@lancer525, thanks for posting this recipe.

[lancer525]

So how was Scotland, laddie? 

Please, by all means, let us all know how you made, and more importantly, how your guests enjoyed this neat little treat!!

[eetzel]

now put it on a stick and enter it into the food on a stick contest!

[gibsonav]

 my wife makes these and I hadn't heard of them before her but I LOVE them now. she doesn't do the bread crumb thing and she mixes turkey and pork sausage (yes, Jimmie Dean). she pan frys them for a bit then bakes them in the oven to be sure. we quarter them and (sometimes) share them with my fellow geeks at work. they're now a required meal if we do a pot luck ;)

[weavergirl]

 Dearest Lancer525!  
A vegetarian chiming in here... I made these with your incredible instructable and Vegan sausage -- Gimme Lean.  I had a blast! (notice the Newcastle) and they were well received the next day cold.  The following day we paired them with a Scottish Ale called Wee Heavy.   Thanks for all the fun!
--weavergirl

[lancer525]

Well, gosh, they're not meant to be vegetarian, but I sure am glad that you found a way to make and enjoy this great dish! Yes, they're superb the next day, served cold... And I'm glad you found that out. Thank you!!

[weavergirl]

 I wasn't able to post a photo, so I changed my profile to the Scotch Eggs pic!

[mikecatatonic]

And the life expectancy of Scottish farmers from the Middle Ages goes to show how this dish can nourish your arteries... try tofu

[odiekokee]

to mike catatonic.... ohh grow up. now we know why you're catatonic....malnutrition.  That is entirely useless to the Instructable and world. 

To the Instructable Author: Awesome job, we will be trying this very soon. 

[lancer525]

Thanks, Okie! I hope you enjoy them!

[juancsequeira]

Why do all vegetarians think they are so high and mighty that everyone else? Does not eating meat make you better than everyone else? I respect your personal choices and don’t question or degrade them, why do you think you have the right to do it to me? You took a choice to not eat meat; I took one to eat meat, why is yours correct and mine being mocked?

[lancer525]

My grandmother always said that if you had nothing nice to say, you shouldn't say anything at all.

Anyone with any education whatsoever knows that the life expectancy in the middle ages was half to a third of what it is today. So, perhaps you're just being contrary. And unnecessarily off-point. 

[elmarco38]

I agree with Lancer525, If you make a comment try making it constructive instead of negative.

[incorrigible packrat]

I would imagine that very few Scottish farmers in the Middle Ages died from heart disease, due to the simple fact that they didn't live long enough.

Most would have died from injury, infection (or English persecution) long before reaching the age where cardiovascular disease is a significant health risk.

[juancsequeira]

Hey, just tried this myself, it looked so good I had to do it for dinner, it taste incredible!!! I only changed it by using seasoned bread crumbs, gave it that extra kick!!! You are a god!!! Thanks man!

[redhedinsanity]

This is awesome, I've been wanting to try making these for a while!

Where's the HP sauce? :)

[Pard]

Figure I'd try this, they look AMAZING, but is the bread needed? See, besides the bread this fits in very nicely with my anti-carb. diet.

[lancer525]

The bread crumbs are necessary to keep the outside "skin" of the sausage from burning, and to add the proper texture to the dish. Considering the very tiny amount of carb you're going to get from the less than one teaspoon of crumbs on each egg, I'd think that you're worrying about nothing. The quickest analogy I can think of would be cooking a whole turkey over a single candle. Does the candle put out heat? Well, yes it does. But the total amount of heat is so negligible that it may as well not even be there. Same with the bread crumbs in this recipe. They're necessary, and nothing to be concerned over.

[djcssp]

Then you could take the yolk out mix it with mustard and mayonnaise with a pinch of cayenne pepper and make it into a Scotch Devilled egg! YUM!

[harborg]

I like the fact that there is NewCastle Brown Ale .. they are amazing and makes everything taste good ;)

[XOIIO]

They look like cadbury chocolate eggs

[BeanGolem]

 I think I'll try this one! Except I'm going to use almond flour instead of bread crumbs because I don't eat grains...

I'll let you know how it goes!