Scotch egg

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A Scotch egg consists of a hard-boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat, coated in bread crumbs and baked or deep-fried.

Video Scotch egg

Origin

There are a number of different theories about the origins and etymology of Scotch eggs. The London department store Fortnum & Mason claims to have invented Scotch eggs in 1738. According to Culinary Delights of Yorkshire, they originated in Whitby, Yorkshire, England, in the 19th century, and were originally covered in fish paste rather than sausage meat. They were supposedly named after William J. Scott & Sons, a well-known eatery which sold them. It has also been suggested that they were originally called "scorch" eggs, as they were cooked over an open flame. Other writers have noted similarities to a Mughlai dish called nargisi kofta ("Narcissus meatballs") and an Algerian dish.

The earliest printed recipe appears in the 1809 edition of Maria Rundell's A New System of Domestic Cookery. Rundell, as well as other 19th-century authors, served them hot with gravy.

Maps Scotch egg

Serving

Scotch eggs are a common picnic food. In the United Kingdom packaged Scotch eggs are available in supermarkets, corner shops and motorway service stations. Miniature versions are also widely available, sold as "mini scotch eggs" "savoury eggs", "picnic eggs", "party eggs", "snack eggs", "egg bites" or similar. These contain chopped egg or a quail's egg, rather than a whole chicken egg, and sometimes contain mayonnaise or chopped bacon.

In the United States, many "British-style" pubs and eateries serve Scotch eggs, usually served hot with dipping sauces such as ranch dressing, hot sauce, or hot mustard sauce. At the Minnesota State Fair Scotch eggs are served on a stick. Scotch eggs are available at most Renaissance Festivals across the USA.

In the Netherlands and Belgium, Scotch eggs may also be called vogelnestje ("little bird's nest"), because they contain an egg, or eierbal ("eggball").

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Regional variations

Several local variations exist. The Manchester Egg uses a pickled egg wrapped in a mixture of pork meat and Lancashire black pudding, and the Worcester Egg uses an egg pickled in Worcestershire sauce and clad in a mixture of local sausage meat and white pudding.

In the Netherlands a similar snack item called an eierbal (literally "egg ball") is served hot, mostly in the northern and eastern regions of the country.