Better Bar Food: Make Crunchy Thai-Spiced Scotch Eggs
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These are not as time-consuming to make as you might imagine and are infinitely more enjoyable for being homemade. Scotch eggs are the perfect picnic snack or packed lunch.
Quail's eggs could also be used if you wanted to create bite-size canapés; just remember to reduce the quantities of casing (by about a third) and the cooking time for the eggs. These are best eaten warm but can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Also try: For vegetarian Scotch eggs, use leftover cooked risotto for the casing instead of the pork or sausage meat, then coat in bread crumbs as before.
- 4 eggs
- At least 6 1/3 cups sunflower oil
- 14 ounces minced pork or sausage meat
- 1-2 stalks lemongrass
- 4 lime leaves
- 1 small clove garlic
- 1 hot red chili
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- Small bunch of cilantro
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar or palm sugar
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 egg
- Splash of milk
- 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
- :::eggs:::
- Put the eggs in a pan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and cook for 5 minutes. Refresh under cold water until cool enough to handle, then peel while still warm. Set aside.
- Put all the ingredients for the pork casing into a large bowl and mix well with your hands. If you want to test or alter the seasonings at this stage, you can fry a teaspoonful of the mixture in a hot pan and then taste and adjust accordingly.
- Remember that the flavor will not be as strong when the mixture is cold.
- :::egg coverings:::
- Take three shallow bowls and put the seasoned flour into one, the beaten egg mixed with milk in another, and the bread crumbs in a third. Next to the bowl of flour, put your cooked eggs.
- Lay a sheet of baking parchment or plastic wrap on top of a clean work surface and put the pork mixture onto it. Lay another sheet over the top and gently press to make a thin, flat disk. Peel off the top layer of paper.
- Dip each cooked egg in flour and dust off any excess. Lay the eggs on the meat in an evenly spaced line and lift the bottom layer of paper to wrap the mixture over the top of the eggs, then peel the paper back to reveal the covered eggs.
- Cut the meat into four (being careful not to slice through your egg). Dust your hands with flour and press the meat-covered egg between your palms and form a round shape.
- Lightly dust a covered egg with seasoned flour, then dip it into the beaten egg and finally coat in bread crumbs.
- :::frying:::
- Choose a pan that is deep enough for the eggs to be covered in the oil — I sometimes use a smaller pan and cook them one at a time, which requires less oil. Alternatively, choose a larger pan and double the amount of oil — you may need up to 6¹⁄₃ cups. (Any excess oil can be reused.) Heat the oil until it reaches 340°F. If you don’t have a thermometer, you can test the temperature by dropping in a scrap of bread; it should sizzle and turn golden immediately.
- Using tongs or a slotted spoon, lower the eggs into the oil.
- Fry for about 7 minutes so they are golden on the outside and the sausage meat is cooked through.
- Remove to a plate, then cover with paper towels and allow to cool slightly before eating.