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Everyone’s talking about... Scotch eggs

STEVE BENNETT

CHEF Leigh Evans has set the record for the world’s largest vegetarian Scotch egg – a 18 lb 5oz monster, as heavy as a toddler, made with an ostrich egg. A ‘substantial meal’ by anyone’s reckoning, but still not as big as the meaty recordholder, at 21lb. So where did Scotch eggs originate?

Fortnum & Mason claims to have invented them in 1738 as a portable snack for aristocrats travelling to their country seats on horse-drawn coaches that would depart from outside its store in London’s Piccadilly. But the Queen’s favourite grocer has no records to prove that, and the origins are disputed. Scotch eggs may have evolved from an Indian dish, but with all the spices removed. They are also popular in Holland, where one name, gehaktbal kiekeboe, translates as ‘peekaboo meatball’.

Probably not. One theory is the name came from merchant William J. Scott & Sons, which sold them in Whitby, Yorkshire, in the 19th Century. Or maybe from ‘scorch’ eggs, as they were cooked over an open flame.

What’s the recipe?

A boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat, coated in breadcrumbs and deep fried or baked. But there are variations. The Manchester Egg uses a pickled egg and black pudding, and those served at Buckingham Palace garden parties involve Thai green curry paste, coriander and crushed peanuts. In the US, Scotch eggs on sticks are staples of the Minnesota State Fair, where they are sometimes drizzled with maple syrup. Fortnums once made one with venison and dark chocolate, or you can make a fully sweet version using a Cadbury Creme Egg. The most expensive Scotch egg ever cost £500, and was covered in 24-carat edible gold leaf.

How popular are they?

Enid Blyton called them ‘a wholesome snack of choice’, but a 2019 survey named Scotch eggs one of Britain’s least-liked foods, just above faggots. Another poll showed that almost one in five 25-to-34year-olds believed Scotch eggs did not exist. But they are making a comeback even among Michelinstarred chefs, such as Heston Blumenthal. And they’d be perfect for a Jubilee street party.

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