Fortnum's Scotch Egg recipe

Ingredients

Makes 6

3 tablespoons of Olive Oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 large garlic cloves, crushed

400g sausages, skins removed, such as Fortnum’s Rare Breed Pork sausages

7 medium eggs

75g plain flour

75g breadcrumbs

Vegetable oil, for deep-frying

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

STEP 1

Heat the olive oil in a small pan, then add the onion and cook gently for 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and thyme, cover and cook for about 20 minutes, until the onion is soft but not coloured. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.

STEP 2

Put the meat into a bowl and mix with the cooked onion mixture and season well with salt and pepper.

STEP 3

Put 6 of the eggs into a large pan of gently simmering water and cook for 6 minutes. Drain, then leave under cold running water until they are completely cold. Peel off the shells.

STEP 4

Divide the meat mixture into 6 equal portions, weighing them for accuracy, if you like. Roll out each one between 2 sheets of cling film so that it is big enough to wrap round an egg. Lightly flour the eggs, then wrap each one in a piece of the mixture.

STEP 5

Put the remaining egg into a shallow bowl and beat well. Put the remaining flour into another bowl and the breadcrumbs into a third. Remove the cling film, then dip the eggs first into the flour, then into the beaten egg and finally into the breadcrumbs, patting them on well with your hands. Chill for an hour or so until the coating is firm.

STEP 6

Heat the oil to 170C in a deep-fat fryer or a large, deep saucepan (if you use a saucepan, don’t fill it more than a third full, or you risk it boiling over). Add the Scotch eggs to the hot oil, cooking them in batches so as not to overcrowd the pan. Fry for 7-8 minutes, until they are a deep golden brown, then drain well on kitchen paper. Serve warm.