Chicken Scotch Egg Recipe

Ingredients

MAKES 6

3 tablespoons of Olive Oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 large garlic cloves, crushed to a puree with a pinch of salt

1 teaspoon finely chopped thyme

400g raw minced chicken (or 250g raw minced chicken and 150g leftover chicken, finely chopped)

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 raw minced chicken (or any leftover meat of your choice) into a bowl and mix with the cooked onion mixture and cooked diced chicken, season well with salt and pepper. To test the mixture, take a teaspoonful of the mixture and fry it until cooked through. Taste it, then adjust the seasoning of the remaining mixture, if necessary.

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 chicken 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 chicken 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 Scotch 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 170 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 your 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.

How To Deep Fry Safely

1. Use oil with a high smoke point. Always use an oil thermometer and check the temperature of your oil. Anything above 190C is too hot and you need to wait for the oil to cool down before frying.

2. Never leave a pan of hot oil unattended. It only takes a moment for oil to overheat. If the oil starts to smoke, turn off the heat and leave the oil to cool down.

3. Use a large, wide, sturdy pan with a lid that fits, in case the oil catches fire. If the oil catches fire, turn off the heat and smother the flames with a lid, large baking tray or a fire blanket. Never spray the fire with water; this will cause the flames to spread.

4. Turn the pot handle away from the front of the cooker and keep the kitchen a child-free zone whilst frying.

5. Don’t fry food that’s very wet, as this will cause the oil to splutter. Remove finished fried food with a large slotted spoon or tongs.

6. Never pour the oil down the sink. Safely dispose of oil by leaving to cool completely, pouring into a jug, then pouring back into its original bottle.