Ahh, the scotch egg – an almost mythical creature on menus these days. Here we have tried to bring it into the now! Using chicken mince makes it both lighter and healthier, the rich egg yolk makes a smooth and silky cheddar custard and the bitter leaf salad takes it back to the humble British beer garden. Mainland Tasty Cheese is sharp, creamy and full of flavour – its use in the custard showcases how amazingly versatile this well-made cheddar can be.

Scotch Egg 

  • 5ea size 6 eggs
  • 250g chicken mince 
  • 100g pork mince
  • 1 tbsp thyme, chopped 
  • 1 tsp garlic paste 
  • 200g panko breadcrumbs
  • 2ea eggs for the crumbing mixture 
  • dash of milk for crumbing mixture 
  • 100g plain flour
  • Salt and pepper 

 

Method

Soft-boil the eggs (6 minutes), peel and store in water in the fridge until you are ready to use them. In a large bowl add the chicken mince, pork mince, thyme, garlic and seasoning, mix well.

Take your eggs out the fridge and take some of the mince mixture and cover the egg evenly, not too thick, just enough to create about a 1cm layer of chicken mince around the egg, don’t worry about getting a perfect shape just yet.

Once all the eggs are covered begin crumbing as follows.

Mix the egg and milk together in 1 bowl, the seasoned flour in another and finally the panko breadcrumbs with chopped thyme in another. Roll the first egg in the flour tapping to remove excess flour, dip into the breadcrumbs and repeat egg and breadcrumbs 1 more time so it is now double crumbed. This is where you now make it resemble and egg shape again. 

To cook, place in the deep fryer at 180°C until golden and place into the oven for a further 5 minutes at 160°C to ensure chicken is fully cooked. 

Bitter Leaf Salad 

  • 1ea whole endive/witloof leaves, picked and washed
  • 1/2ea radicchio leaves, picked and washed
  • 6ea medium sized pickled onions, sliced roughly 
  • Olive oil
  • Squeeze of lemon juice
  • Salt and pepper
  • Pinch watercress or fresh parsley leaves 

Method

Toss everything together just before you serve your dish. 

Cheddar & Corn Custard 

  • 1/2 onion, diced
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter 
  • 100ml chicken stock 
  • 1/2 glass white wine 
  • 2ea egg yolks
  • 120g Mainland Tasty Grated Cheese
  • Salt and cracked pepper 

Method

In a heavy based pot soften the garlic, onion, corn, butter and olive oil by cooking on a low to medium heat.

Once softened, add the white wine and reduce by half, then add the chicken stock season and cook for 5 minutes until the liquid is reduced by half again.

While still hot, add the corn and all the liquid to a blender and blitz for 30 seconds, then add the grated cheese and blitz until smooth. With the blender still going drop each egg yolk in at a time and blitz until super smooth and starting to get a little thicker.

Season to taste and pass through a fine sieve before transferring to a container and allowed to cool. 

Recipe by

Chef Danny Simpson

Use quail eggs for a smaller dish or even an entrée. Boil quail eggs for 2 minutes only!

This is a firm aged cheddar matured for up to 12 months to develop a full-bodied flavour. Grated for your convenience.

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