Scotch eggs around the world – it has never been just a British thing
~!~ The Scotch egg as comfortable these days in a trendy gastropub as it is in the chiller cabinet of a petrol station// They*ve come to rival the pork pie as the country*s patriotic snack of choice// But are they really as British as we assume? History, and the Scotch egg*s doppelgangers around the world, suggest otherwise//(ukcanadaus)
How to cook the perfect scotch egg
Mince of Persia
~!~ **I think you can pin down the Scotch egg*s introduction to Britain to the late 17th or early 18th century, and I suspect it came from India,** says Gray// Its forebear may well have been the nargisi kofta or **narcissus kofta** named after the flower*s white and yellow petals – which came to India from Persia with the Mughal emperors, according to The Oxford Companion to Food, and is a popular Indian supper dish today// **The Mughals influenced two major regions with their cuisine – Awadh and Hyderabad hence there is a spicy and a non spicy version of nargisi kofta,** says Deep Arneja, chef at the Oberoi hotel in Agra// **The egg is generally wrapped inside lamb mince and fried, then served in a brown, yoghurt based gravy//**The Low Countries(ukcanadaus)
~!~ The Dutch and Flemish speaking Belgians* riff on the Scotch egg is known variously as vogelnestje (**bird*s nest**) and gehaktbal kiekeboe (**peekaboo meatball**), not forgetting the to the point eierbal // Food writer Suzanne Vandyck publishes a recipe in her book 150 Dutch and Belgian Recipes, serving the bird*s nests with tomato sauce and potato puree// She traces the dish to Catholics in medieval times, when it was a way of using up the eggs forbidden during Lent that had been boiled to make them last the 40 day fast//(ukcanadaus)
Indonesian origins
~!~ Another school of thought traces the Dutch egg in a meat jacket tradition back to the Dutch East Indies, with the rijsttafel (**rice table**) an elaborate colonial feast of dishes from across the region// One such dish might have been bakso telur (**meatball eggs**) which Jakarta resident Ditya Wicaksono thinks originated in Java// Served in a veal broth with noodles and bok choy, the bakso telur are made with a smooth minced beef paste seasoned with garlic and white pepper// **Sweet sauce and a bit of vinegar and chilli sauce spice the broth up, and the secret to good meatballs is to have the meat a little bit chewy,** says Ditya//(ukcanadaus)