Chorizo Scotch Eggs

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The fact that this recipe even exists is a miracle, and a testament to cooking ingenuity. The sheer creativity by the English to come up with a concept of boiling an egg, encasing it in sausage meat, then breading and deep frying is simply amazing. Yes, the classic Scotch Egg is a hallmark of English cuisine, and a dish that shouldn’t work, but it does. To ramp up the flavors of this classic pub dish we’re using that wonderful Spanish Chorizo Sausage to create these amazing Chorizo Scotch Eggs. The flavor and texture from this dish is truly awesome, well worth making at home!

What are Chorizo Scotch Eggs?

For the un-initiated to the wonderful world of Scotch Eggs, the dish is a perfectly boiled egg that still has a runny yolk inside. The Egg is then carefully wrapped / encased in sausage meat. Usually you would season the Sausage meat, but in the case of Chorizo, it already has so much flavor and spices that it is perfectly fine as it is

Then, the wrapped Egg is breaded in a typical way that you would bread dishes for frying. Eg: The eggs are first dipped in seasoned flour, then into an Egg wash, and finally into breadcrumbs. Once well coated, the Eggs are deep fried in hot Oil to get a wonderful crispy outside

Perfectly made Scotch Eggs will have an Egg with completely cooked egg whites, with a warm, gooey egg yolk that is still runny on the inside. The eggs should be completely cooked as they are boiled, and no more cooking / heating of the Eggs is done during the frying process

The frying process is a critical step: You want to deep fry the breaded eggs just enough for the Sausage to cook through completely, without continuing to cook the Egg inside. Too much deep frying and you’ll have a dry egg yolk. Not enough deep frying and the Sausage won’t be cooked. Yes, perfecting Chorizo Scotch Eggs is all about timing

We tested boiling Eggs at different times, and for a perfect gooey center, 6 minutes is the sweet spot

To get the perfect Scotch Egg, we tested boiling Eggs are different times to see what the consistency was like off the Egg Yolk. A perfect Scotch Egg should be cooked throughout, but with a gooey, runny Egg

We tried Eggs at the 4, 5, 6, and 7-minute intervals to see what consistency produces the best Egg. It tuns out that 6 minutes was the sweet spot for the perfect consistency. The Egg White is completely cooked throughout, and the Egg Yolk was runny, but also warm

Earlier cooks produced undercooked eggs, particularly at the 4-minute mark. The Egg White was only barely cooked on the outside and the inside was clearly undercooked. The 5-minute Egg was fine, and it could pass for a decent Scotch Egg. Our main issue with this Egg was it was so delicate to handle, especially when wrapping with the Chorizo Sausage. There’s a good chance it may break as you’re wrapping it

Once you start getting around the 7-minute mark the Egg Yolk starts to cook through and become solidified. You want all that Egg Yolk to be runny, and anything after the 7-minute mark is going to see it become more of a hardboiled Egg. Some people like their Scotch Eggs with a dry Egg Yolk, but for us, it’s not a Scotch Egg unless there’s a beautiful runny Egg yolk

Deep Fry the Chorizo Scotch Eggs for 5 minutes for the perfect result

5-minutes is the sweet spot for deep frying the Scotch Eggs. This will result in the Chorizo Sausage completely cooking on the inside, and the breadcrumbs turning a beautiful golden-brown color on the outside. One critical step we must stress is you need to maintain the oil temperature at around 350F for the duration of the cook

The best way to monitor Oil temperature when deep frying is by using a candy thermometer. These thermometers can be placed in the hot oil and will clip onto the pan. They’ll constantly monitor the temperature of the Oil, so you’ll know if you need to increase the heat or turn it down at any time you require

Ideally, cooking with hot Oil is best done on a gas stove, as the change in temperature can be instantaneous. If you are using an Electric Stove it is still possible to monitor. We’d suggest having a few burners going at once at different temperatures. This way you can move the Oil around to different heats depending on how hot it gets

What type of Breadcrumbs works best for Scotch Eggs

The breadcrumbs you can use are up to personal preference. Any will work ok; it really comes down to texture and what you’re looking for in a Scotch Egg. For our recipe we use fine breadcrumbs. We just find that they’re overall a great breadcrumb to use for anything deep frying

The fine Breadcrumbs always apply evenly when being used as a breading, and there is very little chance that there are gaps in the breading. Always important when it comes to deep frying. However, given the Chorizo Scotch Eggs have an additional layer of ‘insulation’ for the eggs (the insulation being the Chorizo Layer) you can afford to use thicker breadcrumbs which may have some gaps

Panko Breadcrumbs are another good choice that we would recommend. They have a lovely flavor, especially when used in frying. Panko is a thicker breadcrumb, so the coating for your Scotch Eggs will be a little more inconsistent, which for many is the ideal result

Having that inconsistent coating will result in there being more texture to the Scotch Egg. It’ll fry a little unevenly, so you’ll have some bits of the breading that are super crispy. If you’re looking for a thicker, rougher texture Panko is the way to go. For a smoother result, stick with the fine Breadcrumbs

Chorizo Scotch Eggs Recipe

Ingredients

• 6 Eggs
• 1 ½ lbs. Chorizo Sausage
• ½ tsp. Onion Powder
• ½ tsp. Garlic Powder
• ½ cup All Purpose Flour
• ½ cup Fine Breadcrumbs
• 4 cups Frying Oil (eg: Vegetable Oil or Canola Oil)
• Salt
  
  

Instructions

1. Fill a medium sized Saucepan with water about two thirds full and place on the stovetop over high heat. Once the water has come to a rolling boil, carefully place 4 Eggs into the Water (best to use a spoon to avoid them breaking)
2. Cover the Saucepan and set a timer for 6 minutes. After 6 minutes, remove the Eggs from the water and immediately place in a bowl filled with ice water to stop the cooking process. Once the Eggs have cooled, carefully peel away the shell, leaving the whole egg intact
3. Remove the Chorizo Sausage from its casing and then break it up with a fork to form a ground meat-like consistency. Break the Chorizo into 4 even pieces and then flatten each out, like you would a thin burger
4. Hold the flattened Chorizo in one hand, and carefully place an Egg in the center. Now, slowly roll the Chorizo to encase the Egg. Take your time to ensure the Egg is fully wrapped in Sausage. If there are gaps you can add more Sausage to fill it completely. Repeat for remaining Eggs
5. Setup a breading station with 3 separate bowl. The first, fill with AP Flour, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder, and 1 tsp. of Salt. The second, with the remaining 2 Eggs, which you whisk to form an egg wash. The third, with the breadcrumbs
6. Add the frying oil to a Saucepan and bring to a temperature of 350F. Coat the Chorizo-wrapped Egg first in Flour, then Egg, then finally with breadcrumbs. Ensure a full, even coating for each step. Carefully place into the hot oil and fry for 5 minutes until golden-brown
7. Remove the cooked Egg and place on a wire rack. Season immediately with Salt. Repeat for remaining Eggs and serve hot
   
   

Recipe Notes

• Take your time peeling the shells from the cooked eggs to avoid the egg breaking. The best technique is to gently tap the eggs on a flat surface to crack the shell. Then, peel away slowly with your fingers
• Fry the Eggs in the Oil one at a time. This will avoid overcrowding the pan which will reduce the heat of the Oil
  
  

That’s our recipe to create the pub food classic, Chorizo Scotch Eggs! These are a great meal to enjoy for a hearty lunch, or even a dinner along with a lovely, bright salad. However you enjoy them, if you’re eating well that’s all that matters to us!

If you enjoyed these Scotch Eggs, here’s a few other classic Pub meals we’re sure you’ll love:

• Beef and Guinness Pie
• Chicken Parmesan
• Pork Schnitzel with German Potato Salad
• Smoked Trout Pie
  
  

Happy Cooking!