The person who most regularly puts up with The Eater’s antics came home from the Carrboro Farmers’ Market the other day with something in addition to the usual refilling of the kimchi prescription and a bunch of collards.
A little smaller than a regulation cricket ball and encrusted with tiny, golden-brown breadcrumbs, the object looked instantly consumable and was. Just under the crust was a layer of sausage, which enveloped the innermost ingredient, a not-too hardboiled egg – a Scotch egg. This delectable concoction was courtesy of Fleming Pfann, longtime food innovator and proprietor of Celebrity Dairy in western Chatham County. She sells them for $2.50. Get there early.
The Scotch egg has been around for more than 275 years or so – probably much longer, since it is way similar to a south Indian dish – and there are many variations. The London department store Fortnum & Mason, which just this April broke the world record for making the largest Scotch egg, claims to have invented them in 1738. You find them in places subjected to British imperialism, including the Wisconsin State Fair, where they’re served on a stick; or for you Tories, a pike.
The way Pfann makes them, they’re not too heavy and baked instead of deep-fried. Halved, they look a little like the Earth’s crust, with a light breadcrumb layer and a slightly thicker sausage layer wrapped around white and yolk. A few tricks according to Pfann – use very lean sausage and make sure the eggs are dry.
Typically, a Scotch egg is served cold. In experiments with serving them warm, cold and with various sides, room temp and with mustard seemed the natural choice. A nice chutney also does the trick. Good for dabbing were coriander and tomato curries from Kerala Curry of Pittsboro.
A friend of ours suggests a true Scotch egg requires a dash of Scotch. Seems like a perfectly good waste of whiskey, but if you do take that route, The Eater suggests something with a lot of peat-smoke flavor, like Lagavulin or its far-cheaper cousin, White Horse (which is mostly Lagavulin anyway).
Greens
If you like greens, it’s like a field day in the markets and groceries around town. Not only are the ubiquitous collards and kale in plentiful supply, but the somewhat more exotic variations are around now too, including mustard, turnip and the mysterious creecy greens.
Creecy, creasy or creasie greens (Barbarea verna) are mustard greens that are very similar to watercress and sometimes known as upland cress or winter cress. They’re a little more challenging to cook right and take a little more work cleaning up than the leafier greens. They’ve got a sharp, spicy flavor – the same kind of notes as in turnip greens and parsnips – and can be pretty hot uncooked.
Thanks for the traditions
Thanks to everyone who wrote in response to an Eater question on holiday food traditions. A few choice responses: oyster roasts, Bloody Marys, pickled herring, dilled shrimp and cucumber, krumkake, ambrosia, Maine apples cooked with candied cinnamon hearts and chilled outside, sweet potato pie with butter and cream cheese crust, sweet potato casserole with cinnamon and marshmallows, suelze, Russian iced tea and dill pickles and pound cake.