Remember when we used to go out to restaurants on a regular basis? Yeah, me too. Not to dwell, but for the longest time I've always kept a running list of things that I've seen on menus around the world, but have never actually tried cooking myself-- Scotch eggs being one of them.
They're intriguing and different. It's like the best of multiple worlds coming together and they really don't fall into a particular meal category, so eating them all day is definitely an option. When you have a package of ground venison or venison breakfast sausage that you want to break out of the freezer, give this recipe a try. Different than a deviled egg, better than fried eggs and sausage and a sure way to keep your status of Camp Chef this season.
Venison Scotch Eggs
Ingredients:
1 lb ground venison or venison breakfast sausage
6-8 eggs, hard or soft boiled
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp dry oregano
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp celery salt
salt and pepper to taste
2 cups, Panko breadcrumbs
Oil for pan frying
2 cups of all-purpose flour, seasoned with your favorite spice mix
3 eggs, beaten
Directions
Preparation:
In a mixing bowl, combine all of the spices, salt, pepper and ground venison. Mix well and place in the refrigerator for a minimum of one hour(this can be done overnight). The longer the spices sit, the better flavor these Scotch eggs will have in the end.
Depending on what you preference is, hard or soft boil the eggs, let cool and remove the shell. Refrigerate until you're ready to roll, literally.
Assembly:
Ok, now here's the interesting part...
Remove the meat mixture and eggs from the fridge and divide into equal portions, roughly 1/2 cup per egg. This amount is going to vary depending on the eggs and how heavy you want to make them. I find that 1/2 cup is about the right amount for an extra large egg. A word of advice... if you have some wax paper, place a large enough piece down on the kitchen counter now, as it can help bring everything together when rolling the eggs. Flatten the venison into 1/8-1/4 inch thick circles on the counter and place the eggs in the center of each. This isn't an exact science, so just make sure that each one has enough meat to cover the egg without giving your guests a hamburger worth of meat. CAREFULLY, roll the venison around the egg, making sure that the entire egg is sealed.
This might take a couple of tries and sounds more difficult than it actually is... don't overthink it, it's just an egg covered in ground meat.
Once each egg is covered with the seasoned venison, roll each egg in seasoned flour(season with your favorite spice blend or mix), then dip into the egg wash and finally roll each egg in Panko. My friends, at this point, you'll start to see why the work was worth it! If you want to assemble everything in advance, you can, and it makes life at camp much easier once you're ready to cook.
In a large skillet, add oil to the pan(depth of about 1 inch) and heat to 375F. Place 3-4 eggs in at a time, making sure that you don't crowd the pan and bring down the temperature of the oil below 350F. Brown the eggs for roughly 1 minute per side. Be careful not to burn the breadcrumbs!
Once browned, remove from the oil and drain on a plate lined with paper towels. Once drained, place the eggs on an ovenproof dish and cook in a preheated 400F oven for 10 minutes to finish.
These can be served warm, sliced in half, with a side of hot sauce, spicy mustard or simply enjoyed plain.
