Scotch eggs

This is another classic English snack that has become fashionable of late. Scotch eggs are great as a nibble while slobbing out in front of the telly, as a canapé at a dinner party or served as part of a picnic. Watch out, though: they're incredibly popular, and you may find you can't make enough of them.

SCOTCH EGGS

Makes 12

12 quail eggs
A couple of cocktail sticks
480g best-quality pork sausage meat
Salt, cayenne pepper and black pepper, to taste
150g Japanese breadcrumbs or white home-made ones, dried out in the oven at a low temperature for 15 minutes
3 medium eggs, beaten
Plain flour for coating
1.5 litres groundnut or corn oil, for deep-frying

Heat a pan of water to boiling point, prick the tops of the quail eggs with a cocktail stick and cook the eggs - one minute if you want a softer set, or 2 minutes and 15 seconds exactly if you prefer them hard. As soon as your timer goes off, remove the eggs from the boiling water and plunge them into a bowl of iced water as quickly as possible.

While the eggs are cooling, season the sausage meat with salt, a small pinch of cayenne pepper and black pepper, then check the seasoning either by frying a little in a pan or microwaving for 20-30 seconds and tasting. The meat will need to be well seasoned.

Shell the eggs under water in a small bowl and wrap each one in 40g (a golf ball) of sausage meat. The easiest way to do this is by first making a ball of sausage meat, then flattening into a shape big enough to go around the egg. Press the edges together to seal, taking care not to squash the egg inside.

Put the plain flour, beaten egg and breadcrumbs into three separate bowls. If using Japanese breadcrumbs (try Mount Fuji; www.mountfuji.co.uk), break them up slightly with your fingers to make it easier to coat the sausage meat. Roll the scotch eggs in the flour, gently tap off any excess, then roll them in the beaten egg and, finally, the breadcrumbs. Put them in the freezer for 5 minutes to harden the breadcrumb coating, then dip again into the egg and breadcrumbs. Deep-fry - you can use an ordinary wide frying pan, but make sure the oil covers the eggs - for 2-3 minutes until golden brown, then finish in a hot oven for a further 2-3 minutes.