Chef Sham Hanifa of The Cottage Restaurant, Jamestown, Carrick on Shannon joined Joe in studio this week to discuss some good recipes for entertaining vegetarians, with Scotch Eggs making a come back. Chef Sham and Joe also had an interesting chat about whether a career as a chef is attractive anymore? Listen back to the full interview below for all of Sham's tips and tricks:
Chef Sham's Scotch Eggs
Ingredients:
5 large free Range eggs
1 large onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp Curry Powder
400g can chickpeas, drained
Bunch of coriander finely chopped
40gm Panko/ Pin Head breadcrumb
5 tbsp plain flour, plus extra for dusting
3 tbsp sesame seed
sunflower or vegetable oil, for frying
Method:
Put 4 eggs in a pan of boiling water, cook for 4 mins. After 4 mins quickly lift out of the pan and plunge in a big bowl of ice cold water to cool. Once cool enough to handle, peel.
While the eggs cool, put the oil, onions and garlic in a frying pan. Fry very gently until really soft and just starting to turn golden. Add the spices and fry for a few mins more. Tip into a food processor and whizz to a paste, then add the chickpeas and chopped coriander, and pulse until finely chopped but not pasty, seasoned and taste. Divide the mixture into 4, Take a portion at a time and flatten between your hands (rub your hands with a little more oil if it’s sticking to your fingers too much). Roll 1 of your peeled eggs in a little flour, shake to remove the excess, then wrap the chickpeas mixture around it, moulding it to completely cover the egg and squishing it together at the joins to seal. Repeat to cover all the eggs. Tip the panko or pin head breadcrumbs onto a plate and mix in the sesame seeds. Roll each egg in it to coat. Can be made 1 day ahead, loosely covered with cling film and chilled. Get a large, deep saucepan and half-fill it with oil, or use a deep-fat fryer. Heat until a bit of bread browns in about 30 secs. Add a couple of eggs at a time and fry, turning, until really golden and crisp, about 2 mins. Lift onto kitchen paper to drain while you cook the rest of the eggs in batches. Season with a little more salt and eat warm or cold.
