Name: JoyBird’s chicken Scotch eggs with tarragon mayonnaise
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Ingredients: 8 eggs; 400 gm minced chicken; 2½ tsp onion powder; 20 gm leek, finely chopped; 2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped; 1¼ tbsp cornflour; 50 gm plain flour; 2 eggs, lightly beaten; 75 gm (1 cup) panko crumbs; Tarragon mayonnaise; 2 egg yolks; 2 bsp white vinegar; 2 tsp hot English mustard; ⅓ cup (loosely packed) tarragon; 250 ml (1 cup) olive oil

“Because we’re a chicken shop we wanted to serve a dish that included both chicken meat and the egg,” says Adam Liston. “Scotch egg is a classic that’s not that common anymore, but everyone seems to love it. I thought the relevance of serving it was similar to the way yakitori shops serve tsukune with an egg yolk – using every part of the chicken means that the chicken had a noble death.”

Ingredients

8 eggs

400 gm minced chicken

2½ tsp onion powder

20 gm leek, finely chopped

2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped

1¼ tbsp cornflour

50 gm plain flour

2 eggs, lightly beaten

75 gm (1 cup) panko crumbs

Tarragon mayonnaise

2 egg yolks

2 bsp white vinegar

2 tsp hot English mustard

⅓ cup (loosely packed) tarragon

250 ml (1 cup) olive oil

Method

1.Bring a saucepan of water to the boil over medium-high heat and boil eggs until soft-boiled (6½ minutes). Place eggs in an iced-water bath to stop cooking, then gently roll eggs on bench to crackle shells. Return eggs to iced water to cool completely, then peel.

2.Place chicken, onion powder, leek, parsley, cornflour and 2 tsp salt in a large bowl and mix with your hands until well combined, then lift chicken mixture out of the bowl and throw it back in, slapping against the side of the bowl, repeating until mixture is thoroughly combined and firm. Roll into 8 balls, then working with one at a time, place a piece of plastic wrap on a chopping board and flatten each ball out to 8cm x 12cm. Place one egg on top and carefully enclose with chicken and plastic wrap, keeping the shape of the egg. Transfer to a tray lined with baking paper, and repeat with remaining chicken and eggs. Chill until firm (20-30 minutes).

3.For tarragon mayonnaise, blend egg yolks, vinegar, mustard, tarragon and 1 tsp salt in a blender on high speed, scraping down sides, until finely chopped. Turn blender down to low-medium speed and, with the motor running, slowly drizzle in olive oil to emulsify – adjust thickness by adding water to thin or slowly drizzling in more oil to thicken. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

4.Place flour, beaten egg and panko in separate bowls. Coat eggs in flour, shaking off excess, then eggwash, then roll in crumbs.

5.Preheat oil in a deep saucepan to 180°C. Deep-fry Scotch eggs in batches until golden (3 minutes; be careful, hot oil will spit). Remove with a slotted spoon, drain briefly on paper towels and serve hot with tarragon mayonnaise.