Scottish Mince & Tatties

I really couldn't find anything much about the history of this Scottish dish, but potatoes came from the New World and they were only introduced to England in the late 1500s, and then from there to Scotland and to the rest of the British Isles. Once potatoes became available in Scotland, the basic ingredients needed for the dish means it could have easily developed at any time. The thing is, whenever "Mince & Tatties" first appeared, it remains a popular dish in Scotland to this day.   

 

Ingredients:

 

1 pound coarsely ground beef

2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or sunflower oil)

1 cup chopped onion (relatively small chop)

1 cup chopped carrots (small chop)

2 cups beef broth + 1/2 cup, if needed

1/2 teaspoon Gravy Master or Kitchen Bouquet

1 tablespoon thick ketchup 

2 to 3 tablespoons flour 

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

salt (according to salt amount in broth)

potatoes, boiled, then mashed according to your own method

In a skillet or pan, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the finely chopped onion and saute for 1 1/2 minutes, then add the carrots and saute another 1 1/2 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook the meat, breaking up any clumps of ground beef and mixing the vegetables into the beef. Stir in the ketchup, then sprinkle the flour over the ingredients and mix it in. Add the beef broth, ground black pepper and salt, stir well to mix. Lower the heat to low and cover the skillet/pan, either with a lid or foil. Cook the "stew" for 30 to 35 minutes, but at the 20 minute mark, add the Gravy Master or Kitchen Bouquet, stir well and add any more beef broth, if the gravy is too thick. Replace the lid or foil and continue cooking over low heat for another 10 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, boil the potatoes in salted water, drain and mash the potatoes according to your own recipe. Serve the stew with some mashed potatoes right on the side. 

WORD HISTORY:

Clan-This word is closely related to "plant," a Latin word borrowed from that language. "Clan" goes back to Indo European "plat," which had the notion "to spread, to broaden, to make flat, to flatten," and adjectivally meaning "flat." This picked up an "n" in Old Italic, which then gave Italic's Latin offspring "planta," meaning "sole of the foot" (the 'flat' part of the foot), which took on the meaning "offshoot, a (plant) shoot," and on the verb side, "to plant" (I will elaborate more on this when I do the history of "plant"). The Latin form spawned lots of borrowings, including into Old Irish, which in ancient times used the harder "k" sound for borrowed words with "p," and this gave Old Irish "cland," meaning "plant," but thus also, "offspring," and this was borrowed by Gaelic as "clann," meaning, "offspring, children, family, family group of the same stock, tribe." This was borrowed by English in the early decades of the 1400s with essentially the same meanings. Since those times, its meaning has broadened to use for some animals, especially for hyenas. In the United States, the word has a strong association with the Ku Klux Klan, a white supremacist group founded in the post-civil War era and known for using terror tactics to intimidate the group's targets.    

Mashed Potato Cakes

To make mashed potato cakes, you'll need MASHED POTATOES, believe it or not. This is really good for leftover or store bought mashed potatoes, but you can make mashed potatoes just for these cakes. Generally for mashed potatoes, cut up some peeled potatoes (although there are mashed potatoes made with skin on potatoes), boil the cut up potatoes, drain them, add butter, salt and milk (I almost always use canned evaporated milk, NOT condensed milk, and I heat a little of the milk and melt the butter along with it in the microwave; this prevents the milk and butter from cooling down the potatoes as you mash them, which can make them sticky like glue), and then use a potato masher, or better yet, an electric beater to make the mashed potatoes smooth and creamy (be careful on the amount of milk, or you'll end up with runny mashed potatoes, so it's best to add milk a little at a time as you mash the potatoes). You can also buy commercial brand mashed potatoes or use leftover mashed potatoes from last night's roast beef or roast chicken dinner. The key thing is, you want thick mashed potatoes, so you want them cold, or at least chilled, not warm right from being mashed. As I note in the recipe below, the amount of flour I list is approximate. When you begin to mix the potatoes for the cakes, it's best to add the flour a bit at a time to achieve a good consistency for your mashed potato cakes to hold together fairly well (you're not looking for a consistency to patch your cracked sidewalk, but you want the cakes to hold together once you've put them into a pan or on a griddle and spread them out to cook. Too much flour may give you a raw flour taste for your cakes; too little and they will be runny and mushy. 

 

Ingredients (about 12 potato cakes, but depends upon the size potato cakes you want):

 

3 cups of mashed potatoes

1 cup flour (approximately... use more or less for a potato cake that holds together well)

2 large eggs

4 or 5 green onions, chopped (green included)

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar or sharp American cheese

(optional) 4 bacon strips, cut into 1 inch pieces 

salt (your mashed potatoes and the cheese will have salt, so use any additional salt to your own taste)

oil for frying (I use regular olive oil, but vegetable oil/canola oil is fine)

 

Get your cold mashed potatoes, and if using bacon, fry the bacon until just done (you don't want it leathery), then drain it on paper towels. In a bowl, mix together the mashed potatoes, flour (as noted above), eggs, chopped green onions, salt, bacon bits (if using) and shredded cheese. Heat enough oil in a skillet (cast iron is good, but not necessary) to completely cover the bottom of the skillet over medium heat. I use about 1/4 cup potato batter for each cake, but you can use 2 or 3 tablespoons each (you don't want them too thick, so that they cook properly; after all, there is raw egg involved; so, like pancake thickness, not like Texas toast thickness). Once added to the hot skillet/oil, press down to spread out the batter into pancakes. Fry the cakes until golden brown on both sides. You can serve with some extra chopped green onions and/or bacon pieces on the side, as well as with some sour cream.

WORD HISTORY:

Noun-This word is related to quite a number of words, including: "nominal," "nominate" and "nomination," Latin-derived words borrowed by English from Latin, to words with "nym," like "synonym," another Latin word borrowed by English, probably from Latin-based French, but with heavy reinforcement from Latin (or perhaps the other way around), and to "name," a word from the Germanic roots of English. "Noun" goes back to Indo European "nomen," which meant "name." This gave Latin "nomen," meaning "name, name for things, materials, qualities or actions, typically used in a grammatical sense." This passed to Latin-based Old French as "nom" and "non," and this became "noun" in the Anglo-French dialect of the French spoken by the descendants of the Normans in England (also "nom" was used by some). English borrowed the word in the latter part of the 1300s as "noun," but also as "nowne."

Irish Potatoes: Colcannon

There are many variations to this recipe. Some people use savoy cabbage (it has wrinkled leaves), others use kale; further still, some include leeks and some use bacon mixed into the main dish. Others use crumbled bacon as a topping, and cheese is another topping used by some, as is a fried or poached egg (I kept the egg to the side, see photo below). Traditionally the dish has a lot of butter, but I hope the Irish forgive me, because I replaced half of the butter with olive oil. "Colcannon" also has milk, but some use cream. 

Ingredients (about 4 to 6 servings):

2 pounds white or Russet potatoes, peeled and diced (large dice)
2 1/2 cups chopped or shredded green cabbage (it will cook down substantially)
1/2 cup chopped green onions (also called spring onions or scallions, and use the green part)
3 tablespoons of butter (but more for serving)
3 tablespoons olive oil (not extra virgin olive oil)
1/2 cup warm milk (I use canned/evaporated milk, you may need more milk)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt

Boil the potatoes in salted water until tender. While the potatoes are cooking, in a skillet, melt the butter and mix in the olive oil. Add the cabbage and green onions and cook over low heat until tender. Add the salt and pepper. The cabbage and onion mixture may get lightly browned, but remember, this is supposed to provide some green to the dish, although I must admit, I've seen colcannon with browned cabbage and onions. Drain the potatoes well and mash the potatoes with a potato masher, gradually adding a little warm milk as you go (potatoes can vary, so you may need more milk). Fold the cabbage/onion mixture into the mashed potatoes (this is why you needn't add butter to the potatoes as you mash them). With each serving, use a spoon to make a small indentation in the top and add a piece of butter.

Some have an egg with these potatoes, which is what I chose to do, along with a piece of toast...

WORD HISTORY:
Bog-This word is distantly related to the various forms of "bow": with the form that rhymes with "how," and meaning, "to bend the body," as well as to the noun for that verb; also the same pronunciation of "bow" for the noun meaning "the front of a ship;" and the form with a long "o," meaning "to curve," as a verb, and meaning "a weapon that shoots arrows," as a noun. These are all from Germanic and their relationship to "bog" is through Indo European. "Bog" goes back to Indo European "bheugh," which meant, "to bend." This gave Old Celtic the adjective "buggo," which meant, "easily bent, flexible, soft." This passed to Old Irish as "bog," meaning, "soft, soft from moisture." This then produced the Irish and Scots Gaelic noun "bogach," meaning, "marshy land" (thus, 'a bog'). English borrowed the word in the early 14th Century. The verb, often used with "down" ("bog down"), and meaning, "become stuck in the soft ground of a bog," developed in about 1600. 

Bangers & Mash with Onion Gravy

 Updated with gravy recipe and one new photo 4/5/22

 

This is a common dish in England and other parts of the United Kingdom. It seems the name "bangers" came to be used as a slang term for sausages in the World War One era in Britain, as meat shortages led to the use of more water and other fillers (grains or bread) in the production of sausages. When fried or grilled, the sausages would often burst with a "bang." Some people prick the sausages with a fork or a knife to prevent them from bursting, while to people with a more traditionalist side, such a thing is heresy. Besides "Bangers and Mash," there are some interesting names for food in British English, with "Bubble and Squeak" being another,* as well as, "Toad in the Hole."** I dare say, few Americans would know what these names mean in more recent times, especially as there aren't many men and women still around from the days when they may have been stationed in Britain during World War Two and they likely heard these names used.   

 

 

This is not really a recipe, as such, but rather the serving of three distinct parts, each of which can be readily obtained in prepared forms in supermarkets: mashed potatoes available in refrigerated sections, gravy available in jars or cans, and sausages available in already cooked form in refrigerated sections, sometimes in packages, but sometimes available at a per sausage price in deli sections or at butcher shops. In this case, you would simply need to heat the sausages, chop some onion and saute it until it's softened and browned at least somewhat, add the gravy to the onions and heat it through, heat the mashed potatoes according to the package instructions and you're ready to eat. Of course you can make your own mashed potatoes the way you like them, make your own onion gravy, and you can buy uncooked sausages, unless you like making sausages and stuffing them into natural casings.

My suggestion for 4 servings is that you buy uncooked or precooked sausages. You can use whatever kind of sausage you like, but pork sausage is traditional. In a skillet, heat about a tablespoon of oil and fry 4 sausages over low heat. Cook them until they are well heated through (especially if using uncooked sausages) and lightly browned (they will be reheated again, read on). Remove the sausages to a plate and add 2 chopped or sliced onions to the skillet. You can up the heat to medium. Cook the onions until softened, but it is nice to have the onions browned a bit for more flavor. Stir pork gravy mix into 2 cups of water (or follow the gravy mix instructions on the package). Add the gravy to the onions and mix well. Bring the onion gravy to a simmer, add the sausages to the gravy, and take the heat back to low. In the meantime, if making your own mashed potatoes, peel and dice some potatoes, put them into a pan, add a sprinkle of salt and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook the potatoes until softened, but not mushy. Drain the potatoes WELL, add some butter and mash the potatoes a little with a fork, potato masher or the beaters of an electric mixer (it doesn't have to be turned on, at this point). Microwave some milk until it is just warm (I use canned milk), then add it a little at a time to the potatoes as you mash them well (if using a mixer, now you need to have it on). Keep control of how much milk you add to prevent the potatoes from being runny. Add and mix in salt to taste, and pepper, if desired.  


Ingredients (4 servings):

4 sausages (pork or beef)
1 tablespoon oil 
2 pounds potatoes, peeled and diced (can be large dice)
5 tablespoons butter
"about" 4 to 6 ounces canned (evaporated) milk
salt to taste
(optional) black pepper to taste
2 chopped or sliced onions
2 cups water with gravy mix, or store bought prepared gravy***

* "Bubble and Squeak" originated in the 1800s in England as a way to use leftover meat and vegetables, which were cooked with mashed potatoes, causing a "squeaking" sound as it was cooking. In more recent times, while leftovers are still often used, the dish is also made fresh.

** "Toad in the Hole" is a dish of sausages in a Yorkshire Pudding dough. Here is the link to the article about "Toad in the Hole:" https://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2021/02/english-toad-in-hole-sausages-in-pudding.html

*** I did the above article to keep things simple and relatively quick, but if you don't mind taking your time, this is a good recipe for onion gravy; so if you try it, you won't need the gravy mix and procedure mentioned above, but to be quite honest, it is very much dependent upon using good beef stock, and I'm not saying that you necessarily need to make the stock yourself, as there are some decent store bought brands. To be blunt though, if you're just going to use soup base, you just as well stick with the gravy mix in the main article.

Ingredients: 

 

1 tablespoon vegetable oil 

3 tablespoons butter

1 cup chopped onion

2 1/2 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups beef stock

1 1/2 tablespoons thick ketchup

1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire

1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, according to preference

Add the oil and butter to a pan over medium heat, add the onions and cook, stirring often, but no need to stir continuously, until the onions soften, about 5 to 6 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and stir it in, reduce the heat slightly and continue to cook for about 2 minutes, to remove the raw flour taste. Add the stock, ketchup, Worcestershire and black pepper and bring the gravy to a steady simmer; turn the heat to low and simmer the gravy until thickened to your preference (about 3 to 5 minutes). 

 

 

WORD HISTORY: 
Shire-This word goes back to Indo European "sker," which meant, "to cut, to scrape," and it is distantly related to "scribe" and to "scribble," both of Latin derivation and borrowed by English, and more closely related to "shear," a word that goes back to the Germanic roots of English, and it is the first part of the compound "sheriff," initially "an official of a shire, now of a county." The Indo European form gave Old Germanic or West Germanic "skiro," which meant, "a division of land under a particular authority;" that is, "land cut up into areas of authority." This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "scir," with the same general meaning. The spelling later changed to "shire," but its use for an official land division was replaced in England by "county," a word taken from French, as it was eventually established in England by the Normans, circa 1300. The word "shire," however, has lived on into the present in geographic names and it was even taken to the New World, as in "New Hampshire." German had "scira," with a similar meaning to its English cousin's original meaning, but unlike English, the German word has now died out, "apparently" as it has in other Germanic languages. Just a question: did the move of some Germanic dialects from the continental mainland to Briton as Anglo-Saxon (Old English) save the word "shire" from extinction?