BUBBLE AND SQUEAK.

Good evening everyone. Well, it’s 8.50 pm at night here, pouring with rain outside and he who must obey is glued to the TV watching Football (Soccer), so I thought I would escape here to the other room and share one more “Typically English Dish” with you.

The one I have thought of is a well-loved Saturday or Sunday breakfast dish. There are 3 regional versions of the same dish. We English know it fondly as BUBBLE AND SQUEAK, Scotland calls their version RUMBLEDETHUMP, and Ireland call their version COLCANNON. All the same dish using the same ingredients. Athough some add cut up cooked bacon or ham to theirs, but basically, all three are the same delicious dish.

This dish first started off with cooks using up the left over Boiled, Roast or Mashed potato (which has to be the main ingredient) from the roast dinner that they normally had the previous evening. (The rich gentry that is) The potato was then cooked with cooked Cabbage and Onions. The Bubble came from the cooked vegetables hitting the big knob of butter that was first put into a shallow frying pan and the Squeak came from the Cabbage which made a squeaking noise as it was frying in the butter.

Nowadays of course, it is a favourite weekend breakfast dish for many here, (you know the Brits need for a hot cooked breakfast!)  It is usually cooked and finished off with either a fried or poached egg on top, or served with thick pork sausages. As stated, Cooked potatoes are the main ingredient because it is these that bind the dish together.  The second and third ingredients are usually cooked Cabbage (or cooked spring greens/sprouts) and cooked Onions.Then you can literally add absolutely any leftover cooked vegetables that you desire, i.e peas,sweetcorn, carrots, turnip, parsnip, mushrooms, anything you have left over, as long as they are cooked. (people love this dish so much they cook up vegetables on the weekend morning if no leftover vegetables, just to make the dish for breakfast.

Anyhow, here is how the dish is made:

BUBBLE AND SQUEA\K.

You will need a shallow Frying Pan

Large bowl

A Spatula

Salt and Pepper (preferably black pepper ) for seasoning.

About 1 pound of cooked potato (boiled, roast or mash)

About 1 pound of cooked cabbage spring greens or sprouts

Some cooked onions

Whatever cooked vegetables you wish to add

A good knob of Butter,

Using the oven top to cook this dish,  First, using a large bowl, put in the cooked boiled or roast potatoes, mash them up, Don’t worry about mashing them to perfection, it doesn’t matter with Bubble and Squeak. You are not making a Mash, so small chunks of potato are fine.If you already have Mashed potato, all the better. Next, lob in either leftover cooked Cabbage, Kale, Spring Greens or Sprouts and mash them roughly, with the potato. Now add the cooked Onions (essential for that lovely flavour you want),

After these three ingredients you can add in absolutely any leftover vegetables you may have, as long as they already cooked. Roughly mash them but ensure the potato is still the primary vegetable.

Once you have mixed all your cooked vegetables in the bowl, add Salt and Pepper to taste.

Put the frying pan onto a Medium heat and add a large knob of butter, (about 2/3 ounces) once this melted, swirl it around the frying pan to ensure the bottom of the pan has been covered with the butter.

Tip the Bubble and Squeak into the frying pan and spread it flat it with a spatula.  Let it now cook for 10 minutes without touching it or turning it or poking at it.

Once the 10 minutes are up, gently lift one part of the Bubble and Squeak to check that the underside is crispy and cooked.Don’t worry if parts of the underside is looking a bit black as if it has been overcooked. You are meant to see this effect from being cooked in the butter. I promise you, it hasn’t. burnt.  Now get a large plate that will fit the pan, put it over the Bubble and Squeak and turn it over on to the plate. Then slide it back into the pan to cook the other side for another 10 minutes. When the 10 minutes are up, you can now cut it roughly into how many you require for those having breakfast.

If you prefer to cook this dish as small cakes, once you have mashed everything in the bowl, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and shape your cakes. cook for same time as above.

Of course, because we are so great at multi-tasking, we will have already either fried or poached the eggs or cooked the sausages ready to place on top or beside this delicious British breakfast treat.

Go on, what better way to use up all those left over veggies!