Bubble and squeak cakes with poached eggs and mustard sauce
Serves: 2
Prep time: 15 minsTotal time: 
Photograph by Dan Jones
Bubble and squeak cakes with poached eggs and mustard sauce
Serves: 2
Prep time: 15 minsTotal time: 
See more recipes
Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
668Kcal
Fat
48gr
Saturates
21gr
Carbs
33gr
Sugars
4gr
Fibre
8gr
Protein
25gr
Salt
1.7gr
Debbie Major
Cook, writer and food stylist, Debbie's reputation for foolproof, delicious recipes is second to none. She is renowned for her dedication to seasonal home cooking and her love of all things rustic and authentic. Simplicity over cheffy is her motto!
See more of Debbie Major’s recipes
Debbie Major
Cook, writer and food stylist, Debbie's reputation for foolproof, delicious recipes is second to none. She is renowned for her dedication to seasonal home cooking and her love of all things rustic and authentic. Simplicity over cheffy is her motto!
See more of Debbie Major’s recipes
Ingredients
- 350g cooked floury potatoes or ready-made mashed potato
- 225g cooked greens or frozen peas, defrosted
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ large leek, thinly sliced
- a knob of butter
- 2-4 medium eggs
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar
For the mustard sauce
- 150ml vegetable stock or light chicken stock
- 2½ tbsp dry white wine
- 2 tbsp double cream
- 25g butter, plus 1 extra tsp
- ½ tsp plain flour
- 1 tsp wholegrain mustard
Step by step
Get ahead
Make the bubble and squeak cakes up to a day ahead; cover and chill. Make the sauce a few hours ahead; reheat very gently.
- Make sure both the potatoes and the greens are very dry, to ensure that the bubble and squeak cakes become crispy. If the potatoes aren't already mashed, mash them with the back of a fork into a coarse purée. If using greens, chop them into small pieces.
- Heat ½ tablespoon of the olive oil in a small frying pan. Add the sliced leek and cook for 3 minutes, stirring until lightly browned. Mix the cooked leek, mashed potato, greens and seasoning in a bowl. Shape the mixture into 4 discs, about 2.5cm thick; chill for 1 hour.
- Next, make the sauce. Put the vegetable or chicken stock, wine, double cream and the 25g butter into a medium-sized saucepan, bring to the boil and bubble rapidly for 7-8 minutes until it has reduced by about three-quarters and is the consistency of single cream. Mix the teaspoon of butter with the flour into a smooth paste. Whisk into the sauce and simmer for 1-2 minutes. Keep warm, but don't overheat it or the sauce will split.
- Heat the remaining oil and knob of butter in a large, nonstick frying pan. Fry the bubble and squeak cakes over a medium heat for 4-5 minutes on each side, until crisp and really golden.
- Meanwhile, poach the eggs (one or two per person) in a large pan of gently simmering salted water (add a teaspoon of white wine vinegar) for about 3 minutes, then lift them out with a slotted spoon and drain briefly on kitchen paper.
- Reheat the sauce, whisk in the wholegrain mustard and season to taste; serve with the bubble and squeak cakes and the poached eggs.
