Who doesn’t love some nice greasy pub food once in a while? This scotch egg recipe will satisfy that craving without sacrificing your health goals. 

This recipe is low carb and basically carnivore. It’s a fun way to turn a classic breakfast meal into an anytime snack, or an on-the-go meal that’s perfect to throw in your lunch box for work. It’s a great recipe to make on the weekend, and your kids can help you! It’s also great as an appetizer, or to bring to parties. Who doesn’t love a scotch egg?

What is a scotch egg?

While many people believe that scotch eggs are a Scottish delicacy, others say that scotch eggs get their name from a process called “scotching” which is referring to the process of mincing the meat before wrapping it around a hard-boiled egg. According to Wikipedia, the culinary history of scotch eggs is over 200 years old. Essentially though, traditional scotch eggs are a soft or hard-boiled egg wrapped with sausage meat and then rolled in breadcrumbs before being deep-fried or baked.

Recipe ingredient substitutions

Sausage substitutions: Instead of using pork sausage from the grocery store, you can use homemade pork sausage, or alternatively you can use ground chicken, ground pork or ground beef. Just make sure that it’s not precooked and that the ground meat or sausage is smooth enough that it can form a solid layer around the egg. Store-bought sausages usually are.

Spice and herb substitutions: Anything will work great here. Instead of garlic and onion, you can use hot sauce, cumin, chili powder, and paprika for more of a taco meat flavor. Alternatively, you could go Italian with oregano, basil, thyme, and rosemary. Or you can even mix in some curry paste and go in a completely opposite direction.

Pork rind substitutions: Instead of using the keto and carnivore friendly pork rinds, you can use almond flour, cassava flour or gluten-free bread crumbs to coat them.

Dietary modifications

Make this recipe lower calorie: Switch out the pork sausage for a more calorie friendly alternative like turkey or chicken sausage.

Make this recipe higher carb: If you’re not following a low carb or keto diet, swap out the pork rind coating for gluten free bread crumbs.

FAQs

Can I use a deep fryer to cook them?

Yes! That’s the typical way to make scotch eggs. Just make sure you use an oil that doesn’t burn easily (like olive oil) and that your hard boiled egg is cooked through so it doesn’t explode. Cook at 365 for 5-7 minutes until golden brown. Once cooked, remove from the fryer and place on paper towel to let them drain off any excess fryer oil.

Can I use those smaller breakfast sausages from the grocery store?

Yes! Just use about 3 of them for each scotch egg. They’re small so you need more of them to get enough meat to cover each egg.

Can I use an instant pot, or slow cooker to make these?

Not this time. In order to get a nice crispy coating while keeping the soft boiled egg center, you’ll need to cook these quickly. I recommend the oven or a deep fryer.

Can I use an air fryer to make these?

Yes! cook at 390 for 12-15 minutes.

Can I fry them in a shallow frying pan?

Probably, but I wouldn’t recommend it because they aren’t a flat patty shape. It will be hard to cook them on each side. If you’ve got a deep cast iron, that could work. You could fill it halfway full of oil so that it’s deep enough to fry a bit of the sides when you turn them. Just make sure to turn each egg around 1-2 minutes per side so that they cook evenly. Also, make sure your heat isn’t too high or your oil and the eggs will burn and smoke. Lastly, be careful. Do not fill your frying pan more than halfway full of oil. It will splash while cooking and you don’t want to start a fire from having too much oil in the pan (or burn yourself!).

What can you use for a scotch egg sauce?

As far as I know there is no standard scotch egg sauce, but from all my experience in eating them, I personally think they taste best with either grainy mustard or some type of mayonnaise-based sauce. You can even mix mayonnaise with mustard to make a creamier and more satisfying sauce! Mind blown. If you don’t like mustard or mayo, feel free to use whatever sauce you like. BBQ sauce would be good, ketchup works! Even salsa would be great!

I don’t like runny egg yolks, can I hard boil my eggs instead?

Yes! Just leave them in the boiling water for 8-10 minutes instead of 6.

Recipe pairings

Garden salad: This recipe is pretty heavy so serve with a garden salad to lighten things up a bit.

Party food for gatherings: Cut each cooked egg into wedges and serve alongside your favorite dips at your next gathering. Serve alongside other favorites such as deviled eggs, meat and cheese plates, or hot artichoke dip.

Tried my recipe for keto paleo scotch eggs?

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You might also like:

If you liked this easy appetizer recipe, check out my other paleo friendly appetizers:

Or my other egg recipes:

Looking for more paleo recipes and meal plans?

I offer a premade 1 month paleo meal plan, as well as a paleo recipe book which comes with 140 recipes in total (35 breakfast recipes, 35 lunch recipes, 35 dinner recipes, and 35 snack/dessert recipes).

Picture of paleo scotch egg with homemade potato chips and mayonnaise for dip

Paleo Scotch Eggs Recipe (Oven Baked)

Tara Klippert
This recipe is gluten free, dairy free, soy free, keto and paleo.
No ratings yet
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Servings 5
Calories 297 kcal

Equipment

  • Food processor or blender
  • Baking sheet
  • Parchment paper
  • Stove
  • Large pot

Ingredients
  

  • 5 large eggs (or medium eggs)
  • 5 large uncooked sausages (or 15 small)

Paleo/gluten free coating

  • 1/4 cup ground pork rinds
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp onion powder

Instructions
 

  • Place the uncooked eggs in a pot of boiling water carefully.
  • Let eggs sit in hot water for 6 minutes until soft cooked.
  • Once cooked, put eggs in ice-cold water to cool them down.
  • Peel the eggs carefully and set aside.
  • Preheat your oven to 400F.
  • In a food processor or blender, grind up your pork rinds. You can also do this with a mortar and pestle.
  • Mix the garlic powder, onion powder, and ground pork rinds in a bowl and set aside.
  • Remove the sausage casing from the uncooked sausages. You can do this by running a knife lengthwise down the side of the sausage. Then you will be able to peel off the casing and remove the meat on the inside.
  • Using your hands, break the sausage mixture apart and reform them into balls (should have 5 balls total, one for each egg).
  • Using the palm of your hand, flatten the sausage balls into disk like shapes.
  • Wet your hands with cool water for the next step. It will help to prevent the sausage from sticking to them.
  • Gently place each cooked egg in the middle of a sausage disk and begin wrapping the sausage around. It may seem like the sausage wont fully enclose the egg, but keep gently pushing and spreading thicker areas around and eventually it will enclose the egg.
  • Once wrapped, roll them in the pork rind mixture to coat.
  • Place wrapped and coated eggs on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
  • Bake for 25 minutes or until sausage is cooked through.
  • Serve immediately and enjoy with your favorite dipping sauces!
  • Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 297kcalCarbohydrates: 0.6gProtein: 27gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 7.5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gCholesterol: 242mgSodium: 164mgPotassium: 72mgFiber: 0gSugar: 0g
Keyword dairy free, gluten free, grain free, keto, paleo, soy free
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About the author Tara Klippert

Tara Klippert is a Registered Health and Nutrition Counselor and holds a diploma in Holistic Nutrition and Health Coaching. She shares her gluten free, dairy free & allergy friendly recipes.