Slater's Classic Bangers and Mash

We're celebrating Classic British fare over at I Heart Cooking Clubs this week so I cooked up a batch of Bangers and Mash.  The term "bangers" derives from a time when sausages were made with more water and had a tendency to explode if not cooked carefully.  Nigel has a few cook's tricks I've shared below to keep your sausages from splitting or exploding. 

My family loves a classic sausage and potato dish and this dish was well loved by all.  The flavor of the onion gravy marries perfectly with the sausages and mashed potatoes.  I'm also a fan of adding a little mustard to the sausages for a little more flavor.  A delicious and quick meal that the whole family enjoyed!

Classic Bangers and Mash

Recipe adapted via The Guardian

by Nigel Slater

Serves 4

Lightly brown a couple of decent butcher's sausages per person in a little fat or oil in a heavy pan (I prefer cast iron). Push them to one side and cook a peeled and quartered onion for each person, broken into layers, on the other side of the pan. Keep the pieces of onion quite large. Once they are deep gold and caramelized, sprinkle over a generous dusting of flour and allow to brown very lightly. Pour in about 125ml of rich stock per person, bring to the boil, season, then simmer for 20 minutes. To make the mash, boil the potatoes (I used medium potato per person) in lightly salted water or steam them till tender enough to mash. Use a thick slice of butter per person (I also added a couple tablespoons of mascarpone cheese), and beat till light and fluffy. Serve with the sausages and onion gravy.

Cook's Trick: Cooking sausages slowly will stop them splitting and allow a good, sticky coat to develop on their skins. Once the sausages are nicely browned you can let them finish cooking in the gravy. After crushing the potatoes with a potato masher, beat them again with a wooden spoon to incorporate some air and make them light and fluffy. Keep the onions in large pieces and let them cook slowly, allowing their edges to caramelise before adding the flour.

For a little Twist: Stir a little grain or smooth Dijon mustard into the sauce. Use Madeira or dry Marsala in place of some of the stock. Add a couple of sage leaves to the sauce. Mushrooms, quartered and fried off in a little butter and stirred into the gravy, would be something to consider, as would a little grated horseradish root.

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