Jackson Jambalaya

Thousands of Englishmen have bangered and mashed their way past their ups and downs with a pint or two in their favorite pub accompanied by  today's featured treat. Let's start with the story of one guy who failed more than once to get his favorite pub meal.

A very drunk Nigel, staggered through the front door of his favorite pub and fell to the floor while trying to take his seat at the bar. Finally, he got up and address the bartender, "Good evening, Madge. I'll have a pint of Guinness with Bangers and Mash. Madge shook her head before saying, "I can't serve you, Nigel, you're too drunk."  He staggered away in defeat. A few minutes later, he came in through the back door of the pub and slurred, "Hello Madge. Give me a pint of Guinness with Bangers and Mash," and she repeated, "No way, Nigel, you're too drunk" Five minutes later he crawled through the bathroom window, entered the pub through the toilet door, and asked Madge for a pint of Guinness with Bangers and Mash. Again, she said, "Sorry Nigel. You’re just too drunk." Nigel scratched his head and said, "Blimey Madge, how many pubs do you work at?"

Bangers and Mash

The dish, known as Bangers and Mash is a traditional pub comfort food across Great Britain with origins going back well before WWII. Like most pub food, it is easy to make, always satisfying and sure to please anyone who likes pork sausage, potatoes, and onion gravy. Here is how I do it. 

This is most of what you will need:

Mash

Ingredients:

4 Medium/large red or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces.
Salted water for boiling
3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup milk, or heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

Peel and cut the potatoes into 2 – 2.5 inch pieces.

Boil in salted water (2 teaspoons salt). Use enough water to cover the potatoes by one to two inches.

Boil the potatoes for 15-20 minutes. When the potatoes are fork tender (do not over-cook), remove from heat, and drain, then return to the hot boiler or to a bowl. I like black pepper, so why not go ahead and add some?

Add butter and a little black pepper (again? sure!) to the hot potatoes and mash with a potato masher or ricer until you achieve the consistency desired (smooth or slightly lumped). Try not to over mash the potatoes, which tends to make them gummy. Using a potato ricer will help make mashed potatoes that are not gummy but avoids the lumps I love so much in my mash.

I like my mash with lumps and thick, with butter and a little heavy cream for flavor. After mashing, taste and season with salt and maybe a little more black pepper as desired.

Bangers

Cumberland Sausages, named for the Cumberland region of north England, are the traditional sausage used in most British pubs that serve this dish. It is fine to use any good pork sausage if Cumberland Sausages are not available. I have no idea where to pick up Cumberland Sausages in Mississippi, so I use Bratwurst sausage for this dish. It is readily available and I think the seasoning used in bratwurst goes better with the onion gravy used in this dish. If you can find a butcher case that stocks Cumberland Sausage, using it will make a fully traditional dish.

To Cook the Bangers:

Add a little oil to a suitably sized skillet and heat to medium high. Add the sausages 

and cook until browned on all sides. 

The term “Banger” probably came from the tendency of cased sausages with bread filler and increased levels of water to split open, or “Bang” as they cook. When the sausages have browned nicely, remove them from the skillet and set aside, since the onion gravy will be prepared in the same pan used to cook the sausage.

Onion Gravy:

Ingredients:

1/2 stick unsalted butter 
2 large onions, peeled, cut in half, and thinly sliced
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons AP flour
1 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon sage
2 cups beef broth
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon grainy mustard
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 Tablespoon dark balsamic vinegar
1 Tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in 1 Tablespoon water
2 Tablespoons cold unsalted butter

Directions:

This is a British Gravy, probably using some ingredients you don’t normally add to your brown gravy. Melt the butter at medium heat in the saucepan used to cook the Bangers. Add the sliced onions and cook for about 30 minutes until they are caramelized (deep golden). 

I removed the onions, added the oil and flour and browned it to make a medium (not too dark) roux.

Then I returned the onions and added the beef stock, mustard, salt, pepper, Balsamic vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce. I brought this to a boil, reduced the heat to a low simmer and simmered, covered, for 20 minutes.

Whisk in the corn starch, and simmer another minute or two until thickened, whisking continuously. Then add the cold butter and whisk until dissolved. Add salt and pepper to taste and more mustard and Balsamic if desired.

It might be British, but this is a tasty onion gravy.

The Vegetable side dish:

Traditionally, Bangers and Mash are served with green peas and since they are a favorite at our house, we go with frozen (English) peas with a little salt, sugar and oil in the water, cooking them at a low boil with a lid until they are tender – for about 20-30 minutes.

Plating:

Portion the mashed potatoes onto the plate, cover with gravy and place bangers on top of the gravy, or alongside, as desired. If you like, green peas, steamed or roasted carrots, or whole kernel corn also make a nice vegetable accompaniment. Mixed peas, corn, carrots, and green beans or a side salad will also work with this dish. 

Beverage

This is America. Have what you like. My sons are fans of Guinness, but I prefer Diet Dr. Pepper.

 Thanks for looking at my post.

God Bless You