Bubble and Squeak

The first reference to the meal is from a rather surprising source - Thomas Bridges' 'A burlesque translation of Homer', 1770:

"We therefore cooked him up a dish Of lean bull-beef, with cabbage fry'd, ... Bubble, they call this dish, and squeak."

The Homer in that work would be more at home in the Simpsons as in the Iliad, so perhaps it isn't all that surprising. Francis Grose was a collaborator in that work. He goes on to give a definition of 'bubble and squeak' in his 'Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue', 1785, which indicated how the dish got its name:

"Bubble and Squeak, beef and cabbage fried together. It is so called from its bubbling up and squeaking whilst over the fire."

By 1951, and possibly earlier, bubble and squeak lost meat as an ingredient. This may have been due to the rationing in force in the U. K. during WWII, when meat was scarce. This was committed to print in the 1951 edition of the food bible of the day, the Good Housekeeping - Home Encyclopedia:

"In the modern version of bubble and squeak the meat is usually omitted."

Bubble and Squeak Recipe & Cooking Instructions

Bubble and Squeak is a traditional meal served on Monday using leftover potatoes and cabbage from "Sunday Lunch" (Sunday Dinner). Bubble and Squeak is typically served with cold meats (more leftovers from Sunday Lunch) and pickles as an evening meal but is also often served with breakfast with eggs, baked beans, fried tomatoes, sausages, bacon, and perhaps black pudding…a typical fry-up with the bubble and squeak replacing the potatoes or hash browns.

Cooking this dish is easy, you’ll need the following ingredients:

- Approx 1lb of left over boiled, mashed or roasted potatoes
- Approx 1/2lb – 1lb of left over cabbage or brussel sprouts
- A little butter or oil
- salt and black pepper if desired.

(you can adjust the quantities in your recipe for bubble and squeak to suit your personal taste as desired, some people like half as much cabbage as potatoes, some like half and half.)

Now, either mash, or rough chop the potatoes…you can use left over roast potatoes and rough cut them into bitesize chunks but traditionally you mash the potatoes. Chop or break up the cabbage into bitesize pieces too and mix both these together, adding a little salt or pepper to the mixture if desired.

Then, add a little oil or butter to a frying pan or skillet and heat on a medium heat. When the oil/butter is heated, add the cabbage and potatoes and form into a patty and let cook.. You might hear the distinctive squeak which gives bubble and squeak half of its name around this point. The ‘bubble’ part probably comes from the first stage of cooking the potatoes and cabbage which are typically boiled.

When the bottom of the patty turns a golden brown colour you’ll need to flip it over to cook on the other side…and then, you’re done. The only difficult bit about this recipe is turning the sizzling cake over in the pan in order to brown the underside. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. The easiest way is to put a plate or chopping board over the top of the frying pan, tip the pan upside down and shake gently. Making the mixture into small patties is a delightful cheat, or you could simply cook the top under a hot grill to brown it. Whichever way you choose, a golden crust is important as it provides contrast to the soft, mashed potato.

Alternative Bubble and Squeak Recipes

There are lots of alternative ways to cook this very versatile dish. Traditionally, although this has been phased out, the left over cooked beef used to be minced up and added to the Bubble and Squeak and this is still an option you can try. You can also add corned beef or bacon bits for a little extra flavour.

Although cabbage is the traditional vegetable used to partner the potatoes in bubble and squeak, you can also use brussel sprouts, or a combination of other vegetables. Throwing a finely chopped onion into the mix adds a little extra flavour too as will throwing in a few of your favourite herbs and spices.

Experiment, it’s fun…and of course, you do not need left overs to make this dish either, just boil the cabbage and cut into pieces and boil and mash the potatoes and away you go. It’s just more traditional with leftovers.