Bangers And Mash With Stout Onion Gravy Recipe

You'd be hard pressed to find a more quintessentially British dish than bangers and mash. This meal is considered to be one of the top comfort foods in the U.K., and it is enjoyed up and down the country served in both pubs and homes alike. The term bangers and mash has a WWI-era origin, back when sausages had a more explosive tendency due to the sheer amount of filler that was packed inside of them. Thankfully, British sausages are much less explosive these days, but they are still just as delicious.

This bangers and mash with stout onion gravy comes straight from the kitchen of Tasting Table's British recipe developer Jennine Rye, who grew up on this classic comfort dish. Although, in essence, the meal is quite simple — mashed potatoes served with pan-fried sausages — there is an art to finishing this dish well, and the addition of a stout-based onion gravy adds a delicious richness which pairs perfectly with the juicy pork sausages and creamy, buttery mashed potatoes.

Though often served with a drizzle of rich onion gravy, bangers and mash is sometimes also served more simply with a side of peas or baked beans. So, if you are looking for a slightly quicker version of this meal, you can always try those serving options instead.

To begin this bangers and mash with stout onion gravy recipe, first you will need to gather the ingredients. You will want butter, onions, sugar, a bay leaf, thyme, flour, Guinness, beef stock, marmite, cooking oil, pork and apple sausages, potatoes, milk, nutmeg, and salt and pepper.

Heat a frying pan to a medium heat and add 2 tablespoons butter.

Add the sliced onions to the butter, along with the sugar, bay leaf, and thyme, and saute for 20 minutes until soft and starting to caramelize.

Stir in the flour to thoroughly coat the onions.

Pour in the stout and the beef stock and bring to a gentle simmer.

Stir in the marmite, and simmer everything for 5 to 10 minutes or so until the gravy is thick. Then take off the heat and set aside.

Add the peeled, diced potatoes to a large pan of salted water and boil for 10 to 12 minutes until soft.

Meanwhile, add the cooking oil and sausages to a frying pan over medium heat.

Fry the sausages for about 14 minutes, until they are golden brown and cooked through.

When the potatoes are cooked, drain them through a colander.

Mash the potatoes well with a potato masher or ricer.

Add 3 tablespoons of butter, the milk, salt and pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg to the potatoes and mix to form a creamy mash.

Serve the bangers and mash hot with a healthy drizzle of warm onion gravy.

There are plenty of ways to easily switch up this classic British dish of sausage and mash, according to any dietary requirements, or your personal preferences. To make this dish gluten-free, simply swap out the flour for a gluten-free variety, make sure to use a gluten-free stout, and omit the marmite. Alternatively, if you cannot consume marmite or your local supermarket doesn't stock it, soy sauce can make a great replacement. To make this recipe dairy-free, all you will need to do is swap out the butter and the milk for your preferred dairy-free version.This bangers and mash recipe can also easily be made vegetarian by swapping out the pork sausages for a meat-free variety, and substituting the beef stock for a mushroom stock instead.

For flavor varieties, why not add mushrooms to the sauce along with the onions, or experiment with different kinds of beer in the gravy? Alternatively, the beer can be swapped with red wine for a richer finish to the gravy. Another simple way to adapt this recipe is by changing the type of sausage used. There are many types of sausages, whether they be pork-based, chicken, or venison sausages for a different protein option.

Bangers and mash is a great, simple, yet wildly comforting dish that you will come back to time and time again. If you happen to end up with any leftovers, these can easily be safely stored in the fridge for up to three days. Just make sure to cover the individual components of the dish well, or transfer them to airtight containers, before placing them in the fridge to be consumed at a later date. It's always a worthwhile habit to label your containers with the date they were added to the fridge, to help keep track of how long they have been stored. While cooked sausages can easily be stored in the fridge (and they make a delicious sandwich filler the day after) we would recommend ideally cooking only as many sausages as you think you will consume. This is due to sausages being at their absolute best when they are fresh out of the frying pan.

Each component of this recipe can also be frozen, and this is also a great way to save any leftovers for a later date. The onions in the onion gravy will change texture slightly, but the richness of the flavor will remain the same.