Unless you’re British, you probably don’t know what a “butty” is. Wiki says it’s another word for sandwich, but that’s incorrect, I’m afraid.
A butty is a sandwich (a filling between two slices of bread), but a sandwich is not usually a butty. “Butty” has a much narrower definition than sandwich does.
Mr Thrifty was extensively questioned on this, and after much consideration and deliberation, he issued the following statement:
There are two types of butty: The Chip Butty and The Bacon Butty. Anything else between two pieces of bread is merely a sandwich.
The Chip Butty is a sandwich made from two slices of untoasted bread (or an untoasted roll) plus fresh-cooked chips — and may I stress that I am talking about “proper” chips, not crisps or french fries. The bread may be spread with margarine or mayonnaise, and salt, vinegar and ketchup may be used. As simple as it may sound, I can assure you The Chip Butty is delicious.
This morning I made hashbrowns for breakfast, served on toast that had been spread with vegan mayo, and topped with ketchup. Was this a butty, I asked Mr Thrifty. He frowned. I pointed out the similarities between my hashbrown creation and The Chip Butty. Fried potatoes on bread. Ketchup. Mayo. Surely there could be some flexibility in the interpretation.
Mr Thrifty tasted. He got that gleam in his eye that he gets when he tries something he really really likes.
Yes, he declared, this tasty morsel of potatoey goodness was worthy of the “butty” moniker.
And thus The Hashbrown Butty was born.
Hashbrown butties
| British | American | |||
| 220g | potatoes | 1/2 pound | ||
| 1 | small shallot, minced | 1 | ||
| 1-1/2 tablespoons | olive oil | 1-1/2 tablespoons | ||
| salt and freshly ground pepper to taste | ||||
| 2 | slices of bread | 2 | ||
| ketchup and vegan mayo |
1. Peel potatoes and shred them. Spread on a plate and sprinkle lightly with salt. Let stand five minutes.
2. Mince shallot.
3. When potatoes have sat for five minutes, take handfuls and squeeze them as hard as you can to extract as much moisture as possible. Mix with minced shallots.
4. Heat olive oil in a heavy frypan over medium heat. When hot, add potatoes and spread into a thin, even layer. Add salt and pepper to taste. Fry until golden on one side then flip over to brown other side. You’ll probably have to cut the giant hashbrown in pieces to do this.
5. When hashbrown is done, toast bread. Spread with vegan mayo. Top with hashbrowns and ketchup.
Makes two servings.
God I want to eat that butty right now!!