English Chilli-Cheese Savoury
This modern twist brings a new lease of life to a popular North-East English sandwich filling.
The cheese savoury is a popular sandwich filling in the North East of England. It’s essentially a coleslaw, but with the majority of the vegetables replaced with grated cheese! The idea of a ‘savoury’ actually goes back many years in English cookery. A savoury was considered a high class family of dishes, a sort of appetiser served before a main meal. They were often strong-tasting and spicy, usually by the way of mustard or pepper. The idea was to tantalise and excite the palate for the food to come. The cheese savoury survived in the North East of England, and can be still found at many delicatessens and butchers today. It makes a wonderful sandwich with sliced ham or simply on its own. This version stays true to it’s purpose, with a tantalising addition of fresh red chilli and paprika. Besides sandwiches, you could go the traditional route and mould it onto a serving plate surrounded by crackers and crudités. Bring back the savoury. Let’s go!
INGREDIENTS (serves 4-6x)
120g medium-strength cheddar cheese, grated
120g Red Leicester cheese, grated (or use orange coloured cheddar
2 large carrots, grated
4x spring onions, sliced
1-2 red chillies, diced
2-3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tsps Dijon mustard
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1-2 tsps lemon juice
WALKTHROUGH
First let’s grate our hardware. Using a coarse grater, grate the 120g cheddar cheese, 120g Red Leicester (or orange cheddar) and 2 carrots. Add them to a large mixing bowl.
Slice 4x spring onions in coins and dice the 1-2 red chillies into small dice. Add these to the bowl with the cheese and carrots.
To the bowl, add the 2-3 tablespoons of mayonnaise, 2 tsps Dijon mustard, 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp chilli powder, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp salt and 1-2 tsps of lemon juice. Stir until well-combined.
Taste the savoury for seasoning, making adjustments with salt, pepper, chilli or lemon juice. Once made, it can store in the fridge for up to 1 week. Serve it with crackers, in sandwiches or as a chunky salad dressing. Enjoy!