If you’re a fan of EastEnders, then you’ll likely be familiar with Jean Slater’s (Gillian Wright) signature dish: Sausage Surprise!
But, have you ever wondered how to make this mysterious meal? Now you can.
As part of the celebrations for the soap’s 40th anniversary, BBC Food have released the recipe for Jean’s iconic dish, so fans can make it at home.
The dish takes just 30 minutes to prepare, and up to an hour to cook, and serves four people.
‘In celebration of EastEnders’ 40th anniversary, Jean brings you her signature dish, the sausage surprise,’ the description says.
‘The dish has evolved over the years, and Jean sometimes serves it without the mash, baking the sausages in the casserole. This makes it more transportable, too.’
As an extra touch, Jean even got her own author bio on the site, which read: ‘Jean Slater is a great-grandmother from Walford, East London, and a much-loved member of her community.
‘She is known for her signature dish “Sausage Surprise!”, though the recipe has been a best-kept secret, even from her own family. Jean is a passionate knitter and enjoys flower-arranging.
Sausage Surprise recipe
Ingredients
For the mash
- 1kg/2lb 4oz Maris Piper potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks
- 4 tbsp milk
- knob of butter
- 75g/2¾ oz cheddar, grated
For the filling
1 tbsp treacle
2 tbsp vegetable oil
8 pork sausages
1 large onion, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
400g tin baked beans in tomato sauce
400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce or brown sauce
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4.
- Put the potatoes in a large pan of salted water, bring to the boil and cook for 15 minutes or until soft.
- Drain the potatoes in a sieve. Melt the butter and milk in the pan and add the potatoes. Mash until smooth. Stir in half the grated cheddar and set aside.
- Meanwhile, add the oil to a frying pan and fry the onion, pepper and carrot over a medium heat for 10 minutes until the vegetables are softened and starting to brown a bit.
- Add the tin of tomatoes, beans, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, mustard and treacle. Stir and simmer together for 5 minutes.
- Transfer the mixture to a deep ovenproof casserole dish. Spoon the mash over the top to cover.
- Put the casserole on a baking tray and pop into the oven for 20 minutes.
- Preheat the grill to high. Add the sausages to the grill pan and grill for 15 minutes, turning often, until the sausages are browned all over.
- Remove the casserole from the oven and poke the sausages in so they are jumping out of the mash saying “surprise!”. Cover the mash with the remaining grated cheese.
- Bake for a further 15 minutes until the mash is crispy and golden and the beans are bubbling.
‘Her favourite singer is Cliff Richard, and she’s also a big fan of The Beach Boys.’
We’re obsessed.
EastEnders has gone all out to celebrate turning the big 40, with unexpected returns, special spin-offs and, of course, the highly anticipated live episode.
Denise decides, you choose. How to vote
To access the vote, viewers must have a BBC Account. You can register for an account at BBC.co.uk/account, on or before February 19.
The vote will officially open at 8:30pm on Wednesday February 19 at BBC.co.uk/EastEnders. It will close at 7:10pm on Thursday February 20, so the result can be incorporated into the live episode, which will broadcast at 7:30pm from BBC Elstree Centre that very evening.
For the first time in soap history, viewers will get to choose the outcome of a storyline, with the results of the public vote being revealed during the live ep.
As Denise Fox (Diane Parish) is forced to choose between Ravi Gulati (Aaron Thiara) and Jack Branning (Scott Maslen), it is the viewers who will make the final decision.
The anniversary week will also see Cindy Beale’s (Michelle Collins) attacker finally revealed, as well as a huge explosion in the Queen Vic, leaving countless lives at risk.
Who will make it out alive?
