Recipes

Traditional Scottish Stovies

The Daily Meal Staff|

Traditional Scottish Stovies
4 (4 ratings)
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Stovies are a delicious, filling, and traditional Scottish dish. Comfort food at its best.It's a simple, one-pot dish, made on the stove-top (maybe that's where the name came from), and the must-have ingredients are potatoes, onions, salt, and pepper.But one of the special things about this tasty dinner is that there isn't just one set of ingredients or one way to make them. Different regions of Scotland, and even individual families, have their own favorite way to prepare them.-Scottish At HeartThis recipe is courtesy of Scottish At Heart.
Servings
4
Stovies
Ingredients
  • 3 pound potatoes (roughly four or five large ones)
  • 2 onions
  • 8 sausages (or approximately half a pound of cooked meat)
  • salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
  1. Peel and slice potatoes (making slices approximately 1/4 inches thick). Chop onions roughly (not diced or too small).
  2. Mix the potatoes and onions together and season with salt and pepper. Put this mixture into a heavy saucepan with a little cold water in the bottom (maybe about 1/4 inch deep).
  3. Cut up the sausages and arrange them on top of the potatoes. Put the lid on the pot and heat up slowly. Once heated through, set the heat on "low-medium" and cook for about 30 minutes.
  4. Stovies are cooked by the "steaming" method, so you don't want to lift the pot lid more than necessary. We'd suggest opening maybe 2 or 3 times during the cooking process so that you can stir, or mix up, the ingredients — but make it quick!
  5. As always when trying something new, there may be a bit of "trial and error" before you get your recipe to turn out to your liking.
  6. Some people like them "juicy" (with some gravy); others (like us) prefer them "dry." It's all just personal taste.
  7. Extra Tips: You don't want the potatoes on the bottom to burn, so keep an eye on them and add a tiny bit more water if you think they're drying out too much.
  8. You can add many different types of vegetables. Try carrots, turnip (or swede), peas, cauliflower... whatever you like, really!
  9. Using stock or broth instead of plain water adds a little extra flavor.
  10. If you're using leftover meat, you can also add a couple of tablespoons of the "dripping" (fat from the meat) and heat it up before adding the potatoes and onions. That way you can fry them a little first.
  11. Any leftover stovies can be frozen, and they reheat well in the microwave.
 
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