Bubble and Squeak (British Potato Cakes)

Bubble and squeak might sound like an unusual name for a meal, but this traditional British dish is so easy, comforting and delicious, you’ll soon forgive the name. Plus it’s the perfect recipe to use up leftover vegetables.

British cooking has its fair share of strange-sounding names for foods: spotted dick, toad in the hole, and Yorkshire pudding (which is savory) among them. If you haven’t come across bubble and squeak before now, then it’s another to add to the list. And another that you need to try!

Why is bubble and squeak called bubble and squeak?

The origins of the name are unclear, and the ingredients of this dish can vary a lot as well.

Some believe the name “bubble and squeak” comes from the bubbling up and noise as the vegetables are cooking over the fire.

What is bubble and squeak?

What is clear is that this dish is fried leftover vegetables. 

It is a typical way of using the leftovers after a traditional Sunday roast dinner or Christmas dinner. Since both of these meals would pretty much always include potatoes, that’s the one ingredient that is always consistent in bubble and squeak.

Mashed potato acts as the ‘glue’ for the other ingredients, which can be cooked cabbage, Brussels sprouts, or sometimes carrots and/or peas. Many versions add some meat as well, whether that’s leftover roast or some bacon cooked in the pan before you add the rest of the ingredients.

Bubble and squeak: a unique recipe to make with leftovers

There are, of course, many ways to use leftover vegetables, so you may be wondering what makes this dish special. The answer is that in bubble and squeak, the vegetables are always fried.

Then, you need to leave things alone in the skillet to cook long enough to get the bottom a bit browned and crispy. (Kind of like a hash, but with mashed potatoes that hold the other vegetables together, making it more like a thick, vegetable pancake.) 

Often, it is made as one large cake in a small to medium skillet, but you can also make smaller patties.

If you cook it all as one, you typically stir things as you go to warm it all through before then pressing it down to crisp up on the bottom. If in patties, you leave them so they don’t fall apart then flip them once browned.

What is the difference between colcannon and bubble and squeak?

In case you are thinking this dish looks a bit familiar, just not with this name, that’s quite possible.

This dish is very typical in England but is similar to other dishes that are popular in Ireland and Scotland.

Probably the best known is colcannon from Ireland, which is a popular side to corned beef for a St Patrick’s Day meal, particularly in the United States. Colcannon is still relatively popular in Ireland, particularly as a way to use up leftover mashed potatoes.

Colcannon is made with mashed potatoes and cabbage or kale, as well as typically leeks.

Unlike bubble and squeak, colcannon is much creamier in texture, more like mashed potatoes with vegetables mixed in than the vegetable pancake of bubble and squeak. 

Similar recipes to use leftover vegetables and potatoes

There is also a Scottish dish that is similar to bubble and squeak called rumbledethumps.

Like colcannon, this dish is made with mashed potatoes and usually cabbage or kale and onion. Swede can also be added, which is a common vegetable in Scotland (although less popular now).

Rumbledethumps is generally made as a casserole so that the top crisps up.

Another popular ways to use leftover potatoes are to make potato pancakes or potato farl as they are known in Scotland. (In Switzerland, Potato pancakes are called rosti.) These make a great component to a traditional fried breakfast (alongside bacon, sausages, fried tomato, and egg).

When would you typically eat bubble and squeak?

This dish can be served as a hearty breakfast, often topped with an egg.

Alternatively, it can be a main meal in itself or served as a side to some leftover roast meat.

Since a roast dinner (often involving roast beef or lamb alongside roasted or mashed potatoes and other vegetables) is common on Sundays in England, this dish is a classic Monday meal.

Bubble and squeak for Boxing Day

It’s also something many associate with Boxing Day to use up leftovers from Christmas dinner. (Boxing day is celebrated in the UK and other countries with British influence on the day after Christmas.) 

In the UK, a traditional Christmas meal is very similar to an American Thanksgiving meal. You typically serve turkey with potatoes (most commonly roasted), one or more types of stuffing, and Brussels sprouts.

Bubble and squeak is a tasty, hearty dish that’s a great way to use up leftovers. It’s also so versatile in when you can serve it and what exactly goes in it.

So give it a try, and adapt it often!