From yesterday’s leftover mashed potatoes to this easy bubble and squeak leftover potato cakes, this classic British breakfast recipe is hearty, healthy, delicious, and comforting. Best of all, it is excellent as a side or a vegetarian main dish too.
Throwing away food is wasteful, and I cannot stand it. It is one of my biggest pet peeves. And if you cannot eat the leftovers of the same dish three days in a row, then have no fear! I have explored the deep depths of the culinary world to find solutions. Repurposing ingredients into entirely different meals will do just the trick!
With a little imagination and brainstorming, you’ll be able to come up with a delicious, unique recipe. I feel like leftover vegetables from a roast might be a little hard to reconstruct into an entirely different dish from the original. Have no fear: bubble and squeak cake is here to save the day!
What a name right? Trust me, I was a little (a lot) confused when someone had first told me about this. Turns out, this silly-sounding cake is a traditional breakfast in the United Kingdom. The dish must include potatoes and cabbage, but beyond that, you can use any leftover vegetables. You essentially mix it all together, coat in flour, and then fry it in a pan.
What to serve with bubble and squeak?
It’s traditional to serve your bubble and squeak potato cakes with some leftover meat from the night before, or you can make it a side to any full breakfast. I love to serve this up with a poached or fried egg on top, some sausage on the side and then pour gravy over the entire plate. Hungry yet? 😉
Now, I can’t say I haven’t made this breakfast before, and then immediately wanted to fall back asleep. Maybe you could save this type of breakfast for the weekends, even though it is traditionally served on Mondays after a Sunday roast.
I usually have a few indulgent recipes for weekend breakfast, such as my pound cake recipe. Thanks to me you can have dessert for breakfast, or you can have dessert for breakfast. Beats that usual cup or three of black coffee that some of us tend to call a “breakfast.”
Bubble and Squeak Origin
The “bubble and squeak” comes from the little noises cabbage makes when you cook it. I just couldn’t imagine sitting down at a diner or breakfast place and seeing that on the menu! Some people call them Scottish or British Potato Cakes, but I think that takes all of the fun out of it!
Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue’, 1785, indicates how the dish got its name:
“Bubble and Squeak, beef and cabbage fried together. It is so called from its bubbling up and squeaking whilst over the fire.”
As I have mentioned before, I absolutely hate wasting food. Another reason why I love these leftover potato cakes is that you can freeze the extra mixture. If you don’t plan on eating it all, save it for a few days down the road. Once you divide the mixture into portions and flatten into little patties, just decide how many you need or want to make. Wrap the rest of them in plastic, put in a freezer bag and freeze!
You have a couple of options when you make your bubble and squeak:
You can cook it as one big frittata-like dish, or you can make little cakes. As with my cheesecakes, malva pudding, and other recipes, I love to divide them up into small portions. For one, little food is cute. Secondly, I sort of preach that it helps with portion control. However, I cannot say that you won’t eat multiple of them in one sitting.
As always, I encourage you to experiment with this recipe. You are essentially frying together some potatoes and vegetables and have room for more flavors and textures! Try adding some panko breadcrumbs, a dash of your favorite seasoning blend, bacon or cheese to the mixture.
Whatever you decide to do, you might start taking after me, and purposely buying an excess of vegetables so that you can make these with the leftovers! They’re that good!
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This #easy and #healthy recipe for British bubble and squeak cakes is made from yesterday's #leftover mashed potatoes and #vegetables. #recipe #cakes Click To Tweet
~ Free Tip ~
- Add any leftover cooked vegetables to the mashed potatoes.
- Crumble crispy bacon bits into the potato mix.
- Bake as one big cake and then portion it out.
How to Make Bubble and Squeak Leftover Potato Cakes:
- Mix mashed potatoes with cooked vegetables. Add onions, salt, pepper, and cumin and mix to combine.
- Form the potato mixture into 8 cakes and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to firm up. Dip each cake into the flour to coat lightly.
- Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a wide based frying pan. Gently place cakes into the hot oil (fry in batches if necessary). Fry for 3-4 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
- Serve with a poached or fried egg, bacon, or breakfast sausage. Garnish with chopped green onions.
Bubble and Squeak Leftover Potato Cakes Recipe
INGREDIENTS:
- 3-4 cups leftover mashed potato
- 2 cups cooked Brussels sprouts or cabbage sliced or chopped
- 1/2 cup carrots cooked and diced (optional)
- 4 chopped spring onions plus extra for garnish
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin optional
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- Oil for frying
DIRECTIONS:
- Mix mashed potatoes with cooked vegetables. Add onions, salt, pepper, and cumin and mix to combine.
- Form the potato mixture into 8 cakes and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to firm up. Dip each cake into the flour to coat lightly.
- Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a wide based frying pan. Gently place cakes into the hot oil (fry in batches if necessary). Fry for 3-4 minutes on each side or until golden brown.
- Serve with a poached or fried egg, bacon, or breakfast sausage. Garnish with chopped green onions.
RECIPE NOTES:
- Add any leftover cooked vegetables to the mashed potatoes.
- Add crispy bacon bits into the potato mix.
- Bake as one big cake and then portion it out.
NUTRITIONS:
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Jas
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Ron
September 18, 2018 at 8:21 amWe have Bubbles and Squeak every Boxing Day, served with poached egg and lox. It’s a tradition that we’ve had for years, but I’ve never made them with cumin. That might be interesting. Maybe I’ll make a test run with cumin prior to Boxing Day.
Jas
September 18, 2018 at 2:49 pmOh, I would love it with lox! You can use any spice you like, Ron. I also sometimes add a bit of nutmeg instead of cumin. Don’t wait till Boxing Day to give it a try! 🙂
passion fruit, paws and peonies
September 21, 2018 at 12:42 pmThis is just my kind of brunch! I hadn’t thought of cumin. Thanks for the recipe, I’m pinning xx Maria
Jas
September 23, 2018 at 7:51 amCumin, nutmeg, curry, or turmeric…all would be wonderful spices to add. Thanks for stopping in, Maria! x
kunstkitchen
September 21, 2018 at 6:08 pmVery clever meal I would love that meal.
Jas
September 23, 2018 at 7:53 amGlad you like it! 😀
applytofaceblog
September 23, 2018 at 3:11 amGosh what a wonderful recipe. I LOVE the egg on top and I would so have it for a leisurely breakfast at the weekend. So tasty as well as thrifty.Pinned! Thankyou for sharing with #FiestaFriday
Jas
September 23, 2018 at 7:59 amI like that you described it as “thrifty”. Haven’t thought of that word, but it’s exactly that. 😀 Thank you, Jen!
goatsandgreens
September 23, 2018 at 8:53 amI totally love to re-purpose leftovers into (almost) completely new meals. This one is a perfect suggestion and recipe!
Jas
September 24, 2018 at 9:00 pmNothing goes wasted in my house 🙂
helenfern
September 23, 2018 at 9:00 pmNot only sounds delicious- it sounds fun! Thanks for sharing at the What’s for Dinner party!
Jas
September 24, 2018 at 9:01 pmIt sure does, such a fun name! 😀
Amy
September 23, 2018 at 9:29 pmThis sounds so good. I like cabbage and this just sounds wonderful. I like the idea of a poached egg on top. Thank you for sharing at Over the Moon.
Jas
September 24, 2018 at 8:50 pmThank you, Amy! Glad you like it 🙂
eclecticredbarnBeverly
September 23, 2018 at 9:58 pmWhat a great way to use leftovers. I adore the name. I don’t like poached eggs so I will have to try something else.
Thanks for sharing at Over The Moon party. Pinned.
Hugs,
Bev
Jas
September 24, 2018 at 8:49 pmThanks, Bev! Over-hard for me, but poached looks better for the photo, lol. 😉
Claire Rocks
September 24, 2018 at 3:42 pmthese look divine! I absolutely love bubble and squeak!
Jas
September 24, 2018 at 9:02 pmHi, Claire! It’s such a fun and delicious dish. Easy too! 🙂
Kerrie
September 25, 2018 at 8:02 amOh my goodness I haven’t had bubble and squeak for so long!! I must give it a try!
Jas
September 26, 2018 at 9:45 amSo you already know how good it is 😀 x
Jann Olson
September 28, 2018 at 4:04 pmI have never heard of Bubble and Squeak before, but I love the name! My mom did, however make potato cakes when I was a kid. Always loved them. the poached egg sounds wonderful on top! Thanks for sharing with SYC.
hugs,
Jann
Jas
September 29, 2018 at 10:41 pmI think they’re pretty similar, Jann. The Brits gave it a funny name. 🙂
marymtf
September 29, 2018 at 9:23 pmJas, I had no leftovers, but I got some veggies together and cooked them. The little patties are sitting in the fridge firming up as we speak. I’ll let you know how it went. 🙂
Jas
September 29, 2018 at 10:43 pmAwesome! Hope you like them. 🙂
marymtf
September 29, 2018 at 10:36 pmSizzling beautifully on the stove top, Jas. I think that firming them up in the fridge has done the trick.
Jas
September 29, 2018 at 10:44 pmThat’s wonderful, Mary! Did you enjoy them??
marymtf
September 29, 2018 at 11:21 pmMade them for my husband, but I did manage to score one. It was delicious. Thanks, Jas.
Jas
September 30, 2018 at 11:40 pmGlad to hear it! Thanks for giving it a try! 😀
marilyn1998
September 30, 2018 at 6:51 pmCongratulations! Your post was my Most Clicked at #OverTheMoon this week. Visit me on Sunday evening and to see your feature! I invite you to leave more links to be shared and commented upon. https://www.marilynstreats.com. Please be sure to leave your link number or post title so we can be sure to visit!
Jas
September 30, 2018 at 11:21 pmThank you so much, Marilyn! You made my day 🙂
sageandivydesigns
September 30, 2018 at 10:38 pmGreat recipe. I cannot wait to serve it for breakfast. Happy Fall, Kippi
Jas
September 30, 2018 at 11:20 pmHappy October, Kippi! Hope you like these little savory cakes.
Miz Helen
October 1, 2018 at 10:01 amYour Bubble & Squeak Potato Cakes look delicious! Thanks so much for sharing with us at Full Plate Thursday and have a great week!
Miz Helen
Jas
October 2, 2018 at 5:04 pmThank you heaps, Miz Helen!
Jodie Fitz
October 2, 2018 at 2:29 pmLOVE leftover ideas. These look super delish and, I just bought a brand new egg poaching pan = bonus!
Thanks for sharing at Reader Tip Tuesday – so hope to see you at this week’s party. Your layered cake is a feature xo
http://www.jodiefitz.com/2018/10/02/reader-tip-tuesday-weeks-craft-recipe-party-14-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2/
Jas
October 2, 2018 at 5:06 pmSuper happy you like it, Jodie! And thank you for the feature. You made my day! 🙂