The upscale London department store, Fortnum & Mason, claims to have created the savory snack in the mid 18th century, catering to the well-to-do travelers passing through Piccadilly Square, touting it as a handy portable snack. However this claim has been disputed, as some gather the dish to have begun as a poor man’s lunch, believing the scotch egg to be a relative to the Cornish pasty and consumed by Scottish farmers.

Another intriguing theory is that of the Nargisi kofta, which consists of a hard-boiled egg encased in minced meat, fried and served in a gravy. Thanks to the establishment of the East India Company in the early 17th century, flavors and dishes were making their way from India to England and it is theorized that the Nargisi kofta hitched a ride.

Unsurprisingly, many cultures have their own version of the classic UK snack. A Guardian article; Scotch eggs around the world — it has never been just a British thing describes a number of countries who have dishes similar to the scotch egg. The Polish Jaskółcze gniazda (swallow’s nest), the Dutch-Flemish vogelnestje (bird’s nest), as well as the Indonesian bakso telur (meatball eggs) are few examples.

No matter the true tale, I think we can all agree that the humble scotch egg is a little more worldly and a little less stodgy than originally thought.