Angels on horseback facts for kids
Angels on horseback skewered and grilled.
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| Course | Canapé, hors d'œuvre or savoury |
|---|---|
| Serving temperature | Hot |
| Main ingredients | Oysters, bacon |
| 160~ kcal | |
Angels on horseback is a yummy hot snack or appetizer. It's made by wrapping oysters in bacon. Then, it's usually baked until crispy. Sometimes, it's served on small pieces of bread. This makes it a type of snack called a canapé.
This dish is often made by rolling fresh oysters in strips of bacon. They are then baked in an oven. Some newer ways to make them include putting them on skewers and frying them. You can serve them in different ways, like on skewers or with bread. People also add other sauces or toppings to make them taste even better.
Angels on horseback are different from a similar dish called devils on horseback. Devils on horseback use fruit, like prunes or dates, instead of oysters. Even though they sound alike, they are not the same!
What are Angels on Horseback?
Angels on horseback can be served in a few ways. They can be an appetizer, which is a small dish eaten before the main meal. They can also be a canapé when served on bread.
In England, this dish is sometimes served as a "savoury." A savoury is a salty snack eaten after dessert. It helps to cleanse your taste buds before you have a drink to help with digestion.
It's important not to mix up Angels on horseback with devils on horseback. Devils on horseback are made with fruit, usually prunes or dates, wrapped in bacon. Many chefs and food writers agree that these are two different dishes.
History of the Dish
No one is completely sure where Angels on horseback first came from. The name probably comes from a French phrase, anges à cheval. The first time this dish was mentioned in a well-known book was in 1888. It appeared in Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management. However, an Australian newspaper mentioned the dish even earlier, in 1882.
In the United States, people started talking about Angels on horseback in the late 1890s. An article in The New York Times in 1896 suggested it as an appetizer. The article said the dish might have been created by Urbain Dubois. He was a chef for the German Emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II. In this old recipe, the oysters were put on skewers, sprinkled with cayenne pepper, and broiled. The article suggested serving them with lemon and parsley, but without toast.
The dish became quite popular in the 1960s, especially in Washington, D.C.. A famous hostess named Evangeline Bruce often served them at her parties. Even then, many people didn't know the name.
Today, Angels on horseback are often seen as a special treat. Oysters themselves are considered a fancy food. Because oysters can be expensive, sometimes people use small sausages instead of oysters in similar dishes.
How to Make Angels on Horseback
The classic way to make Angels on horseback is simple. You take fresh oysters and wrap them in bacon. Then, you bake them in the oven for about three minutes on each side. An old recipe from 1902 suggested frying the skewered oysters and bacon in butter.
You can serve this dish in different ways. It's often served on toast. But if you cook them on skewers, you can eat them right off the skewer!
There are many ways to change up the recipe. Some people fry the oysters and bacon and serve them with a squeeze of lime. You can also add a little hot pepper sauce if you like a spicy kick! Another idea is to serve them on toast with a lemon wedge or hollandaise sauce. In Italy, sometimes prosciutto is used instead of bacon.
See also
In Spanish: Angels on horseback para niños
