Piggy-wiggys in batter blankets!

They’re a staple of any traditional Christmas dinner, and now pigs in blankets have found themselves on the festive menu at a Spalding chippie – where they’ve been given a rather unusual twist.

Oh My Cod, in Alexandra Road, began serving seasonal sausages wrapped in bacon and deep fried on Tuesday as a special Christmas treat for customers.

Bill Rai, who runs the family takeaway with wife Sandy, only came up with the idea last

week, after taking inspiration from other eateries around the country selling them in the run-up to Christmas.

“We’ve tried them just ourselves and think they taste pretty good, but never served them to customers until now,” said Mr Rai.

“It was a bit of a last-minute idea, but we saw that lots of other fish and chip shops were

selling them, so we thought we’d put them on the menu here so the people of Spalding and the surrounding area could try them, too!”

The delicacy – priced £2 each – consists of a jumbo pork sausage, wrapped in two rashers of streaky bacon and then coated in the shop’s signature batter.

It’s not the first time Mr Rai has experimented with deep frying more unusual fayre at the award-winning shop, which he has owned for the past six years.

Back in 2015, he started serving battered mince pies, which are also back on the menu again this Christmas – priced 70p each or two for £1.20 – alongside battered Mars Bars and Oreos.

And the reaction so far has been positive, with plenty of customers pledging to try them via the shop’s Facebook page. “People seem to like trying the more unusual things these days and are always asking us to do different things and we’re keen to try them and see what works, too,” added Mr Rai. “With being out of town, it’s a great way of getting people into the shop.”

Since Christmas dinner and fish and chips are two of my favourite all-time meals, I was certainly intrigued to try the battered pigs in blankets – and they didn’t disappoint.

The unsmoked bacon was the perfect addition to the jumbo sausage and crispy batter, and for those who prefer savoury treats to sweet ones, I’m sure they will get a big thumbs-up.

The only drawback was they were quite large, which meant, sadly, I could only manage one!