An old French story says that a chef’s toque (their pleated hat) represents 100 skills they have mastered. A common example is 100 ways to cook an egg. We aren’t going to cover 100 ways to cook eggs here, but hopefully, this will be a good springboard into the world of eggs.
Versatility
Eggs are one of the most versatile ingredients in a kitchen. They lend themselves to dishes, sauces, icings, batters and so much more. Eggs can be featured front and center like in an omelet. They can go into desserts. They can be used in soups such as everyone’s favorite egg drop soup. They are available for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert. They are thematically appropriate as a seasonal dish such a boiled eggs at Easter and deviled eggs at Thanksgiving. The simple egg is available for a huge variety of culinary uses. In this article, I’m going to look specifically at breakfast eggs.
Breakfast eggs
One of the most popular ways to use eggs is at breakfast. The two classic ways of cooking eggs for breakfast are being scrambled or fried. I will provide links at the bottom of this article on how to perfectly create both of these methods, but for now, I’d like to discuss breakfast ideas with eggs.
Scrambled
Image by Hans Braxmeier from Pixabay
Firstly, let’s talk about scrambled eggs. The idea I want to suggest here might seem a little foreign to people from the southern regions, but I suggest trying ketchup on your scrambled eggs. The sweet, acidic tang of ketchup pairs perfectly well with creamy, big curd scrambled eggs. This isn’t something you want to turn your nose up to. Give ketchup and scrambled eggs a try.
Fried egg
Secondly, we’ll look at the fried egg. Most people fry over hard or over medium. This refers to how well done the yolk of the egg is after cooking. My suggestion is to not cook the yolk at all. A perfect sunny side up egg is a thing of perfection. The white of the egg is just set providing a soft, silky mouthfeel while the yolk is creamy and thick. The texture paring is perfect. Not only that, but you can dunk your strips of bacon and/or toast into the runny yolk. The main thing to think about here is the texture it lends to the breakfast. It helps create harmony with all the other textures and flavors.
Boiled egg
Image by congerdesign from Pixabay
Boiled eggs for breakfast may not seem like something common, but this is a one-course meal. Chinese tea eggs are perfect for those of you who have tea in the morning. To make this type of egg you boil them for 8 minutes in a 2:1 mixture of water and soy sauce. When they are done transfer them to an ice bath. Once they have cooled roll them on the counter to crack the outside. Then place them in a 1:1 mixture of your favorite tea (I like lemon ginger) and soy sauce. After six to eight hours you will have gorgeous, marbled looking eggs once the shell is removed. They are salty and take on the aromas of whatever tea you submerged them in. The yolk should be creamy and just set also thanks to the 8 minute cooking time followed by the ice bath. Enjoy these as a morning snack.
Final thoughts
Eggs are amazing. In America, we mostly eat them for breakfast. But don’t be afraid to try eggs any time of day. There is a multitude of uses for them. That’s all for this week! Check commodorewaves.com for more great articles!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Richard Ramsey
Student Author - Fall 2020
