I'm Just Here for the Food (42 page)

As soon as the whites start to turn opaque, remove the pan from the heat and cover with the lid. Set your timer for 3 minutes. When the timer goes off, gently lift the eggs with a slotted spoon from the water onto a plate, and serve.

Three minutes produces eggs the way I like them, but everyone is different. Experiment a bit with your timing.

Yield: 2 servings

Note:
The older the eggs, the more “thin” albumen there’s going to be. This is the part of the egg that feathers out, creating something that looks more like a Portuguese-man-’o-war than a pouch. The vinegar will help a bit by coagulating any proteins it finds wandering about, but you’ll still be better off poaching the freshest eggs you can get your hands on.

Software :

2 to 4 large eggs
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon vinegar (see
Note
)

Hardware :

1 to 4 small, low-sided custard
cups or teacups
10-inch non-stick sauce pan or
sauté pan, with a lid
Kitchen timer
Slotted spoon

Cocktail-Hour Egg Stack

This is one of my favorite scrambled egg variations, and a great way to use up leftovers.

For filling each layer:

¼ cup sautéed onions, mushrooms, or peppers; tomatoes; avocados; crumbled or grated cheese; anchovies; cooked meats (sausage, bacon, grilled chicken, and so on, crumbled or diced); spinach; roasted garlic cloves; or anything you like or have on hand

For the spread for each layer:

2 tablespoons flavored cream cheese, sour cream, tapenade, flavored mayonnaise, guacamole, pesto, salsa, mustard, anchovy paste, tomato sauce, or anything you like or have on hand

Application: Broiling

Preheat the broiler.

To make each egg layer, in a mixing bowl whisk together 2 eggs with ¼ cup of milk. Heat a 10-inch non-stick sauté pan under the broiler for 2 minutes, remove, then add 1 tablespoon of the oil. Count to ten, then pour in the egg mixture and allow the bottom to set. Season with salt and pepper and add the filling ingredient of your choice. Set the pan about 6 inches under the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes (depending on the toppings) to finish cooking. Using a large spatula, slide the layer onto a serving plate and add the spread of your choice. Repeat, stacking one layer on top of the other, until you have at least 6 layers. Slice as you would a pie and serve warm or at room temperature.

Yield: 6 servings

Software :

For the 6 egg layers:
12 large eggs
1½ cups milk
6 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Hardware :

Mixing bowl
Whisk
10-inch non-stick sauté pan
Aluminum foil to cover pan
handle, if necessary
Spatula

Hard-Cooked Eggs

When you think about it, a hard-cooked egg is just about the most convenient food in the world. It comes in its own single-serving container, a container in which it not only can be stored for long periods, but cooked as well.

So why don’t we eat more of these delicious devices? Well, somewhere along the line someone decided that they’re bad for us (a gross misstatement) and anytime we hear the word “boil” associated with a food, our expectations go down, as does the care we take in cooking it.

I like hard-cooked eggs a lot, so I have favorite methods for boiling or cooking both large and small numbers of them. Baking is great for large numbers of eggs; boiling or steaming is the way to go with just a few eggs.

Application: Baking

Position the oven racks in the center of the oven, then place the eggs on the racks. Place a baking sheet pan in the bottom of the oven (just in case an egg breaks). Set the oven to 325° F, and bake for 30 minutes. When the eggs are done, fill a large bowl with ice water and move the eggs into the bowl. Peel the eggs (see
Note
) as soon as they’re cool enough to handle, then return them to the ice water to thoroughly chill.

Application: Boiling

I have recently gone back to boiling eggs, but I don’t use a pot or pan. I use my electric kettle (a Chef’s Choice). I put the eggs in the kettle, add enough water to cover by an inch or two, and turn it on. The kettle turns itself off when it hits a boil, so I let them sit for 10 to 15 minutes. The finished product is perfect every time: a firm but never grainy yolk and a creamy white.

Application: Steaming

Pour 1 inch of water into a sauce pan and place a metal steamer basket inside the pan. Bring the water to a boil over high heat, then place the eggs in the steamer. Cover the pan and lower the heat to medium-high. Cook the eggs for 12 minutes, then, using tongs, remove them to a large bowl of ice water. Peel the eggs (see
Note
) as soon as they are cool enough to handle.

Note:
I usually find steamed eggs to be a little easier to peel than baked eggs, but just barely. I think the difference may be that the small amount of egg white that’s pushed out of the pores is left to caramelize on the surface of the baked eggs, but is continuously washed away by the steam and therefore doesn’t gum up the works. The fact that the shell of the baked egg gets significantly hotter during cooking than the shell of the steamed egg may also be a factor. Still, I prefer the slightly creamier texture of baked eggs to steamed. I imagine it’s because the dry heat moves into these eggs more slowly than the steam heat does.

Of course, you can’t enjoy hard-cooked eggs without peeling them. And, as usual, there is a best way to accomplish this.

Take an egg from the bowl of cooling water and gently tap it against a counter or the side of your sink. Rotate it as you go, with the intention of cracking as much of the surface of the shell as possible. When you’ve cracked everywhere there is to crack, take the egg and roll it gently between the palms of your hands. This will help to loosen the membrane just under the fragmented shell.

Now turn the egg until you find where the air space was. It will be easy to spot because there will be a convenient gap between the shell and the white beneath. Submerge the egg in the cold water and start peeling from this spot. With practice you’ll be able to take the entire shell off in a long strip—just like peeling an orange.

Software for Baked Eggs :

2 to 4 dozen large eggs

Hardware :

Baking sheet
Large mixing bowl
Oven-proof gloves

Softwar for Boiledor Steamed Eggs :

1 to 6 eggs

Hardware :

Electric Kettle or sauce pan
with lid
Metal steamer basket
Tongs
Large mixing bowl

Pickled Eggs

I ate my first pickled egg on a dare (come to think of it, a lot of my “firsts” were dares). When I was in ninth grade, my friends and I used to walk every morning to a little store near the school to sugar-load and flirt with trouble. (We looked so cool in our Starsky and Hūtch-inspired fashions.) Anyway, there was this big jug at the end of the counter that looked like it had been left behind by a traveling side show. Dark, alien-looking ovals lurked therein, along with—rumor had it—a dead chicken. Well, one day big talk led to big money (three bucks if I remember correctly), and I found myself in possession of an embalmed chicken embryo mummified in waxed paper. Prepared to die, I took a bite. I’ve loved them ever since. The “Dark and Lovely” eggs will turn that way because of the Liquid Smoke.

Place all of the ingredients except the eggs in a sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook until the salt and/or sugar dissolves. Place the eggs in a 1-quart jar and pour the hot mixture over the eggs, making sure to cover them completely with liquid. Let cool to room temperature, then put the lid on the jar. Refrigerate for 4 weeks (see
Notes
) before serving.

Yield: 1 dozen pickled eggs

Notes:
Liquid Smoke is a seasoning made from hickory smoke concentrate. It is available in most supermarkets—look in the barbecue sauce section.

Although the high acidity of the liquid in both recipes should keep any bad bugs away, please keep these refrigerated. They should keep for about 2 months once pickled.

Software : For “Dark and Lovely” pickled eggs:

2 ¼ cups cider vinegar
¼ cup water
1¼ tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1¼ teaspoons pickling spice
¼ teaspoon Liquid Smoke (see
Notes
)
1 tablespoon salt
¾ teaspoon chile flakes
1 dozen large hard-cooked eggs,
peeled

For “Classic” pickled eggs:

2¼ cups apple cider
¾ cup champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons pickling spice
6 whole cloves garlic
1 dozen large hard-cooked eggs,
peeled

Hardware :

Sauce pan
1-quart jar with lid, preferably
glass, but not metal

Deviled Eggs

If you’re making hard-cooked eggs, why not serve them deviled?

In a small mixing bowl, using a mixing spoon blend together all of the ingredients except the eggs and paprika. With a sharp knife, split the eggs lengthwise and remove the yolks to a separate mixing bowl. Mash the yolks with a fork and then blend in the mayonnaise mixture. Refill the egg whites with the mixture, smoothing the top with the fork. If you really like tradition, sprinkle some paprika on top.

Yield: 2 dozen deviled eggs

Software :

½ cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons minced onion
2 tablespoons minced celery
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dry mustard
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground white
pepper
¼ teaspoon celery salt
12 hard-cooked eggs, peeled
Paprika (optional)

Hardware :

2 mixing bowls
Mixing spoon or rubber spatula
Sharp knife

Mom’s Egg Salad

Egg salad is another great use for hard-cooked eggs. Pumpernickel is the only acceptable bread to use for an egg-salad sandwich.

With a chef’s knife, coarsely chop the eggs and put them in a mixing bowl. With a wooden spoon, fold the remaining ingredients into the eggs. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour to let the flavors blend.

Yield: Filling for 8 sandwiches

Software :

12 hard-cooked eggs, peeled
⅓ cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed
lemon juice
1 teaspoon celery salt
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground white
pepper
1 cup finely diced celery

Hardware :

Chef’s knife
Mixing bowl
Wooden spoon

CHAPTER 10

Microwave Cooking

Why is this chapter at the end of the book? Because it’s the only application by which food actually cooks itself.

Catch a Wave