The classic scrambled egg dish is a firm favourite in many households and a staple of any delicious breakfast. That’s because eggs are often seen as a quick and filling meal, providing adequate protein levels required to fuel you for the day ahead. But to make the creamiest of scrambled eggs without the use of cream or milk, the results are often not always the desired outcome one hoped for.
Despite it being relatively easy to scramble eggs, many tend to overcook them, resulting in a hard or rubbery texture, with a common mistake many fall prey to by overestimating how long they really should be in the frying pan. Cooking the ideal scrambled eggs can therefore often be seen as an art, with one expert providing the best tip to perfecting this art, which “thanks to culinary school, I have the perfect method for making them”.
Creamy and delicious scrambled eggs can become the norm every time, but the key comes down to its heat, with too much of it resulting in soggy or burnt eggs sticking to the pan.
Joanne Gallagher, co-creator of Inspired Taste, a recipe blog devoted to home cooks, said: “I honestly believe my method makes the best scrambled eggs and all you need is three simple ingredients for this recipe. eggs, butter (or olive oil), and salt.”
She added how she doesn’t “add anything else to my scrambled eggs recipe”, including “no water, no cream, and no milk.”
According to Gallagher, to be the creator of perfectly creamy scrambled eggs, start by using a nonstick pan and a silicone spatula.
“I love the flexibility of the silicone spatula since it lets me swirl and sweep the eggs as they cook.
“You’ll start by cracking your eggs into a bowl and seasoning with salt and then whisk until well blended with a fork, then set the bowl aside for 5 to 10 minutes while I grab butter and preheat my pan.”
She further explains the importance of letting the eggs sit with the salt as “the salt works on some of the proteins in the eggs, making our scrambled eggs more tender”.
Next, she advises to heat the butter (or oil) in the nonstick skillet, and then get ready to cook your eggs but “the secret to the most creamy and soft eggs is using low heat”.
The importance of having low heat for creamy scrambled eggs is because it allows the egg proteins to unfold and coagulate gradually.
By ensuring this process is done slowly, it prevents them from squeezing out moisture and tightening up too quickly.
“When the eggs hit the pan, I use my silicone spatula to swirl the eggs in small circles around the pan, without stopping, or until the eggs look barely thickened and tiny curds form,” added Gallagher.
“Then, I change from swirling in circles to making long sweeps across the pan, making larger, creamy curds.”
As eggs are notorious for being very delicate which cooks quickly and will continue to cook even after removing them from the heat, Gallagher further advises “just as the eggs start to set but still look a bit wet, I remove my pan from the heat”.
Gallagher concluded: “Give the eggs a few seconds in the hot pan (off the heat), and you’ll have made the most perfect scrambled eggs.”