A fried egg is cheap, simple to make, and versatile, making it a culinary classic. It can be served with toast, on top of a rice dish, or slipped in between the bun and patty to add an extra surprise to your burger. But while a fried egg may seem like an easy thing to make, given that the cooking instructions are literally in the name, many of us may have actually been making it wrong.
Culinary consultant J. Kenji López-Alt, author of The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science said, that a fried egg should actually taste fried, and have cratered, bubbly whites, and “crispy brown edges”. He wrote on the Serious Eats site: “It’s the built-in texture and flavor contrasts that really make it.”
To make fried eggs that are perfectly crispy, you need two eggs, three tablespoons (45ml) of vegetable or olive oil, and some kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. The first step is to heat the oil in a 10-inch cast iron, carbon steel, or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers.
López-Alt said you should carefully break the eggs into the hot oil, dropping them from right above the surface to stop the oil from splashing. Make sure to season them with salt and pepper at this point.
Then, you want to tilt the pan towards you so that the oil pools against the side, and using a spoon, baste the eggs with the hot oil. You should aim for the uncooked portions of the egg whites and avoid the yolk.
Repeat this step and keep basting until the eggs are puffy and cooked, which will be 45 seconds to one minute. Finally, transfer the eggs to a plate and enjoy.
“They sure aren’t the prettiest eggs around. These are the kinds of eggs you might describe to your friends as having a really great personality or being soooooo funny,” López-Alt said. “Except you really, really mean it. They do have a great personality!”
In the comments, fellow egg fans shared their thoughts. One said: “I love this. It’s the only way I make fried eggs anymore.” Another wrote: “This is my favorite way to eat fried eggs! This is similar to how my grandmother and mom prepare eggs.”
A third posted: “What a revelation. No more will I accidentally break the yolk trying to flip, or end up with raw whites inside of an accidentally-folded-instead-of-flipped egg!”