If I had to choose my favourite way to eat eggs, it would be a tough call between poached and fried eggs. It’s hard to beat an egg with golden, brown and crispy edges, puffed and bubbly whites and an orange yolk that oozes the moment you cut into it. I typically like to fry my eggs in a small amount of oil; however, after recently cooking them in pickle juice, I wondered what other ingredients would alter the taste for the better.
Browsing social media and the internet for ideas, one particular ingredient kept popping up as being an “absolute game changer” to cook fried eggs in – pesto. I gave this pesto egg recipe a go, and they were so delicious. The egg had hints of cheese and basil, which was more delicious than the taste you get from oil, no matter how good the quality is.
While you can make the pesto from scratch, I went down the lazy route and used a flavourful store-bought jar I already had in the cupboards. The key to making pesto eggs is to use the best pesto you can get your hands on.
All you need to do is start by adding pesto to your pan and spreading it out. You need to use enough to cover the bottom of your egg.
I used a tablespoon, but you can add more if you want a stronger flavour or would like to baste the egg in the herby goodness.
With the pesto in the pan, I turned on the hob to a medium heat for a minute before cracking an egg directly on top of the herby paste and lowering the heat.
I find that fried eggs cook better when you use room-temperature eggs, as they seem to overcook faster when cold.
Once the whites had set, I put the lid on the pan to help cook the yolk, just long enough for it to slightly set while still being runny. This was around two to three minutes.
Plus, as the pesto cooks and cools, the cheese it contains gets a little crispy as it firms up.
I’m a fan of sourdough or seeded multigrain bread, so that’s what I recommend if you want to serve these eggs on toast. I opted for sourdough this time around.
If you want to make this extra fancy, try serving it with ricotta cheese, mashed avocado and a sprinkling of chilli flakes.
