Eggs: Scrambled or Fried

As I prefer my fried eggs with the yolk unbroken and still quite runny, you can imagine how I feel about scrambled eggs: YUCK!  My husband, however, loves them so I have learned to prepare them.

Scrambled Eggs

• About 2-3 eggs per person
• Milk
• Salt and Pepper

Heat frying pan to med/med-high.  Break eggs into a bowl and whisk together yolk and whites.  Add a splash of milk and mix well.  Pour into preheated pan.  Scrape the bottom of the pan regularly with a slotted spatula (more often/vigorously if you like crumbly scrambled eggs; less often/more sedately if you prefer larger pieces).  When cooked through, salt and pepper to taste.  Some people like to top their scrambled eggs with cheese and/or ketchup.  Anything more than that is more of an omlette.  If you recently used a recipe that left you with some extra yolks or whites, you can add one or two whole eggs and have a slightly different white/yolk ratio.  You can also make leftovers from French Toast into scrambled eggs.

Fried Egg

• 1-2 eggs per person
• Margarine
• Salt and Pepper

Heat frying pan med/med-high.  Melt a small amount of margarine in the pan to prevent sticking.  Break eggs into the pan begin careful not to break the yolks.  Let cook until whites look nearly done and have a few large bubbles.  Carefully turn egg.  Be carefully of the cook time on the second side!  If you like a runny yolk, remove as soon as the whites are cooked through (<1 minute)!  If you like your yolk more solid, you have a bit more time.  Salt and pepper to taste.  I like my eggs served atop hash-browns.  The yolk gives the hash-browns a wonderful flavor.  Some people like ‘egg in a frame’ where they cut out the center of a slice of bread, put that in the pan and break the egg into the hole.  This way, the bread gets toasted while the egg cooks.

 

Frying with Breading and Batter

People will think you are an amazing cook and it’s not even that hard!  You can bread or batter just about any meat or vegetable but my favorites are: mushrooms, zucchini, chicken, crab, and scallops.  It’s not very precise because it doesn’t need to be!  Battering is easier, so it comes first.

Batter

Ingredients:

• Flour (around a cup)
• Salt (just a pinch)
• BakingPowder (similar to the salt)
• 1 Egg
• Milk (maybe a half a cup)
• Water (enough to bring batter to an appropriate consistency)

Blend ingredients, dip meat/veggies, and fry!

Breading

Ingredients

• Flour
• 1 Egg
• 1 C Milk
• Salt and Pepper
• Paprika
• Bread Crumbs

Line up three cereal sized bowls on the counter.  In the first, put flour.  In the second, combine liquids and spices.  In the third, put the bread crumbs.  Put meat/veggie pieces (a few at a time) in the first bowl and coat; move to the second bowl and coat; move to the final bowl and coat.

Frying

It’s always easier to fry in a deep fryer, but you can fry in a pan just as well.  The main difference is that, sometimes, you can skip flipping the fried item over in a deep fryer.  Heat oil of preference (I prefer Crisco in the deep fryer and vegetable in a pan…except for certain cases where olive oil is preferred).  To check temperature, sprinkle in some flour or bread crumbs (whatever you have leftover).  If it sizzles than the oil is hot enough.  Add veggies/meat.  Turn when underside is desired golden brown.  Remove with fork or slotted spatula and place on paper towel lined plate.  Serve while hot!

 

Cream Sauce

• 1 C Milk
• 2 Tb Margarine
• 2 Tb Flour

Melt margarine in sautee pan at med temperature. Whisk flour and milk together separately, then add to margarine. Stir and scrape continually until thick and bubbly. To make a thicker cream sauce, increase measurement of flour.