Article from: The Gaurdian
Anna Jones’s egg recipes
Nestle just-set boiled eggs in a rich, spiced sauce for a Greek-style breakfast, or surround them in a herby dressing for a heavenly sandwich
Anna Jones
Sat 21 Jul 2018 07.00 BST Last modified on Sat 18 Aug 2018
There is nothing that splits opinion like an egg. Some of the finest food writers and cooks won’t touch them. Prince Charles, I have it on good authority (I cooked dinner for him once), won’t have a meal without one. I love to eat eggs when the mood takes me, and here are my two favourite ways: Greek-style breakfast eggs, with feta, olive and herbs; and a sandwich to convert even the most resolute egg sceptic. As befits the star of any show, please buy the best eggs you can – free range at the very least.
Greek-style breakfast eggs (pictured above)
A Greek-inspired riff on baked eggs, or shakshuka. Rather than poaching the eggs in the sauce, the tomato sauce is topped with boiled eggs, making life much simpler.
Prep 15 min
Cook 20 min
Serves 4-6
- 6 eggs
- Olive oil
- 1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced
- 1 tsp coriander seeds, bashed
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ½ tsp paprika or chilli powder
- 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
- 100g kalamata olives, stoned and halved
- 1 tbsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp vinegar
- Salt and black pepper
- 75g feta
Chopped dill, mint and parsley, to serve
Put a pan of salted water big enough for the six eggs on to boil. Heat a little olive oil in a large frying pan, add the onions and cook for 10 minutes, until soft and sweet, then add the garlic and cook for a another couple of minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Next, add the coriander and cumin seeds and toast for a minute with the onion mixture.
Add the paprika and cook for a few seconds before adding the tomatoes, half the olives, the oregano and the vinegar, and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Simmer over a medium heat and leave the sauce to reduce and thicken a bit.
Meanwhile, put the eggs in the boiling water and cook for six minutes. Drain the eggs, run under cold water, then slightly crack the shells against a hard surface and leave them to cool in cold water. Once cool, peel and cut in half.
Once the sauce is reduced and thickened, taste and add more salt, pepper and vinegar, if needed.
Nestle the eggs into the sauce, put a lid on the pan and leave them for a minute or two to warm through.
Finally, crumble over the feta and sprinkle over the remaining olives and chopped herbs. Serve with warm bread or flatbreads, if you like.
Caper, herb and mustard egg sandwich
Prep 15
Cook 10
Makes 4
6 eggs
2 tbsp Greek yoghurt
6 cornichons or 2 large gherkins, finely chopped
2 tbsp small capers in brine, or big ones, chopped
1 tsp dijon mustard
Finely grated zest and juice of ½ an unwaxed lemon
A few sprigs of fresh dill and parsley, roughly chopped
1 green chilli, finely chopped
8 slices good bread
Put a pan of salted water big enough for the six eggs on to boil. Put the eggs in the boiling water and cook for six minutes. Drain the eggs, run under cold water then slightly crack the shells against a hard surface and leave them to cool in cold water. Once cool, peel and cut in half.
Put the rest of the ingredients except the bread into a bowl and mix together. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more salt, pepper or lemon as needed.
If the bread is very fresh, there’s no need to toast it, but if it’s a little firm, pop it into the toaster. Divide the yoghurt mix among four of the pieces of bread and spread to the edges. Top each piece with three egg halves, then with the other four pieces of bread. I sometimes add a handful of seasonal salad leaves, too – pea shoots, watercress and rocket all work well.
