Eggs, you say? At the prices they are now? Well, yes. Because they are a wondrous food. But if you are going to prepare eggs these days, it's best to truly enjoy them in all their glory. And this method for scrambled eggs (for it's not really what I'd call a "recipe") is the best way that I know of.
Several years ago I had an epiphany regarding scrambled eggs. I like mine very lightly scrambled—almost runny. It’s the rare restaurant that can do them the way I like, and even I used to have a hard time making eggs the way I’ve had them in France: soft and custardy, so they melt in your mouth.
Then I read Julia Child’s memoir, My Life in France. In it, she tells the story of learning how to scramble an egg at the Cordon Bleu:
One morning [Chef Bugnard] asked, “Who will make oeufs brouillés today?”
The GIs [Child’s fellow students] were silent, so I volunteered for scrambled-egg duty. Bugnard watched intently as I whipped some eggs and cream into a froth, got the frying pan very hot, and slipped in a pat of butter, which hissed and browned in the pan.
“Non!” he said in horror, before I could pour the egg mixture into the pan. “That is absolutely wrong!”
The GIs’ eyes went wide.
With a smile, Chef Bugnard cracked two eggs and added a dash of salt and pepper.
“Like this,” he said, gently blending the yolks and whites together with a fork. “Not too much.”
He smeared the bottom and sides of a frying pan with butter,
then gently poured the eggs in. Keeping the heat low, he stared intently at the pan. Nothing happened.
After a long three minutes, the eggs began to thicken into a custard.
Stirring rapidly with the fork, sliding the pan off and on the burner, Bugnard gently pulled the egg curds together—“Keep them a little bit loose; this is very important,” he instructed.
“Now the cream or butter,” he said, looking at me with raised eyebrows. “This will stop the cooking, you see?”
I nodded, and he turned the scrambled eggs out onto a plate, sprinkled bits of parsley around, and said, “Voilà!” ...
It was a remarkable lesson. No dish, not even the humble scrambled egg, was too much trouble for him. “You never forget a beautiful thing that you have made,” he said. “Even after you eat it, it stays with you—always.”
Reading this account changed my life. My egg life, anyway.
I always use Chef Bugnard’s method to make scrambled eggs now, and
they indeed have the luscious, custard-like consistency of that
stupendous omelette I once ate at a wine bar in Paris.
Bon appétit!
🌱 🐓 🌿
The daughter of a law professor and a potter, Leslie Karst learned early, during family dinner conversations, the value of both careful analysis and the arts—ideal ingredients for a mystery story. Putting this early education to good use, she now writes the Lefty Award-nominated Sally Solari Mysteries, a culinary series set in Santa Cruz, California.
An ex-lawyer like her sleuth, Leslie also has degrees in English literature and the culinary arts. She and her wife and their Jack Russell mix split their time between Santa Cruz and Hilo, Hawai‘i.
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Oh...yum! Julia Child definitely learned her lesson - I've seen her video of making the perfect omelet. Very, very gently.
ReplyDeleteAnd those custardy omelets you get in France--yum!!!
DeleteWonderful post Leslie!
ReplyDeleteMerci, ma cherie!
DeleteI will definitely give this a try!
ReplyDeleteYes, do, Pat--they are SOOOO good prepared this way!
DeleteI've been doing it wrong, but at least I am in good company. I will give the new method a try this weekend. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHa--join the crowd, Tracy! Enjoy your weekend eggs!
DeleteI'm going to try this next time I make scrambled eggs. It makes sense to add the butter after. I'll see how it comes out. Thank you for the recipe.
ReplyDeleteYou are so welcome, April! Enjoy!
DeleteSo cool!
ReplyDeleteThere was a time when the accepted thing was to put milk into the beaten eggs. Then someone said that was not a good idea, ( I don't remember their logic) but to use a splash of water.
This is the epitome of simplicity with a lovely result.
Yes, that's the way I was taught--drizzle a bit of milk into the eggs before you cook them. But I love this method so much more!
DeleteWow! this is the way I have always done this and I never knew it was the best (others have scoffed at me!)
ReplyDeleteHa! Redemption, at last!
Delete