Monday, July 19, 2010
Help Me Use My Eggs
So I have a bunch of eggs that I don't know what to do with. I mean, I know how to boil them or fry them or whatever, but does anyone have suggestions for something more exciting than that? I'm thinking more dinner-y than baked goods-y. Any thoughts? Favorite egg dishes? It doesn't have to taste like eggs, just use them up in the service of something tasty.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I know the others can improve on this, or at least make it fancier, but I have a current liking for scrambled eggs. I make then fluffy with a splash or two of milk (I just scramble them in the frying pan) and when they are done, I sprinkle shredded cheese on top and stir it in to melt it (leave it on the heat to get best melt). Then I salt and eat. The dogs are fond of this recipe, too. I imagine Taryn will suggest adding green onions and everyone else probably likes pepper, but I like this simple and straightforward approach.
ReplyDeleteI do have some great cheddar sitting in the fridge . . .
ReplyDeleteAkiko's not home right now, or I'd get her to describe this, but she likes to make dashimaki eggs, or rolled egg with dashi. The orthodox recipe goes something like this:
ReplyDeleteFirst you need some dashi - this is the bonito-based instant soup stock that's used in so much of Japanese cooking. You can also get a variety that's based on shiitake mushrooms instead of fish. It's a powder, and you just dissolve it in hot water.
1. Add a little dissolved dashi to some eggs and beat. If you like a stronger taste, some sugar and soy sauce can go in, too. But if you don't have any of these on hand, you could just do the eggs straight, I think. Might want to add a little water so they're more liquid?
2. Heat some oil (preferably sesame oil) in a skillet at medium or a little lower. When the skillet is oily, pat up the oil with a paper towel so there's no excess oil pooling around, and then pour a very thin layer of egg in.
3. When the egg in the pan has solidified into a cohesive thin sheet of egg, take some chopsticks or a spatula and very carefully roll the egg, like a piece of paper, until it's all rolled up like a tube on one edge of the skillet.
4. Then pour another thin sheet of egg into the pan, so that one edge is touching the previously-rolled up egg. When this is cooked, take the previously-rolled up egg and roll it back over the bottom of the skillet, rolling the new sheet of egg up with it.
5. Repeat until you've used up the egg mixture and you have a very labor-intensive many-layered rolled omelet.
There are lots of ways to eat it. One good way is straight, with grated daikon on top (some people like to add soy sauce to the grated daikon, some don't). You can also slice it very thin - because of all the layers it shreds nicely - and put it on top of rice, or dip it into sauce along with soba noodles.
Here's a more complex version of the recipe, with illustrations.
http://lunchinabox.net/2007/07/10/making-tamagoyaki-or-dashimaki-tamago-omelettes/
When I am feeling lazy, I just make a bunch of thin egg sheets, pile them up, and cut them into strips. If you are putting dashimaki tamago on top of sushi rice, this works just as well and easier. I don't care too much for shiso (Beefsteak plant, or Perilla), but some people like to use it to spice up the eggs, either chopped up and mixed together, or use as sheets and roll them up while you are rolling the eggs on the skillet - if you like the taste, this might be a good substitute for dashi.
ReplyDeleteI like eggs with sugar and soy sauce (technically, no longer "dashimaki tamago," but "ama tamago" or "sweet eggs"), but sugar makes the eggs easier to burn, so even more labor intensive.
Dashimaki (and variants) sounds intimidating, with the burn factor, but totally interesting. I think I should try it, but maybe not depend on it for dinner the first time around. ;)
ReplyDeleteMake Quiche. My friend Bridgette taught me how to make quiche a couple of years ago and it is really simple actually. I recommend putting jalapeno peppers and that cheddar cheese you have in your fridge in there and rocking that out ;) You just need a frozen pie crust, some onion, some heavy cream or even just milk, and an oven. Good to go, delicious and dinner-y!
ReplyDeleteI hadn't thought of jalapenos in quiche, that sounds exciting. I may have to experiment on Saturday.
ReplyDelete