Poached Eggs Archives - Gimme The Recipe - You came for the food now stay for the romance!

Last weekend I made perfect poached eggs.

Just look at that and drool, perfection. I made them for me and for my twin boys and we chased every escaped yolk-drip with whole-wheat brown-bread smothered in Irish butter. I’ve tried cheating and cooking them in the microwave but they’re not the same. It’s worth the effort of pulling out the pan, simmering water with vinegar and vigilantly easing in your egg from a small ramekin into the swirling whirls.

If you’ve nothing else in your fridge have eggs.

Today is World Egg Day, Friday 10th of October, a day to celebrate the ‘humble egg’. Look at the Bord Bia (Irish Food Board) man in this ad, isn’t he making it look very easy and enticing to crack a few Irish Quality Assured eggs today?!.

Bord Bia are sharing recipes today and everyday and here’s their Mojo Eggs picture and recipe. I picked this one out as I really like the sound of the Mojo sauce. There’s a whole lot more going on here besides the egg, you’ve potato cakes and bacon but it’s the egg that sells it to me. I’m going to try the mojo sauce with my poached eggs tomorrow morning – I love the simplicity in the instruction for making it and I’ve highlighted it below – blend til smooth.

Potato Cakes with Bacon, Eggs and Mojo Sauce

Serves: 4

Time: 1 hour

800g floury potatoes, peeled
30g. butter
2 tablesp. milk
4 scallions, finely sliced
2 tablesp. parsley, chopped
2 teasp. whole grain mustard
10 streaky rashers
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablesp. flour
1 tablesp. olive oil
4 eggs
1 tablesp. white wine vinegar

Mojo Sauce
20g of coriander
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
1 green chilli, deseeded and chopped
½ teasp. of ground cumin
4 tablesp. olive oil
½ tablesp. white wine vinegar
Salt

Method:
Boil the potatoes in a pan of salted water for 15–20 minutes until soft. While the potatoes are cooking put the butter, milk and scallions into a small saucepan and cook until the scallions have softened. Grill 2 of the rashers until crispy, then chop into small pieces. When the potatoes are cooked drain well and mash. Then add in the warmed butter, milk and scallion mixture along with the parsley, mustard and rashers. Season with salt and black pepper. Leave to cool.
When the mixture has cooled shape into 8 equal size rounds, chill in the fridge for half an hour.

Place all Mojo Sauce ingredients in a food processor and blend till smooth.

To poach the eggs: Bring a large pan of water the boil. Reduce to a gentle simmer and add the white wine vinegar and a little salt. Break two of the eggs into the water and simmer for 3-4 minutes until just cooked but still soft on the inside. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain well on kitchen paper. Repeat with the other two eggs.
While the eggs are cooking take the potato cakes from the fridge and dust with a little flour. Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the potato cakes in two batches and gently fry for 2–3 minutes on each side until golden.
Meanwhile grill the remaining streaky rashers.
Divide the potato cakes between four warmed plates. Add two rashers, a poached egg, a drizzle of the Mojo Sauce and a green salad.

‘Til next time, Sheila.

So for Easter I would hope of course that you will indulge in a chocolate Easter egg but other than that how do you like to eat yours? Aren’t they just the greatest food to have on standby, I mean who could say no to an omelette especially if it’s crammed full of crispy bacon, juicy onions maybe even some chilli flakes and for ultimate comfort some oozingly melting cheese?!

Here’s 3 new and interesting ways to serve your eggs – just look for the Bord Bía Quality Assurance Mark when you’re buying them. Images and recipes below are all from Bord Bía.

Poached Eggs & Home Fries

Poached Eggs & Home Fries
Serves 4
1 tablesp. olive oil
4 bacon rashers, trimmed and chopped
1 small onion, diced
4-6 cooked potatoes, diced
2-3 scallions, chopped
1 tablesp. grain mustard
Dash of wine vinegar
A little salt and black pepper
4 Bord Bia Quality Assured eggs

Lightly oil a large pan. Sauté the bacon and onion for 1-2 minutes. Then add the potatoes and scallions and continue to cook for a few minutes until the potatoes are warmed through and are beginning to brown. Stir in the mustard and vinegar and season to taste – keep warm.
To Poach the Eggs: Bring a large pan of water to simmer. Season the water with salt and a dash of vinegar. Break the eggs, one at a time, onto a saucer then slide gently into the water. Cover the pan and continue to simmer for 2-3 minutes or until the eggs are cooked to your liking.
Divide the potato mixture onto four plates. Lift the eggs with a slotted spoon from the water and drain well. Place the poached eggs on top of the potato mixture. Sprinkle with black pepper. Serve with mixed leaves or a vegetable of your choice.

Smokey Paprika Chicken with Rice and Eggs

Smokey Paprika Chicken with Rice and Egg
Serves 4
2-3 Bord Bia Quality Assured chicken breasts (approx. 300g)
1 heaped teasp. of smoked paprika
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
4cm piece of ginger, peeled and grated
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tablesp. olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 bay leaves
500ml water
200g basmati rice, rinsed in cold water and drained
4 Bord Bia Quality Assured eggs
100g frozen peas
40g butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 heaped tablesp. medium curry powder
3 tablesp. cream
3 tablesp. chopped fresh parsley
Marinade: Place the chicken in a dish with the paprika, garlic, ginger, half the lemon juice and a tablespoon of oil. Toss to coat, cover and put in the fridge for 30 minutes to marinate.
To cook the chicken: Remove the chicken from the fridge and place in a large frying pan with a lid. Pour over 500ml water, add the bay leaves and a little salt. Bring the water to a gentle simmer, cover and cook the chicken for 15 minutes until it is done. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside. Discard the bay leaves but reserve the cooking liquor to cook the rice.
To cook the rice: Stir the rice into the reserved cooking liquor in the frying pan. Cover with the lid and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the rice very gently for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave the rice covered for 3-5 minutes. By this time it should have absorbed all the cooking liquor.
To cook the eggs: Put the eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil and cook for 3-6 minutes depending on how you want your eggs cooked – soft boiled or hard boiled. Remove from the saucepan and put into a bowl of cold water, then when cold enough to handle peel and set aside.
Meanwhile, melt the butter with the remaining oil in a small pan and cook the onion over a low heat for five minutes until well softened, stirring occasionally. Then add the curry powder and cook for another three minutes, stirring constantly. Add this mixture to the cooked rice and stir to combine. Then stir through the peas, cream, parsley and a few twists of ground black pepper.
Tear the chicken into chunky pieces and add these to the pan along with the reserved lemon juice. Stir gently to combine. Return to pan to a medium heat and cook for 1-2 minutes. Taste for seasoning then cut the eggs into halves and place them on the rice. Cover the pan with a lid and heat through for 2-3 minutes or until the eggs and chicken are warm, then serve.

Baked Frittata with Roasted Vegetables

Baked Frittata with Roasted Vegetables
Serves: 4-6
1 medium red pepper, cut into 3cm pieces
1 medium yellow pepper, cut into 3cm pieces
1 small aubergine, cut into 3cm pieces
1 medium onion, cut into wedges, roughly 6/8 from each onion
1 courgette, cut into 3cm pieces
1 medium potato, peeled and cut into 3cm cubes
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 tablespoon rapeseed oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 Bord Bia Quality Assured eggs
100mls milk
50g good quality hard cheese, grated
Handful of fresh parsley, chopped
To serve: Green salad and crusty bread
Preheat oven to Gas Mark 6, 200°C (400˚F).
Place the prepared peppers, aubergine, onion, courgette, potato and garlic in a bowl and mix with a tablespoon oil. Season with a little salt and black pepper and then spread in a single layer in a roasting tray and roast for 15-20 minutes.
Line an oven proof baking dish (6cm deep, 20cm x 20cm), with baking parchment.
Transfer the vegetables to the prepared dish. Reduce oven to Gas Mark 4, 180°C (350˚F). Whisk the eggs and milk together in a jug. Add ⅔ of the cheese and the parsley. Season with a little salt and black pepper then pour the egg mixture over the vegetables. Shake the dish gently to allow the egg to spread to the base, sprinkle over the remaining cheese.
Bake the frittata for 20 minutes or until top is golden and the centre is set. Let it rest for a couple of minutes before cutting into squares and serving with some salad and crusty bread.

Happy Easter!
‘Til next time, Sheila

Tag: Poached Eggs

Mojo Eggs

How do you like your eggs?