On a recent trip to Ireland I realized how much I really like soft scrambled eggs but didn't really understand how to cook them that way. But GR has answered my scrambled egg prayers! Who knew that you'd really need a recipe for scrambled eggs, but I'm glad I found one. This has really changed my breakfast dining experience.
You start them in a cold pan, with cubed butter and stir them over the "lowest heat possible." According to Mr. Ramsay, they should start to scramble within 4 to 5 minutes. I did not find that to be the case. It was more like 20-30 minutes. Which makes me wonder- how hot is his lowest heat? The Brits must be cooking on hotter stoves than I am. So far it looks like all my GR recipes involve slow stirring on low heat.
Once the eggs finally start to scramble, you add more butter and créme fraíche and then garnish the final product with fresh chives. The chives are such a great touch! I really love the flavor they add. The only problem with chives is that you generally can only buy them in large bunches and you only ever need just a little bit. (What's that about, chive packaging companies? Maybe I'll get my own chive plant, like my friends Mandi and Craig had when I made these eggs for them on a weekend getaway to their neck of the woods!)(Don't worry, for those of you who know I don't eat much meat- that's not real bacon in the photo.)
I've been so proud of these eggs, that I've just been making them for people as often as I can. After the weekend with Mandi and Craig, a bunch of us went out of state for our friends' wedding and I made a huge portion of eggs for the 6 of us staying together. It definitely took about an hour to cook these eggs, but they were delicious and everyone seemed to like them! (We felt very business like in our conference/dining room and came up with some brilliant solutions to all the world's problems as well as putting together an impromptu Madrigal performance for our friends' wedding reception that night. You should have seen it. I think there's video, actually).
The only draw back is the time it takes to cook them. Scrambled eggs are supposed to be quick and easy. So the last couple of times, I've cranked the heat up just a bit and when I see the eggs start to scramble, I take them off the heat (GR does tell you not to let them sit on the heat- maybe I'm just figuring out how to incorporate that technique) and I'm finding that this method works well at cooking the eggs faster but still giving you that creamy consistency. I also have omitted the butter, just for health reasons and only add the créme fraíche and chives if I have them.This morning, with my sublime scrambled eggs and decaf coffee, I was reading "Julie and Julia" and I gotta tell ya, I'm really glad I'm not attempting Oeufs en Gelée any time soon. Look it up if you're curious.
(Neither is that real bacon. The same fake stuff as before. It's actually not too bad).
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