When it comes to no-recipe recipes, eggs — fried, poached, scrambled — are the perfect choice.
I recently discovered jammy eggs: The white is completely set and solid but the yolk is still creamy and soft. It's the ideal combination of all egg qualities — no runny loose whites, no chalky gray yolks, just every part of the egg in optimum form, somewhere between a soft-boiled and hard-boiled egg. Jammy eggs rely on a straightforward technique that's easy to master. All it takes is boiling water and 6 ½ minutes. This is the magical number.
With jammy eggs, there is no reason to wait for the eggs to come to room temperature before cooking. You can take them out of the fridge and carefully lower them straight into the pot as soon as the water starts to simmer. The only trick is to dunk them into an ice water bath as soon as they're done. This stops the cooking (so they're not hard-boiled) and makes them easier to peel. These eggs can be cooked and peeled three days ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Jammy eggs are fabulous with buttered toast as well as on top of a lunchtime salad (especially a Caesar). Try them over steamed or boiled vegetables such as leeks, asparagus or broccoli, drizzled with good olive oil and a squeeze of lemon or a shot of white-wine vinegar. They're also great layered into a sandwich with lettuce and tomato, spread with chipotle mayonnaise. In Korea, jammy eggs are a traditional addition to dishes of soy sauce-braised beef.
Bright and sunny, jammy eggs also turn tomato soup, minestrone and soba noodle soup (see recipe) into a hearty one-dish meal.
Soba Noodle Soup with Jammy Eggs
Serves 4.
Vary the vegetables in this delicious, light yet satisfying soup. Nutty buckwheat noodles make a nice counterpoint to the sweet asparagus. To substitute for mirin, use 1 tablespoon rice or white wine vinegar and 1/2 teaspoon honey. From Beth Dooley.
• 4 eggs
• 8 oz. soba (buckwheat noodles)
• 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 tbsp. grated fresh ginger
• 6 to 8 c. chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 lb. asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-in. lengths
• 1 tbsp. mirin, or more to taste (see Note)
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce, or more to taste
• 2 to 3 green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced for garnish
Directions
Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Using a slotted spoon, carefully lower the eggs into the water, one at a time. Cook 6 1/2 minutes at a gentle boil. Transfer the eggs to a bowl of ice water and cool until warm. Gently crack the eggs all over and peel, starting from the wider end. Set aside.
In a large pot, bring about 3 to 4 quarts of water to a boil; drop in the noodles. Cook, uncovered, until tender, about 7 minutes. Drain and set aside.
Film a heavy-bottomed soup pot with the oil, set over medium-low heat, and add the garlic and ginger. Cook, stirring, until you can smell the garlic and ginger for just a few seconds and stir in the stock. Bring to a simmer, add the asparagus and cook until tender, about 6 to 7 minutes. Season the stock to taste with the mirin and soy sauce. Toss in the green onions. Slice the jammy eggs in half and serve on top of each bowl of soup.
Beth Dooley is the author of "In Winter's Kitchen." Find her at bethdooleyskitchen.com.
