I have always wanted to perfect poached eggs but never quite got them right, until now. I came across a blog post from Smitten Kitchen on the subject and plucked up my courage to give it a go and hey presto! perfect poached eggs. My new found skill has been featuring a lot now and I really wanted to try making the classic eggs Benedict. The only hard parts about it are making the hollandaise, although you could buy it, and of course poaching the eggs, so most of it really. Here’s my take on it, I hope you give it a try.
Ingredients:
serves 2
1 English muffin (not the sort you have with coffee, they are very different)
2 fresh large eggs and 1 small egg yolk
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 heaped tsp mustard
75g fridge cold unsalted butter cut into cubes (this is supposed to be clarified butter but I couldn’t be bothered)
seasoning (don’t add salt if you are using salted butter)
2 slices good quality ham
First make the hollandaise sauce by putting the egg yolk, mustard, lemon juice and seasoning into a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Whisk until it begins to froth and then start adding the butter a cube at a time, whisking it in as it melts. Continue to do this until the butter is used up and the sauce has a thick soft whipped cream consistency. Check the seasoning and then set to one side.
Cut the muffin in half and lightly toast then top each half with the ham and keep warm in a low oven.
To make the poached eggs put a large pan of water with splash of vinegar on the hob and bring to simmering point. Break each egg into a dish first (I cook each one separately to avoid disaster), swirl the water and drop the egg into the middle of the water vortex. Let it set a little for a few seconds and very gently tease it off the bottom so that it doesn’t stick. Cook for about three or four minutes, remove the egg with a slotted spoon and set the spoon onto some kitchen paper to drain. Then gently slide the egg onto the warm ham and muffin and top with a dollop of hollandaise. Repeat the process for the other egg. Delicious
Tags: eggs, eggs Benedict, english muffin, food, ham, hollandaise, lemon, poached, recipe
That looks excellent!
I had some poached eggs myself this weekend but seeing this I feel robbed!
Eoin
ooooooooooooo nothing better or nicer, apart from maybe eggs florentine!!! Divine!
I basically wrote the exact same post the other day, I just haven’t published it yet! I mustered up the courage as well after reading Smitten Kitchens’ post. The eggs turned out perfectly. I’m sure that post was an inspiration for many. Your Eggs Benny look fantastic!
That yolk makes my mouth water!
That looks delicious! I love eggs benedict but so rarely make it.
Thanks guys! I think I may turn into an egg I’m having so many at the minute
This looks so good. I’ve never had eggs benedict. I will have to try this.:)
I love, love, love eggs benedict and your recipe and pictures have my mouth watering. It looks like you poached the perfect egg. Beautiful.
I saw this on tastespotting and had to say how delish it looks. I am always craving this. It’s fattening, but it’s soooo good. I must have one of these once a week. You did such a good job.
Gorgeous looking eggs benedict! Poaching eggs is something I avoid – yours looks just perfect here. I must persevere!
Oh gosh, i love eggs benedicts! yummy.
I used this as my first attempt at hollandaise. I used lots of english mustard and served it with steak. I alaways shied away as it seemed so complex. This was a breeze. Lovely. Thank you
Glad to be of some assistance. There’s a first time for everything
Hey, I’ve never made eggs benedict before and I got a sudden urge to try them. I googled recipes and your hollaidaise instructions seemed loads simpler than others. I tried it yesterday for breakfast and it was SCRUMMY and so simple. Thank you so much I think I’m going to be making it every weekend now.
No problem. Some recipes are a bit complicated but this one works quite nicely. Hmm I think I will have to have that for lunch this weekend.