How we like our eggs in the morning is quite a hot topic between myself and my wife, Sofie. In her native Sweden, for breakfast, eggs are boiled within an inch of their life, peeled and then eaten whole.
Like many Swedes, Sofie insists on enjoying them with a squirt of Kalles caviar. Remove any thoughts of the expensive Russian variety, this stuff is made of cod roe and sold by the truckload in bright blue metal tubes with a squirty nozel. It’s salty, intense and the marmite of Sweden’s culinary arsenal.
I’ve tried to like it, but I just can’t get on board– it brings back terrible memories of a job I had in a Swedish restaurant where at one point every night, eggs topped with a rosette of mayonnaise, a prawn, fish roe and a sprig of dill, were fired out en masse – absolute retro ridiculousness.
But despite the healthy discussion around the breakfast table, we agree that our joint eggs of choice are either poached or fried, with that all-important runny yolk.
Beyond breakfast, there is no end to the possibilities of cooking with eggs, from adding substance to Chinese fried rice, creating luscious and creamy classic French sauces, or even wrapped around tender slices of potato in a Spanish tortilla.
This sort of versatility gets me excited, and with that in mind I want to share some recipes that can just as easily be served as weekend brunch as they can be enjoyed as a substantial supper or light dinner.
Taking inspiration from Asia, north Africa and a recent brunch in Venice, California's Rose Café, these are recipes that I hope will encourage a healthy egg-related debate around your kitchen table.
Crispy, wok-fried Chinese eggs with chilli and oyster sauce; harissa eggs full of dark heat, and comforting fried eggs with charred Brussels sprouts, slathered with pesto (the recipe for which you will find online at irishtimes.com/food), could all be contenders for your next breakfast, lunch or dinner.
