The Egg & I

The other day I found myself in the kitchen at work with a young chef fresh out of culinary school.  After he’d already screwed up his first batch of dessert (he forgot the sugar---in a DESSERT!?!?) I went back into the kitchen and stood over him as he attempted (once again) to follow the recipe.  The recipe called for the eggs to be added at the end, “one at a time”. 

He cracked the first one into the bowl, and then he cracked the second… 

“What are you doing?  It says ‘one at a time’?”

“But I’m cracking them one at a time.”

Cue my Oliver Hardy slow-burn.  

“Adding ’one at a time’ means that you MIX THEM IN one at a time.”

And then I began schooling this kid on eggs. 

The reason you add them at the end and one at a time is because you don’t want to over-beat the eggs.  Over-beaten eggs (the yolk in particular) will cause the dessert to be tough.  I picked up the whisk and gave Culinary School Graduate a lesson on how to stir eggs into a batter. 

“You want to get down deep in there and your goal is to do this as FEW times as possible.  You’re not beating the eggs; it’s just a big, deep stir.  You just want everything combined.  After that, just put down your whisk and step away.  See.  Done.  Just walk away.”

He immediately picked up the whisk and began beating the poor, unsuspecting batter.

“What are you doing?!?!  I told you to just walk away!”

“I’m practicing,” he said confidently as he continued to pummel the eggs like a punch-drunk prize fighter.

“It’s DONE!  It’s too late to practice now.  Your Time Is Up,” I said in true dominatrix fashion.

He put down the whisk.

I think I scared him.

Next time I’m going back there with my leather boots and a whip.

There’s a saying that the hundred folds in a chef’s hat indicates the hundred ways a chef knows how to prepare an egg.

But all culinary schools aren't alike.

One of the best books on eggs is a little volume titled “Eggs & Cheese”.   

It was part of the Time-Life series of 28 cookbooks called "The Good Cook"  that came out on a monthly basis between the late 70s to early 80s.  The series was edited by Richard Olney, an early food writer and expert on French cooking.  He was one of the first to talk about seasonal ingredients and wine pairings, counted Alice Waters as a fan, and at one point gave cooking classes in James Beard’s West Village apartment. 

Most of these classic books can be found for sale in your local used bookshop or on Amazon for a penny (plus $3.99 shipping).  They break down ingredients and techniques with simple instructions and clear photos and make you an expert in no time.  

They’re classics and I hope to have the full set soon!

A culinary school education is a great foundation.  But whatever you do in life, if you want to be successful, you have to go beyond what you learned in school.  You have to get out there and learn, learn, learn.  Ask questions.  Read.  Watch.  Listen.  Learn. 

And get better.

So, how many ways do YOU know to cook an egg?