Hot Enough to Fry an Egg on the Sidewalk

So, pictured here is a dish that hails originally from New Orleans, via South-Carolina-based chef Sean Brock: Fresh fried farm egg. I’m plating it with some homemade cheese and seared mushrooms, the subjects of a few prior posts. I had never tasted this dish before. It’s stunning.

It’s also not for the faint of fingers. If you’ve ever tried to peel a semi-boiled egg directly in an egg bath, which is absolutely critical to the prep process here, you will know what I mean. Holy mother of god. Fucking painful as all get out. But the technique works. The egg comes out whole, just solid enough to put it through the classic 3 prep stages prior to quick deep frying: flour, egg wash, finely ground panko in salt and pepper. The initial boil takes 5 minutes and 15 seconds (i kid you not) and the ensuing deep fry takes 2 minutes, no more.

Yes, it’s a good bit of work for those who’d prefer simply to fry their eggs cracked into a sautee pan (or on the sidewalk). But oh my god, vive la difference. Clearly on my top choices for preparing an egg. And yet another (unfortunate) reason why making the complete transition to vegan is proving so god damned difficult.