Eggs Benedict – the way we like it
We love where I ended up with Eggs Benedict, and the recipe is well-tested by now. It’s a tricky dish in the sense that timing is critical. You don’t want to overcook the poached eggs, or the little slices of bread (we don’t use English muffins, more on that in a minute), nor the tiny bits of ham that make it so much easier to eat than a big fat slab of Canadian bacon. And the sauce – ah, the sauce . . . it’s also tricky, but quite tasty.
Creating this dish, you’ll feel a bit like you are a chef competing on Chopped and you only have 1 minute left and you haven’t even started plating. But a little careful preparation and a good feel for your own stove temperatures, and you can proudly present a perfect version of this dish, with everything coming together in an exciting finish.
Here’s how to do it, one serving each for two people:
Get out all of your ingredients.
- You’ll need two slices of thin round bread – we like Rye.
- About two slices of high-quality ham.
- 4 eggs
- Light mayo
- Lime juice
- Water
- 1 stick of butter (2/3 will be used for the sauce)
- Fine black pepper.
Then set to work:
- Put a big saucepan on the large burner, and add about 3 inches of water, and about a tablespoon of vinegar. Turn on the heat, about medium high. You’ll want it to come to a lazy boil, then turn it down before adding the eggs.
- Place a small saucepan on a smaller burner, and start to melt 2/3 stick of butter, very slowly. Low setting. You’ll use this butter in the sauce.
- Take two slices of ham, cut about 1/4 inch thick, and then cut those slices into small squares (like the picture)
- Turn the heat up on your griddle or a large frying pan, and put two pats of butter down, plus a little oil. Place the bread face down on each pat of butter, and add the ham to the unoccupied portion of the griddle or pan.
- Take two of the eggs and break one each into a measuring cup or anything with a handle, so you can slide them into the simmering water when it’s time. Place them near the large saucepan.
- Separate the remaining two eggs. Set the whites aside (you can beat them later and add a tiny bit of sugar and butterscotch chips, and make incredibly delicious meringue cookies by baking them on parchment paper at about 250 until they are ready to remove. But I digress…)
- Slide the yolks into a medium mixing bowl, to start the sauce. Add: 2 Tablespoons of water. Slightly less than 2 teaspoons of lime juice (bottled is ok, and Key Lime juice is awesome). 2 Tablespoons of light mayo – this is the secret to the sauce! No more than 10 grains of fine black pepper – don’t overdo this, it will overwhelm the delicacy of the sauce. Whisk briskly until the mayo is completely incorporated.
Now it gets a bit more intense.
- Slip the eggs into the poaching water, which should be almost boiling.
- The butter should be melted by now; pour it very slowly into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly so you don’t end up with scrambled eggs. Wipe the side of the saucepan with a paper towel then put the saucepan back on the burner. Pour the yolk mixture into back into the saucepan, whisking vigorously again. Make sure the heat is WAY down – the lowest setting is good. Don’t be afraid to remove it from the heat if you need to, then place it back on the burner.
- If you warm your plates – we always warm them in the microwave – it’s time to do that.
- Flip the bread slices to make sure they get just slightly toasty on the open side, but also get some of that nice butter on the other side. Turn the ham, too.
- Keep whisking that yolk mixture!
- By now your poached eggs are done and it’s time to assemble your masterpiece.
- On the plates: Bread first, face up. Then the ham bits, then the poached egg (use a slotted spoon and jiggle it a bit, to shake the water off). The eggs should still be quite jiggly, which tells you they didn’t get hard-boiled while you weren’t looking.
- Whisk that yolk mixture again, and pour half over each serving.
I confess this is the best version of this dish I’ve ever tasted. I give my husband full credit for new ideas as we improved this recipe. Enjoy!