Fresh herbs certainly work. Pop a sprig of marjoram or thyme, or a couple fresh sage leaves in the oil until sizzling, push them to the edge of the skillet, then add the egg. That fried herb sprig infuses the oil and makes for very nice Instagram photo, too. And don't forget the old workhorses shallot and garlic.
Butter – Butter is my top pick because it adds a TON of flavor and creates deliciously browned edges. Bonus: when the butter itself browns in the skillet you get even more nutty flavor. Olive Oil – Olive oil is great if you want a more neutral flavor or extra crispy edges.
Oil Is Best For Frying An Egg In A Cast-Iron Skillet
On medium-low heat, heat around 1/8-inch of oil in the cast-iron skillet for about 1 to 2 minutes, until hot and shimmering. In the meantime, crack an egg into a small bowl. What is this? Once the oil is hot, gently slide the egg into the hot oil.
For perfectly cooked, amazingly tender fried eggs every time, just add water. As an Associate Food Editor, Bridget Hallinan primarily focuses on home cooking content for Food & Wine.com.
Enhances taste
It doesn't just help cleanse your eggs or help you peel their shells easier. It is also a very effective taste enhancer. Try adding a few drops of vinegar to the next batch of eggs you cook. It will give your eggs an interesting acidic bent to them that makes them quite tasty indeed.
1 Tablespoon Water: This is the secret ingredient that makes this the easiest and best way to cook sunny side up eggs! Water prevents the eggs from sticking to the pan by lifting the eggs and also steaming them during the last couple of minutes.
The layer of fat gets between the pan and the eggs and prevents the proteins from sticking. You can cook eggs in any kind of pan—even a cast-iron skillet, but you need to make sure you have oil in it and keep the eggs moving so that a bond never gets a chance to form.
Butter certainly works for fried eggs, but oil is the fat of choice for cooks who want a runny yolk with a satisfying crispy white. Extra-virgin olive oil is most popular, and yields a satisfyingly crunchy bottom that will soak up luscious flavor.
Be sure to preheat your pan AND the oil completely.
Otherwise, the eggs will take too long to cook. As a result, the oil will soak into the eggs rather than cooking them. Be sure to wait until the oil is smoking before you add the eggs to the pan.
The short answer is: Yes you can! This is a debated subject, and I want you to use whatever healthy oil you feel comfortable using for your fried eggs. When frying an egg in quality extra virgin olive oil, you'll use shallow amounts of the oil, over medium heat, for about 2 minutes or so.
Oil coating has been proven to preserve the internal quality, prolong shelf life, and minimize weight loss of eggs. This study demonstrated that, compared with other vegetable oils, soybean oil was a more practical option as a coating material for eggs during 5 wk of storage at 25 °C due to its low cost.
In a medium (10-inch) cast-iron or nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high until it ripples like the ocean. (This can take 2 to 2½ minutes). Crack the eggs into the pan. To minimize splatters and spreading, open the shell near the oil (not from high up), and slowly let the egg pour out of the shell.
When the oil is hot, use a knife to crack the shell and tip the egg, straight into the hot fat. Cook over a low to medium heat for 1 minute or until the white is set. Tilt the pan slightly and use a teaspoon to scoop the surplus hot oil/fat over the top of the egg until the yolk is cooked to your liking.
For the most delicious fried egg, use bacon fat (but you knew that, didn't you?). For the laciest edges without compromising flavor, olive oil's your best bet.
Use butter or coconut oil! Before I researched this, I was always coating my pans with cooking spray. Cooking spray may work for some pans, but using butter is working much better with my stainless steel pan. Coconut oil is also a great option.
Preferring water over milk isn't just our opinion—science also supports using water over milk (if you want fluffy eggs). Adding water to eggs essentially streams them, as the water evaporates during cooking, and this yields a fluffier scramble.
The water test for egg freshness
First, fill a bowl or glass with about four inches of cold water and gently place your egg(s) inside. Very fresh eggs will sink to the bottom and lay on their sides. If an egg stays at the bottom but stands on its small end, it's still acceptable to eat; just not quite as fresh.
Adding milk or plain water to scrambled eggs is an optional step that affects the texture of your finished dish. For creamy scrambled eggs, you'll add up to 1 tablespoon of milk for every egg. For fluffy scrambled eggs, you'll add up to 1 tablespoon of water for every egg.
It can take 12-24 hours before a good portion of the shell is removed. A good sign of progress is a white frothy scummy layer on the top of the surface of the vinegar. After a day of soaking you can carefully remove the egg from the vinegar.
Under normal conditions, egg yolk and vinegar would not mix. However, the will mix if you add an emulsifier--basically something that prevents them from separating. In this case, the emulsifier would be egg yolk. Once you add the egg yolk, it will take a lot longer for the vinegar and oil to separate.