Crunchy Yolk, British Asparagus & New Potatoes
Spring is here but, if you look outside the window you’ll probably still think it’s winter. We have been incredibly unlucky with the weather. Rain, wind and hail have been part of our daily lives for the past couple of weeks and it doesn’t seem to be getting better.
This weather situation is even more annoying if I consider that all my family and friends in Greece and Italy are already living their best Summer life. Everyone is out for drinks, big lazy lunches by the beach and magic sunsets accompanied by good wine. I am not chasing Summer yet but I would really appreciate at least one full day of sunshine!
One thing that these ups and down are not going to change (at least not completely!!!) is the seasonal produce. Today I used British asparagus and new potatoes to make this delicious salad and topped it with a fried egg yolk.
I’ve seen deep fried yolks before in Italy but haven’t made them in years. I also researched it online a bit and there are only a few sous vide recipes that look complicated and long.
I wanted my eggs to be crunchy outside and completely runny inside. I achieved that by handling the yolks really carefully and using the fridge and espresso cups as my allies. You will find all the details in the step by step recipe below.
This salad turned out to be really tasty and also beautiful and it’s a great one to make if you are expecting guests.
Last but not least, I wanted to briefly mention all the ingredients used as unfortunately the title of the recipe does not allow for a complete description and I am assuming you want to know the details before embarking on the fried yolk journey:
Charred Asparagus
Charred Spring Onions
Fried Egg Yolks
Boiled New Potatoes
Honey & Mustard Vinaigrette
Fresh Red Chili
Chives & Dill
Grated Pecorino (Optional)
Ingredients
350g asparagus
300g new potatoes
4 egg yolks
5 Spring Onions
Breadcrumbs (enough to coat the yolks)
Salt & Pepper
Handful of Dill
Handful of Chives
1 red chili
1 tbsp grated pecorino (optional)
Oil for frying the egg yolks
For the vinaigrette
Salt & Pepper
1 tsp mustard
3 tbsp oil
1 tsp honey
1 squeeze of lemon juice
Step by Step
Take 4 Espresso cups (or tiny bowls) and coat them inside with cling film. Add a big tablespoon of breadcrumbs in the espresso cups. Separate your egg yolks from the whites and carefully place one yolk in each espresso cup. fill each cup with breadcrumbs and place them in the fridge for a couple of hours.
Cut your potatoes in slices of roughly 5mm
Bring a pan of hot water to boil and add salt in. Boil your potatoes until cooked (roughly 6 to 8 minutes)
Separately cut the hard part of your asparagus and wash the spring onions
Wash and thinly cut your herbs and your chili. Set aside
Place a griddle pan on the hob and brush it with a coat of olive oil
Once warm, place the asparagus and the spring onions and cook until tender and charred outside
Time to prep the vinaigrette. Simply add all the ingredients in a shaker or a container with a lid and shake well until emulsified. Adjust salt and pepper to taste
Now it’s time to heat your oil. You want a small deep pan and you want to add enough oil so that your yolks do not touch the bottom of the pan when cooking
Once the oil is hot, fry each of the egg yolks for roughly 30 to 60 seconds. Don’t keep it in for longer or the yolks will become hard. Dry the egg yolks on kitchen paper
Roughly slice your charred spring onions and toss them in a bowl with the asparagus, chili, potatoes, vinaigrette and herbs. Mix well
Serve the salad in individual plates topped with 1 egg yolk
If you wish you can add a sprinkle of grated pecorino (optional)
Enjoy!
Tips & Cheats
Handle the yolks very carefully and make sure you add a generous amount of breadcrumbs in your cup. If any part of the egg remains uncovered it will stick to the cling film or surface of the cup/bowl you are using.
If you are in a hurry you can use the freezer instead of the fridge. Half an hour should be enough rest time for your breaded egg yolks. Once you take them out of the freezer let them rest 5 minutes before you attempt taking them out of the cup.
