How to Fry the Perfect Egg
There are only two things you need to fry the perfect egg: fresh eggs and a well-seasoned cast iron skillet.
One without the other and you're going to end up with an eggy mess that's stuck to your pan. Frying an egg isn't difficult, but there are a few things you should know.
So Why Fresh Eggs?
A fresh egg will have a nice round yolk that stands up tall in the pan and nice thick whites.
When you crack a fresh egg into your pan, it won't spread much, meaning that your fried egg will be nice and thick.
There is a higher water content in a fresh egg, since the moisture hasn't had time to seep out through the pores in the eggshell, so your fresh eggs will pop and crackle more than older eggs will.
Of course fresh eggs from your backyard taste better, are more nutritious, and far more convenient than lugging a carton home from the grocery store.
And naturally our backyard chickens are happier than chickens in a commercial farm setting.
How to Fry the Perfect Egg
So, how do you fry the perfect egg?
Well, I love to use avocado oil or sun coco oil when I cook eggs, but you can use any cooking oil you wish. Or none at all. Or use butter. Or a combination. It's up to you.
Trust me, with a hot, seasoned cast iron skillet you don't need to add oil.
But you want your pan to be hot. Cast iron heats very well and retains the heat, so high heat is rarely needed.
You want to cook your eggs fairly slowly anyway, and until the whites are just set and cloudy. Once the pan is hot, add your oil. Once that's shimmery, crack your eggs into the pan.
Lower the heat to low and cover the pan to keep the steam and moisture in - especially if you like your yolks to be well cooked.
Cook the eggs to your preference, flip or don't flip, break the yolk or don't, hard cook or soft cook the yolks. Season the eggs with salt and fresh cracked pepper.
Turn it into an egg sandwich, add a side of bacon or avocado (I love both!), garnish with some fresh herbs (tarragon and dill are two favorites of mine).
What you do with the egg after it's fried is up to you.
Enjoy!
