395—Eggs on the Dish

Eggs cooked in this way derive all their quality from the way in which the cooking process is conducted. They must be evenly cooked, on top and underneath, and should remain soft. An important condition of the process is that the eggs should be exceedingly fresh. After having heated sufficient butter in the dish to cover the whole of the bottom, break two eggs into it, baste the yolks with a little very hot butter, salt them slightly, and push them into the oven. As soon as the white of the eggs assumes a milky-white colour, they are cooked and should be withdrawn from the oven to be served immediately.

Great attention should be bestowed upon the cooking process, a few seconds more or less than the required time being sufficient to spoil the eggs. Special care ought to be taken that they do not cook either too much or too quickly, for it should be remembered that, even were the cooking checked before the proper time, the heat of the dish does, to a certain extent, make good the deficiency.

Eggs à la poêle, which, in England, are called “fried eggs,” are a variety of eggs on the dish, very often served on toast, or accompanied by sausages or fried bacon. They are cooked in an omelet-pan, trimmed neatly with a fancy-cutter, and placed, by means of a spatula, upon the prepared toast.

About one-half oz. of butter should be allowed for every two eggs, which number constitutes the working-base of the following recipes.