Main · British
Scrambled eggs on toast
Soft, buttery scrambled eggs in big folds on hot buttered toast.
Good scrambled eggs are soft, glossy folds, not dry crumbs, and the secret is gentle heat and taking them off a little early. Butter makes them rich without any cream. Piled on hot buttered toast, it is a fifteen-minute breakfast that feels like a treat.
Ingredients
- 8 eggs
- 50 g butter, 30g for the eggs, 20g for the toast
- salt, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- 1 small bunch chives, finely chopped (optional)
- 4 slices sourdough bread, thick-cut
Method
- Crack the eggs into a bowl, add a pinch of salt and beat with a fork until the yolks and whites are fully mixed and no streaks of white are left. Salting the eggs before they cook keeps them tender.
- Melt 30g of the butter in a large (28cm) non-stick frying pan over a medium-low heat until it foams, about 1 minute. Keep the heat gentle, because high heat turns eggs rubbery.
- Pour in the eggs and leave them for 20 seconds, until the edges start to set, then slowly push them into the middle with a spatula in big soft folds. After about 2 minutes, put the bread in the toaster (golden and crisp in 2 to 3 minutes) so it is ready as the eggs finish. Keep folding until mostly set but still glossy, 4 to 5 minutes in all.
- Take the pan off the heat while the eggs still look slightly wetter than you want them, because the heat of the pan finishes them. If anyone is pregnant, or the eggs are for small children, keep stirring over a low heat for 30 to 60 seconds longer, until no runny egg is left. Season with pepper and stir in the chives (if using).
- Butter the hot toast with the remaining 20g of butter, pile the eggs on top in their soft folds and serve straight away, while they are creamy. A little extra black pepper on top is all they need.
Tips
- Keep the heat medium-low; high heat makes scrambled eggs rubbery.
- Take the pan off the heat while the eggs still look a little wet, because they keep cooking.
- Salt the eggs before they go in the pan, which keeps them tender.
Common questions
Should you add milk to scrambled eggs?
You do not need to. Butter and gentle heat give creamy eggs, and milk can make them watery.
How do I keep scrambled eggs soft?
Cook them slowly over a medium-low heat, push them gently into big folds and take them off the heat before they look done.