Breadcrumb-Fried Eggs
Sunday, August 5, 2012 at 6:36PM 
We have Russ Parsons to thank for this bit of eggy deliciousness. Thank you, Mr. Parsons. I found this recipe a few months ago in one of his LA Times columns when I had like 5 cartons of eggs in my fridge. The chickens were enjoying spring and spitting out eggs as fast as I could gather them. For reasons unknown to myself, I didn’t actually try this recipe until last week when I had exactly 4 eggs in the fridge. The chickens are definitely NOT enjoying summer. I do get a little miffed at them when between the 5 of them they can only manage to squeeze out 1 egg a day. If I were to calculate the cost of their feed and cracked corn treats (which I cannot bring myself to do), this becomes a rather expensive little egg. But still worth it if you’ve ever eaten a home-laid egg. Is home-laid even a term?
But I digress. Breadcrumb-fried eggs are scrumptious. And as an extra bonus, they’re incredibly easy to make. Just mix together some breadcrumbs, olive oil and a few herbs. I also added grated parmesan cheese, which I highly recommend. Lightly toast the breadcrumbs
and then separate them into as many little flat discs as you have eggs.
Crack an egg onto each disc
and then cover the pan and cook until the eggs are set to your liking. I found that my breadcrumbs started to get a little dark so I finished the eggs under the broiler and they turned out fabulous.
Mr. Parsons suggests that you try serving these over lightly cooked asparagus, and I think you might want to follow his advice. Mr. Parsons knows what he’s talking about here.
If you only have 3 or 4 (or 1) eggs in your fridge, this is what you want to do with them. Seriously. They’re heavenly. Here’s the recipe…
Breadcrumb-Fried Eggs
Click here for a printable recipe
Recipe adapted from Russ Parsons
These eggs are incredibly delicious all on their own, but they're spectacular atop a bundle of fresh asparagus. Mr. Parsons used 4 eggs with the 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs, but I found that to be not quite enough breadcrumbs, but just enough for 3. See what you think. I also did not do the last step which calls for adding vinegar to the empty pan to get up the last crumbs because the vinegar made the breadcrumbs soggy. But I liked the vinegar on them. So I would say that this step is optional. The only other changes I made to the recipe were to add some grated Parmesan cheese to the breadcrumb mixture and to swap out the thyme for some of my Tuscan Herb Salt. I think that just about any herb would work here, though.
Serves 3
½ cup of fresh breadcrumbs
1 tablespoons good olive oil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme (or any herb of your choice)
3 eggs
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1 to 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
Salt and pepper
In a bowl, mix together the breadcrumbs, parmesan, olive oil and chopped thyme.
Place the breadcrumb mixture in a 10-inch skillet and toast until lightly golden.
Form the breadcrumbs into 4 flat mounds that are as near to a single layer as you can manage. Immediately crack an egg over each mound, cover the pan and cook the eggs over medium heat until the yolks are as firm as you like.
Transfer the eggs to a plate. Add the vinegar to the hot pan and scrape up any crumbs that are stuck to the pan and pour that over the top of the eggs.
Variation:
Gently steam or roast about 6 asparagus spears per person. Place on a plate and drizzle with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Lay a couple of the breadcrumb-fried eggs over each bundle of asparagus.
Reader Comments (21)
Oh! I love this idea! I don't really like to eat too much bread and this seems like the perfect egg size quantity. Besides - toasted with parmesan & herbs!? DELICIOUS!
I think I'll be giving this recipe a go on the weekend!
what a great idea!! I was just thinking about how i need more yummy ways to eat eggs!!
Cheers
~ Jillian
www.hersplitends.com
This has been my go-to breakfast for the past three months. I'm not sure where I got the idea but all I do is melt a little butter in the pan, add a half a chopped jalapeno, then put about a teaspoon or two of Panko breadcrumbs and crack the egg right on top. The egg cooks as the breadcrumbs brown. Flip it over and serve with oranges and cottage cheese on the side. Seriously, I love to get up in the morning so I can have my Panko egg. I kept thinking that it would be wonderful on top of a salad and obviously, the asparagus is a great idea.
That sounds like a fabulous breakfast, Nina. What is it about eggs and breadcrumbs? So good. And panko breadcrumbs would be really great in this too. Thanks for the great ideas!
Yum! What a great idea! I can't wait to try these on the asparagus. Thanks!
I'm in! I'm always looking for an excuse to get a fried egg on my food. This recipe looks awesome.
I absolutely love this!
Thanks, Cathy! They really are good!
I had to try these this morning and they were SO good! I always keep homemade breadcrumbs in my freezer so it was a snap to throw together. I used a little dried Italian herb mix in the crumbs and it was delicious! Thanks for a new favorite recipe!!
You're welcome, Renee! So glad you liked them and thanks so much for letting us know!
I love this! It's like a little twist on eggs & toast.& I'm imagine the yolks breaking over the asparagus & *wanders off into her kitchen to find some eggs*
It's so simple, it's genius! These just look divine. Mmmmmmm.
So simple and yet it looks so good. This is a must try for me! Thank you for sharing ...
You're welcome, Linda! Hope you give them a try! Nice to hear from you.
Genius. They look lovely too.
I know these are very different, but the recipe did remind me of Matzo Brei, in that both are simple combinations of crumbly bread/crackers and eggs.
No doubt, this idea is nothing new, Cecelia. I will have to look up Matzo Brei and maybe give it a try! Nice to hear from you!
GREAT IDEA!! Definitely making these!
Drizzle with Hollandaise. PERFECT.
Love the hollandaise idea... Nice.
This is terrific!. been eating this for the last week with tarragon and chive as my latest combo.
So glad you're enjoying them Kleibs. Love the tarragon-chive combo! Thanks for letting us know!