Project "Start Here" Chapter 2

We made it to chapter 2! The trial period of "cooking my way through a cookbook" feels officially over. The year-long commitment I have made is fully sinking in. I am excited, I am nervous, and I am about to eat a LOT...of...eggs.

As previously mentioned, Sohla's cookbook is broken up into culinary "lessons," each chapter teaching you a different essential principle of cooking. Chapter 2 is all about Temperature Control. It is essential as a chef to know the right temperature to cook different types of foods; what poaching vs. baking vs. broiling should look like. What cooking something to "temp" means. What over vs undercooking appears like.

Temperature control is also all about getting to know your kitchen. Does your stove run hot? Does your oven run cold? How can you adjust accordingly and take control of your temps?

Sohla decided the best way for us (aka me) to learn, adapt, and master this skill is through eggs. Eggs can be cooked a multitude of different ways, each equally as delicious based on one's mood.

Eggs can also be sensitive to temperature; if your pan is too hot, it only takes seconds for eggs to go from a soft scramble to overcooked rubber. I learned this the hard way many times throughout the month.

That being said, eggs were whisked, scrambled, fried, boiled, poached, dipped, dunked, etc. Eggs were eaten. Eggs were thrown into the trash. Stoves weren't quite hot enough, then were WAY too hot.

Nevertheless, I persisted, I mastered the temperature of my kitchen, I took control of each cooking method, and I still enjoy eggs to this day.

Here's the breakdown of each recipe (or recipes):

Boiled eggs:

Eggs boiled in any capacity really just rely on the "boiling vs simmering" factor of your water. Sohla lets you choose your own adventure for whether you want to make a soft vs hard boil on your first go around. I went for soft, then landed somewhere between soft and medium boiled. Turns out my water was at a rolling boil--I now know for the future!

Rating: 10/10 for being a good quality, versatile cooking style.

Scrambled Eggs 3 Ways:

Everyone's eaten scrambled eggs, and everyone has a different preference. Gordon Ramsey likes them in the softest, runniest of forms. Diners often make big, fluffy eggs. Sohla teaches you them all here. I scrambled softly, I made big fluffy clouds, and I made glossy whites with the yolks scrambled in (or, as Sohla calls them, "silky marbled ribbons").

Rating: 10/10, can't go wrong (except I ate these all in one sitting and admittedly felt ill)

Crispy, Oil-Basted Eggs:

I was admittedly always intimidated by this method: essentially, you get your pan SUPER hot and then scoop BURNING hot oil onto the egg whites until they are poofy and frizzled. It scared me slightly. Turns out, this was way easier than anticipated, and is now my favorite style of egg to eat. Crispy edges, runny yolk, poofy whites. What's better?

Rating: 10/10 (again, nearly all eggs are delicious)

Sunny-Side Up, Over-Easy, Over-Medium, Over-Hard Eggs:

If you're going to a diner and ordering eggs, you likely give one of these as a response to "how would you like them cooked?" This again, is all about personal preference. The difference is just how long it stays in the pan; just a few minutes can make for a totally different egg!

Rating: 10/10 because you cannot go wrong if you are craving!

Tender Poached Eggs with Runny Yolks:

Poached eggs again, are a cooking method that seems intimidating, but is really not as hard as it seems! Simmering water, a good going "water vortex," and a decent cooking time.

Rating: 8/10 (sometimes too runny for my liking but for most people, delicious)

Stracciatella alla Romana:

Aka Italian Egg Drop Soup. Less in-your-face eggs, more soup with random ribbons of egg intertwined. It creates an interesting texture, and the kick of lemon and fresh parm makes it the perfect starter soup.

Rating: 8/10

Frizzled Desi Omelet with Onion & Chilies

This was always going to TASTE delicious. I mean, it's a mix of eggs, aromatics, herbs, and spice. The frittata aspect, however, can feel slightly nerve-wracking. Flipping the WHOLE egg concoction over felt like a recipe for disaster. And while my flip was about an 80% success, the beauty of this style of cooking is you can often hide that 20% of mistakes.

Rating: 8.5/10 great breakfast

Four Fat Egg Tacos

Yes, it sounds like a LOT of fat and not enough flavor. However, each fat gets used to heighten the flavors of the OTHER fats involved. For example, sliced nuts get toasted in browned butter, which then doubles as a delicious sauce that texturally emulsifies with runny egg yolks and clashes with creamy avocado just enough to make the perfect bite. Simple, yet elegant and flavorful.

Rating: 8.5/10 yay omega-3's!

Spicy Tomato Sauce Poached Eggs with Beans, Greens & Tortillas

This is perhaps the most "complex" and time-consuming of the recipes so far. It is also my absolute favorite. A top contender for one of my favorite recipes in the whole book. I mean, it's well seasoned tomato sauce with pinto beans, crispy tortillas, shreddy cheddy, and poached eggs. WHAT could be better. My only qualm is that this goes in the oven, which means you MUST remember the pan is burning hot and NOT grab it with your bare hands. Learn from my mistakes.

Rating: 9.5/10 (half a point off for the burnt hands)

Çilbir (Poached Eggs over Labne with Chili Oil)

After my mistakes with the Raitha in chapter one, I was slightly nervous about this Labne situation. Luckily, either my skills have improved or this recipe just happened to work out! The spiced oil adds the right kick to the creamy Labneh and runny eggs. Paired with Pita? The perfect combo.

Rating: 8.5/10

French Omelet

This. Was. The. Recipe. I have always failed at omelets in general, and have never even ventured to ATTEMPT a French omelet. But now was the time. If I could somehow master my hot pan, hot stove, and NOT overcooking the eggs, I could master anything.

The key to this was lots of butter, careful patience, and DIRECT following of instructions. I rolled gently, and despite a few cracks here and there, I was shockingly impressed! Topped with some glossy butter and a sprinkling of cheese, this was my greatest success to date.

Rating: 10/10 A for effort

Deviled Egg Dip

This was a fun twist on a beloved Springtime classic! There is an egg white and "deviled egg filling" layer to this dip. Everything gets paired with some simple butter crackers. It's deviled eggs, but dippable. How fun!

Rating: 6.5/10 (I accidentally oversalted)

Chili-Blistered Egg over Brothy Beans...with Fish Sauce & Lime

Like the crispy, oil-basted egg from earlier, but elevated. Ginger, hot chilis, and fun herbs and spices get added in to the crisping. Less versatile than the classic, but debatably more tasty. And served over a bed of beans! What's not to like.

Rating: 8.5/10

Make-Ahead Steamed Egg Sandwiches with Homemade Tartar Sauce

Homemade mayo is MUCH easier than you would think: you essentially just whisk egg yolks, cold water, and oil into oblivion until everything is emulsified and creamy. I tartar-sauce-ified the mayo, made steamed eggs for the first time, and had breakfast meal prepped for the whole week!

Rating: 7/10

Fancy Weekend Scramble with Pepper Bacon & One Big Pancake

This, while still FEATURING soft scrambled eggs, admittedly was mostly about the giant pancake. Instead of spending your own brunch flipping pancakes for hours on end, why not sprinkle the WHOLE pan with sugar and butter, pour the WHOLE pancake in, and let it bake and brown until a pan...CAKE is formed? It was fun, it was tasty, and the perfect weekend breakfast. And the eggs and the bacon were good, too.

Rating: 9/10

And that's eggs! And temperature control. I've learned how to listen to the sizzle to know if my stove is too hot (it often is). I know to wait until the butter is foamy as an indicator my pan is hot enough to cook. I know the bubbles of simmering vs boiling water. AND I know how to cook a lot of eggs!