Green asparagus. 2 types of eggs. Deep fried eggs.

Variable 3 or 4, becoming west 4 or 5, backing southwest later.

Slight.

Fair.

Good.

The first time I had green asparagus was in a restaurant in Italy. Everyone was excited because it was the first crop. So my fellow diners (Italian) ordered it and I was baffled when it arrived. Until then I only knew of white asparagus, served with Sauce Hollandaise and ham.  Quite a calorie heavy main dish. Never seen green asparagus before.

While the green asparagus dish itself was very scrumptious, and I cooked it many times, I always regarded it as a side dish. After all it`s not much. Green asparagus blanched, reheated gently in olive oil, a dash of lemon, black pepper and big shavings of parmesan cheese. Or, as it was presented in that restaurant, as a starter.

Fast forward some decades and green asparagus with a poached egg on top is everywhere. Mainly as part of a breakfast buffet, but also a light lunch. But because it was still a relative unsubstantial dish, it soon disappeared again into the realms of “starter”. At least in my book.

But a few months ago something happened in London. The deep fried egg was all of sudden everywhere. I started to toy with the idea of serving it with asparagus.

Then Thomasina Miers, owner of the Wahaca group and Goddess of Mexican Street Food published a recipe for asparagus with a deep fried egg in the Guardian.   

To add to the insult she used duck eggs. How dare she! That is not fair, it was my idea (never mind that she was probably the one who started the fried egg craze)!

But this happens so often. You come up with an idea and think how clever you are and then you realize that about half a million people cook that dish in exact the same way. Ah, well, here goes my chance of cooking fame. And to be perfectly honest, she showed how to make that egg, saving me several attempts.

I mentioned duck eggs before. For my appetite they are perfect. More than one egg, but not as much as two eggs. Plus their egg yolk is massive. The shell is a bit harder, so they are more difficult to peel.

What drove me to despair was the use of one egg in recipes for 4. From pastry to coating. Even a small hen egg is too much and you end up throwing it away. Not ideal. But then I had a light-bulb moment: Quail eggs. These tiny, next to nothing eggs, sold in packs of twelve. About the same price as 6 small hen eggs. And it was perfect. You will hear a lot more of quail eggs in the future.

But here is my take on

Green Asparagus with a deep fried Duck egg

1 bunch of green asparagus, trimmed but not peeled

2 tablespoons of olive oil

zest of ½ lemon

fat shavings of parmesan

1 duck egg

1 quail egg

3 tablespoons flour

3 tablespoons panko (or other breadcrumbs)

vegetable oil for frying.

Bring a pan of salted water to a boil, add the asparagus and cook for 3 minutes. Drain and refresh the asparagus immediately in a bowl filled with water and plenty of ice cubes.

While they cool down, fill the pan with hot water again, add one duck egg and bring to the boil. Once the water is boiling, set the timer to 3 minutes.

Lift the asparagus out of the water (don’t discard it), and pat dry. Add more ice cubes to the bowl. After 3 minutes lift the egg out of the pan, fresh under cold running water and plunge immediately into the ice water. Give it a minute, then knock it open and remove the shell carefully and gently (don’t forget the egg is only lightly cooked). The best way to do this is under the ice water. Set aside, no need to dry. Empty pan, pat dry and fill it with vegetable oil for deep frying. Heat.

Get a pan and add the olive oil. Heat gently.

Put the beaten quail egg, flour and panko on separate plates. Roll the peeled (still a bit wet) egg in the flour, then dip in the egg and then the crumbs. Use your hands to make sure its evenly coated at each stage.

Add the asparagus to the pan of hot olive oil, add lemon zest, and black pepper. Heat through and let it get a bit crisp, but not charred. About 3 minutes. Lift out, put one a warm plate, spoon a bit of the olive oil/lemon zest over and sprinkle heavily with the parmesan shaving.

Lower the egg into the hot oil and cook until crisp, about 2 minutes. Take out, put on top of the asparagus, spoon a teaspoon of the olive oil/zest over it and serve. When you cut the egg open, the soft egg should ooze unto the asparagus.

Verdict:

Now we are talking about a proper meal. Still relatively light, after all you only eat one egg and a bit of green stuff and a strong pinch of cheese, but due to the deep frying it lifts it into a satisfying, a bit naughty, main dish.

And I never knew how wonderful a deep fried egg can taste.

Thanks Thomasina! But you still plucked my idea from my silent mind. *grumble*