Channelling Dr Seuss’s Green Eggs

Fried Eggs with Broccoli Photo by Cynthia Nelson
Fried Eggs with Broccoli Photo by Cynthia Nelson

I, Love. Broccoli. I eat the stems raw (after removing the fibrous outer skin) and steam the moss-like heads and eat them just like that. Whenever I steam broccoli (which is often), I always leave back a few pieces to cook with eggs.

Sometimes it’s fried eggs and broccoli or fried eggs, broccoli and cheese all cooked together. So good!

To keep the broccoli green for this fry up, here is what to do:

 

  • Add water to a saucepan and insert a steam rack (the metal ones are perfect for this). Place over medium heat, cover the pot and bring to a boil. Drop in broccoli, cover and let steam for 4 minutes – longer if you like your broccoli softer.
  • Remove broccoli and place on wire rack to cool. Leaving the broccoli in the hot pot even though the heat is turned off will result in the broccoli continuing to cook and it will change colour.

 

Now here’s how to cook the broccoli with the eggs:

 

  • Fried Eggs with Broccoli and Cheese Photo by Cynthia Nelson

    You’ll need a little oil, or butter if you prefer

  • Steamed broccoli in small bite-size pieces
  • 2 large eggs (room temperature)
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • Grated cheddar cheese (for variation)

 

DIRECTIONS

  1. Add a little oil or butter to a frying pan (preferably nonstick) and place over medium low heat (melt butter if using)
  2. Add broccoli and sauté for 1 minute.
  3. Push broccoli to one side of pan and add eggs, as soon as egg whites start to cook at the edges, mix with a fork to break up egg yolks then mix in broccoli.
  4. Season with salt and pepper to taste and cook until eggs are tender. Serve immediately.
  5. If using cheese, shut off the heat, sprinkle cheese over eggs and broccoli and mix in gently (all the cheese will not melt, that is okay, it will melt from the residual heat when served). Serve hot.