Egging on

On the news this morning I heard that scientists have come to the conclusion that the chicken definitely came before the egg. Apparently eggs shells are made of a kind of protein only produced by hens – thus no egg would exist if it wasn’t for the bird! Such humble little creatures, and yet they, and their spherical offerings have confuddled academics and scientists the world over for millennia. In fact, so much importance is put on this delicious, fabulously healthy protein that 8 October has for many years been World Egg Day.

Now I love eggs as much as the next man, but a whole day in honour of the egg? Well, why not? There are some extraordinarily odd commemorative/ awareness days, and even months. Who dreams up things like International Expect Success Month (I would have hoped that was more of a 365-day-a-year thing), Moment of Laughter Day (that’s so sad), Patient Safety Day (did I err in expecting this daily?), Google Commemoration Day (like there’s any chance of us forgetting them) and World Handshake Day (which is slightly Masonic creepy and is just plain odd)?

In light of all these rather useless calendar entries, World Egg Day doesn’t seem quite so silly; actually in the scheme of things eggs really are rather useful. Poetically speaking they’re the universal symbol of fertility, a pretty big role it must be said, and nutritionally speaking they’re an easily digestible, and affordable and readily available protein. But it is in the culinary world that they really shine.

There are the more obvious breakfast offerings – boiled, poached, scrambled, coddled or fried (perfect served with a glass of bubbly, of course!). There’s the ever-popular omelette in one form or another, be it Spain’s tortilla, Italy’s frittata or Japan’s tamago.

Next it’s the myriad sauces that make life that little bit more delicious – mayonnaise, béarnaise, hollandaise; then of course there’s a never-ending offering of cakes, pastas, breads and puds…

So you see, this small, near-perfect specimen deserves our gratitude and acknowledgement on much more than just one day… but rather everyday! Here are two of my most treasured egg recipes...

EGG PÂTÉ
SERVES SIX AS A STARTER

This is one of those easy and unbelievably moreish ‘things’ that we all used to make in the ‘80s and ‘90s. For some reason it is no longer deemed sexy – I’m hoping to change that…

6 hard-boiled free-range eggs
¼ cup good-quality mayonnaise a few shakes of Tabasco sauce
1 bunch spring onions, finely chopped
375g smooth cottage cheese
¼ cup sour cream
salt and milled pepper

1. Mash eggs, mayonnaise, Tabasco and seasoning together.
2. Spoon into a dish and smooth with a knife to flatten.
3. Mix remaining ingredients together and spread over egg mixture.
4. Top with a sprinkling of paprika. Serve with crackers.

EGG-FRIED RICE
SERVES FOUR GENEROUSLY

1 t sesame oil
2 t canola or peanut oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 baby marrows, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 t freshly grated ginger
1 small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
3 free-range eggs, lightly beaten
2 T soy sauce
2 cups cooked basmati rice, chilled
½ cup frozen or canned corn
½ cup coriander, roughly chopped
3-4 chopped spring onions

1. Heat wok or large non-stick pan. Add the oils once the pan is hot. Add onion, carrots, baby marrows, garlic, ginger and chilli.
2. Stir-fry for five minutes.
3. Mix eggs and soy together.
4. Shift vegetables to one side of the pan and pour in egg mixture.
5. Stir-fry for three to five minutes, stirring continuously to break egg up as it sets.
6. Add rice and corn and toss together.
7. Stir-fry for a further five to eight minutes.
8. Remove from heat, stir in coriander and spring onion.

Serve as a side dish with grilled chicken or fish.