Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
Adding a small amount of a starchy slurry to
scrambled eggs — a technique learned from Mandy Lee of the food blog
Lady & Pups — prevents them from setting up too firmly, resulting in
eggs that stay tender and moist, whether you like them soft-, medium-
or hard-scrambled. Potato or tapioca starch is active at slightly lower
temperatures than cornstarch and will produce a slightly more tender
scramble, but cornstarch works just fine if it’s what you’ve got on
hand. Make sure your skillet is at just the right temperature by heating
a tablespoon of water in the skillet and waiting for it to evaporate.
For creamier eggs, you can replace the water with milk or half-and-half.
2
teaspoons potato starch, tapioca starch or cornstarch
4
tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
4
eggs (see Note)
Pinch of kosher salt
Preparation
In a medium bowl, whisk together starch with 1 1/2
tablespoons water until no lumps remain. Add half the butter cubes to
starch mixture. Add eggs and salt, and whisk, breaking up any cubes of
butter that have stuck together, until the eggs are frothy and
homogenous. (There will still be solid chunks of butter in the eggs.)
Set your serving plate near the stovetop. Heat 1
tablespoon water in a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high,
swirling gently until the water evaporates, leaving behind only a few
small droplets. Immediately add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and
swirl vigorously until the butter is mostly melted and foamy but not
brown, about 10 seconds.
Immediately add the egg mixture and cook, pushing
and folding the eggs with a spatula, until they are slightly less cooked
than you’d like them, about 1 to 2 minutes, depending on doneness. More
vigorous stirring will result in finer, softer curds, while more
leisurely stirring will result in larger, fluffier curds. Immediately
transfer to the serving plate, and serve.
Tip
If cooking fewer
eggs or more, adjust pan size accordingly, and note that cooking time
in Step 3 can vary significantly, needing as little as 15 to 30 seconds
for 2 eggs, or as long as 3 to 4 minutes for 8 eggs.
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