Outtake and Recipe: Turkish Poached Eggs

Turkish Poached Eggs with Yogurt

Mama said there’d be days like this: You’re running late, your kids are starving, you’re low on food, you want to get dinner on the table in 20 minutes, soccer practice is in an hour, and you can’t for the life of you think of what to cook. Poached eggs can save you. A staple of the Turkish diet, eggs offer a tremendous bang for the buck, as they’re packed with protein and minerals, and they can be incorporated into dishes as easy as this one. Mix up the yogurt so you have it at the ready, whip up the eggs, then serve with some naan, tortillas, or other bread to soak up the sauce.

Ingredients

1 cup 2% plain Greek yogurt
1 garlic clove, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons butter
10 fresh sage leaves
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon white vinegar
8 eggs

Serves 4

1. Blend the yogurt and garlic in a small bowl, season to taste with salt and pepper, then set aside in the refrigerator for an hour or so. When ready to cook, divide the yogurt sauce among four plates, spreading it to make a large circle.

2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, then add the sage, paprika, and red pepper flakes, stirring until the butter sizzles. Remove from the heat.

3. Bring 2 inches of water, or enough to submerge the eggs, to a simmer in a saucepan and add the vinegar. Crack the eggs into the water and simmer until they’re softly cooked, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the eggs from the water, drain briefly on paper towels, then put a pair of eggs atop each plate of yogurt. Rewarm the butter sauce if necessary, then spoon it over the eggs (leave the sage leaves in the pan) and serve.

Recipe excerpted from The Fresh Egg Cookbook © by Jennifer Trainer Thompson, used with permission from Storey Publishing.