2026, animals, Food, Kids, Mysteries

Scrambled?

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It was YAs birthday in the middle of the month.  She was out of town for work so she requested a birthday brunch this past weekend.  She had the jalapeno hash with a wide of pancakes; I had the blueberry pancakes with a side of scrambled eggs.  

I used to always order fried eggs, over medium.  No waitperson ever blinked an eye over this, but apparently chefs and fry cooks weren’t up to the task.  Either the yolks were rock solid or the whites oozed out.  After several years of this, I finally decided to switch to scrambled.  Easy peasy, right?  Nope.  It was right about this time that “soft” scrambled eggs started to trend upwards.  I remember seeing chefs online and on tv raving about them.  I always just thought of them as “wet” and certainly not appetizing.  These days when I order scrambled eggs, I specify that I want them “dry”.  Again, no waitperson ever questions this description and I always get the eggs the way I like them.

On Saturday however, YA informed me that I’m ordering wrong.  I’m supposed to say “hard” instead of “dry”.  Since she chose that outing to also inform me of several other things that I do wrong, I didn’t think about it too much.

Then I read Ben’s blog and when I was looking at the chicken pictures, it made me wonder if on the egg point YA was correct.  I can’t imagine what the internet thinks of me based on some of my searches but now it has to add “ways to scramble” eggs to my weird list.  Turns out that most folks do say “hard” although there are enough that use “dry” to make me feel like I’m not completely on my own.  I also discovered that the culinary world also refers to this method as “American Method”.  Hmmm.  I found a lot of videos about how to scramble eggs but nobody seems to know why hard/dry is American.  I did also find that there are “diner” scrambled; the eggs are cooked flat on a grill and folded up. 

When I do eggs at home, my preferred method is fried.  Over medium of course.

Anyway, thanks to Ben and YA for my latest rabbit hole – egg research.  I have frittata and shakshuka on the menu for the next week!

Poached, hard-boiled, soft-boiled, scrambled, over-easy, sunny-side up?

30 thoughts on “Scrambled?”

  1. I’ve never ordered, or thought to order, eggs with that level of specificity. I prefer my eggs, whether poached, boiled or fried, to have a runny or somewhat runny yolk. Scrambled is just scrambled. Hard cooked yolks are disappointing.

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  2. I prefer my scrambled eggs hard, dry, whatever the word is. I prefer my poached eggs almost, but not quite, runny. I worry about salmonella in too runny of eggs. Husband puts mayonnaise in our scrambled eggs mixture.

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  3. Rise and Sunny Side Up, Baboons,

    Uh-Oh, WP made me sign in this morning which means a temperamental day ahead on the Trail. Sigh.

    I always love eggs. Just Sunday I decided I wanted a souffle. Who knows why, my mind just settled on a cheese souffle. So I made one. It was delicious! Usually I have my eggs poached or scrambled, but my favorite is sunny side up with bacon. My grandmother did these differently than most. You break the eggs into a fry pan with a tightly fitting lid, salt and pepper them, then cover the pan while they cook. Rather than a bright yellow yolk, the steam in the pan cooked the white membrane across the yolk. The pepper on the top leaves flecks that are beautiful. I do not make these often because of the health effects of bacon, but that is my fave.

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    1. Jacque – I fix my fried eggs the same way as your grandmother. I like the yolk firm rather than runny. I like my scrambled eggs “dry” and fluffy. My grandmother always added just a bit of water along with salt and pepper to the mix and I do the same. In my world travels I have eaten a lot of “wet” scrambled eggs. Most hotel breakfast buffets include made to order omelets. If the line isn’t too long, that’s what I usually have.

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  4. I don’t usually order or eat eggs when out. Because they don’t compare to mine of course… apparently I’m an egg snob.
    And I just don’t eat that many eggs in general. If I do, I’ll make an omelet with cheese and whatever else I find to put in it.

    Daughter takes an “egg cup” for breakfast most days. It’s a plastic cup that comes with cheese, bacon, and potatoes (there’s a couple different versions) then we add the eggs and microwave it. All of our meal schedules are off because we just eat when we get too it. Between farming or theater, most dinners are 9:00 at night. So I make her an egg cup, she takes it with her to her programming and I don’t know when or if she ever eats it.
    She’s working on her cold lunch between 3:00 and 4:00 PM.
    What was the question??
    Oh yeah. Eggs.

    My dad always wanted his scrambled eggs “brown”.
    Dry or hard, either one makes sense to me.

    I like sunny side up, and a little soft. But if I think about the yoke too much, it gross’ me out.

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  7. I too must have the whites cooked. Yolk slightly jammy. I like hard boiled eggs too because I know the whites are cooked. Love the blue chicken eggs or duck eggs with strong orange yolks (probably like yours Ben). My friend Linda has perfected microwave poaching (in cup of water with a little vinegar) for a nice egg on top of avocado toast with Qatar.

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  9. I like eggs almost any style, but I rarely eat them. Favorite is Eggs Benedict when I eat out. Too much of a pain to make at home. For scrambled, I like wetter than drier. I used to eat over easy egg sandwiches as a kid. For all eggs, I tend toward runny yokes and nothing overcooked. But I’ll eat a hard-boiled egg for convenience (as finger food).

    Chris in Owatonna

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    1. Oh yes, I could eat a bunch of deviled eggs!

      Kelly made a bunch for some event a few years ago. Finished and putting the tray back in the fridge and bumped the fridge shelf with the egg tray and they all slid around and half onto the floor.
      They didn’t look so pretty after that. We saved the ones we could…they were still good.

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  11. I like my eggs cooked firm. I don’t like any runny stuff whether it’s the yoke or the white. I like poached eggs a lot but I never make them. If I make eggs, I make an omelette. Two eggs, beaten, added to a smaller pan with olive oil in it, and cooked flat until just firm. I saute’ spinach, garlic, and whatever other veggies are hanging out in the fridge, and put the sautéed veggies on one side of the flat eggs in the pan. Then I add a little feta cheese and some herbs and black pepper. Then I fold it over and press it down for a few seconds. Then I flip it so it’s brown on both sides. Ben’s eggs are the best!

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  14. I order eggs basted. It’s a method that keeps the yolk a bit runny but firms up the whites nicely.

    I don’t know how the cooks feel about basting eggs, but the results are nearly always perfect.

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  15. I’m not overly fussy about eggs and like them almost any way you can fix them. Like Bill, my preference is a runny yolk in poached, boiled, or fried eggs. I’m especially fond of eggs poached in savory tomato sauce such as in shakshuka and huevos rancheros.

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  16. I’m not a huge fan of eating eggs just by themselves, but I love cooking and baking with them (quiche, custard, etc.). If I’m eating out, I might order eggs Benedict. At home I make “creamy” scrambled eggs, cooking them until they’re dry makes them taste rubbery to me. Fried eggs over easy. Baked eggs in shakshuka or in a nest of cheese, onions, and breadcrumbs. Deviled eggs and hard-boiled in potato salad. I make omelets for the family, but usually make just a tiny one for myself.

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