Scrambled Eggs with Mushrooms

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •10-inch (25 cm) skillet
• •2-quart (2-liter) heavy saucepan
• •1-quart (1-liter) timbale or straight-sided heatproof serving bowl
• •Flexible silicone spatula
• •Small whisk
• •Sharp paring knife

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the timbale

   Fill a 1-quart timbale or straight-sided heatproof serving bowl with hot water and set it aside to warm. Choose the smoothest mushroom from the garnish portion, trim its stem neatly, and use a small paring knife to cut six to eight shallow V-shaped grooves from the center of the cap toward its edge. Keep this mushroom whole, slice the others evenly, and mince the mushrooms intended for the eggs.

2. 2

   Sauté the minced mushrooms

   Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté, meaning cook quickly in butter over lively heat, the minced mushrooms until they release their moisture, the pan dries, and their edges begin to bronze, about 4 to 5 minutes. Stir only often enough to prevent scorching. Spread them on a plate so they stop cooking; wet mushrooms would loosen the eggs and flatten their flavor.

3. 3

   Cook the mushroom crown

   Add 1 tablespoon butter to the skillet and lay in the sliced mushrooms and grooved whole mushroom without crowding them. Cook until tender and lightly golden, turning the slices once and rolling the whole mushroom through the butter so it cooks evenly, about 4 minutes. Set the whole mushroom and the best slices on a warm plate for the crown.

4. 4

   Stir the eggs gently

   Whisk the eggs with the salt and white pepper only until the whites and yolks unite; beating in a great volume of air gives the wrong texture. Melt 1½ tablespoons butter in a small heavy saucepan over the lowest heat. Add the eggs and stir continuously with a flexible spatula, sweeping the bottom, sides, and corners. Lift the saucepan away from the burner whenever the eggs begin setting faster than you can stir. After 5 to 7 minutes, they should thicken into tiny, tender curds suspended in a glossy custard.

   A heavy saucepan softens the direct heat that a brigade cook controlled through a protected corner of the stove. The pan should feel warm, never fiercely hot.
5. 5

   Fold and arrest

   When the eggs form soft folds but still carry a little visible liquid, fold in the minced sautéed mushrooms and stir for another 30 seconds. Remove the saucepan from the heat while the mixture remains looser than you want to serve it, then stir in the cold cream and remaining ½ tablespoon cold butter. These cool the pan and leave the eggs lustrous. If firm curds suddenly form against the bottom, lift the pan immediately, scrape vigorously, and add the cold cream at once. Ça se rattrape if you act while some liquid remains; fully dry eggs cannot be made creamy again.

6. 6

   Crown the timbale

   Empty and dry the warmed timbale, then dish the œufs brouillés into it without packing them down. Arrange the cooked mushroom slices in an overlapping crown around the surface and place the grooved whole mushroom in the center. Serve at once, while the eggs still settle softly under the spoon. À table!

Chef Tips

• •The source gives two exact paths for the mushrooms folded into the eggs: four ounces of cooked mushrooms cut into dice, or four ounces of raw mushrooms minced and sautéed in butter. This version follows the raw route. If you already have plainly cooked mushrooms, weigh four ounces after cooking, dice them finely, and fold them in at the same moment.
• •Choose firm, closed-cap white button mushrooms. Cremini have a deeper, earthier flavor but will darken the eggs and change the pale classical presentation. Pleasant, certainly, but the difference is visible.
• •Butter, not margarine. Butter browns the mushrooms, carries their aroma, and gives the eggs their final sheen. A fat substitute leaves both the flavor and texture diminished.
• •Œufs brouillés wait for no guest. Have the timbale warm, the crown ready, and everyone seated before the eggs enter the saucepan. Use pasteurized shell eggs when serving anyone for whom softly cooked eggs present a particular food-safety risk.

Advance Preparation

• •The minced mushrooms and mushroom crown can be cooked up to 4 hours ahead. Cool them promptly, cover and chill, then rewarm the crown gently in its own butter while the eggs cook.
• •Warm the timbale and arrange every tool before beginning the eggs. The finished œufs brouillés cannot be held without tightening, so cook them only when the table is ready.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 150g)