The Perfect Fried Egg Sandwich
Growing up my family didn't have a lot of money, so we ate a lot of really cheap food. One of our go-to meals was fried egg sandwiches, which has actually become a comfort food to me as an adult.
When I was a kid, I thought the perfect fried egg sandwich was on untoasted white bread, with a smear of mayo, some ketchup, and a bit of Tapatio hot sauce- and the yolk had to be fully cooked. I just ate one for dinner and my tastes have changed a bit: one fried egg with a runny yolk, on 12 grain bread with a bit of mayo, a bit of ketchup, and a lot of Sriracha.
Did anyone else grow up eating fried egg sandwiches? As an adult, what's your favorite fried egg sandwich look like?
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57 Comments:
I still love fried egg sandwiches. I generally use whole grain bread now with lots of black pepper and a little salt. The yolks are always broken before frying. I've never used mayonnaise on them.
Jeremiahc at 9:49PM on 10/06/09
an egg fried in really hot bacon grease or olive oil, over, a little salt and pepper -- a slice of cheddar or better yet, jalapeno jack, a squirt of hot sauce on a nice roll. the yolk should be slighltly runny but the white's cooked nice and firm, even crispy on the edges. and i could even dip that bread in a little bit of the grease before i make that sandwich. wrap it up in foil and let it steam a little bit and eat in in the car on your way to something fantasatic.
pooch at 10:07PM on 10/06/09
My family's version of this was referred to as "combination sandwiches" ... probably because we all made different combinations of toppings for what was really just scrambled egg sandwiches. Back then I wasn't into vegetables, so it was a light smear of miracle whip with velveeta and bacon (shut up - I was young and stupid).
Having always been a fan of dippy eggs (over easy/med), I jumped on a college roommate's suggestion that the best was a fried egg with cheese and jam (since I always ate grilled cheese sandwiches with jam), and he was right, it was pretty good.
These days I don't do the fried egg sandwich that often and if I do it's just a classic eng muffin/cheese/breakfast meat combo. My more usual 'grown up' variation on that is plopping a poached egg on just about anything though.
joyyy at 10:19PM on 10/06/09
Egg cooked on super super low heat with a semi-set yolk, dijon mustard, smoked gouda and a very seedy whole-grain bread, slightly toasted. Or, an egg cooked in the same manner with Tapatio.
perfunctory at 10:24PM on 10/06/09
On top of a slice of toast, a smear of mayonnaise, a fried egg with the yolk set just slightly, covered with a few slices of avocado, and then drizzled with some soy sauce.
hungryhungryhippo at 10:56PM on 10/06/09
English muffin, grilled, with butter+bacon fat brushed on before grill. runny yolks, very melty cheese, slice of tomato.
veggieout at 12:00AM on 10/07/09
@Joyyy: You really made me laugh. Your favorite egg sandwich as a kid (Miracle Whip, Veveeta, AND bacon) sounded like a pretty intense, hearty sandwich.
PumpkinBear at 12:15AM on 10/07/09
I have several I make.
English muffin, chili sauce and chutney
Italian roll, slice of cheese and pork roll or bacon
"Moonstruck" egg in toast
sourdough bread, slice of ham and dijon
JerzeeTomato at 1:33AM on 10/07/09
We would have fried eggs with semi-set yolks, salt and pepper, Miracle Whip and occasionally bacon and lettuce on white bread. My bread preference has changed, but I don't think I'll ever give up my love of Miracle Whip!
yankeesgal at 1:34AM on 10/07/09
As a child we regularly ate a hard-cooked (broken yolk) egg between two pieces of white bread with salt, pepper and mayonnaise. It's been awhile.
As a young man I lived in a college dormitory at a school sponsored by a religion that did not eat meat on Friday so we were regularly served "egg burgers" for lunch on those days. I lost count of how many times I had to change my shirt after biting into a burger whose yolk didn't get cooked well..!
Today, when on the run, I'll throw a hard cooked egg between two pieces of buttered toast and run off to race through my day. Truth is, though, I almost always eat my eggs runny and clearly sunny up.
My secret sin is an occasional stop at Ronald's place for his muffin with sausage, egg and cheese. I could really get into trouble if I had free access to his storehouse...
czken at 2:34AM on 10/07/09
I like to have an egg, slightly runny, on a well toasted english muffin with with a slice of colby jack. Another favorite in one egg scrambled with broccoli on whole grain toast with dill havarti, run under the broiler and served open faced. And the one I've been turning to the most lately is one egg, scrambled or slightly runny topped with a slice of tomato and swiss on marble rye toast--somtimes a bit messy, but oh so good.
dhorst at 7:58AM on 10/07/09
Not a sandwich but due to low-fund syndrome, we ate a lot of eggs as meals other than breakfast. My favorite application for this is Eggs in Purgatory - Eggs poached in tomato sauce and served with bread. It's eggy enough to be cheap protein and saucy enough to not resemble breakfast.
Another great non-breakfast use of eggs - Potato and Egg sandwich. OMG. Heat leftover cooked potatoes (such as roasted potatoes), in a saute pan and add beaten eggs. Add some chopped onion and a squirt of hot sauce, maybe some cheese... serve on crusty baguette - Heaven!
therealchiffonade at 7:59AM on 10/07/09
An egg or two cooked over-hard in olive oil. Well salted, but not too much salt. Lots of cracked black pepper.
On good bread -- and because my mother made them this way -- with Miracle Whip. It's got a little more zing to it than mayo. Although a homemade mayo with a little extra vinegar or some cayenne in it would probably be awesome, too.
andymcmorrow at 8:05AM on 10/07/09
--a semi-set fried egg with a sprinkle of salt and pepper, between two slices of challah or asiago bread
or
--my husband's recipe for eggs pomodoro, which are poached eggs on top of toasted baguette, served with a generous pour of spicy pomodoro sauce.
avaryne at 8:09AM on 10/07/09
I just had one last night -fried egg with edges crispy and the yolk a bit runny with melted cheddar & taylor ham on a roll..
The other variation is a potato, asparagus or green pepper and egg on really good Italian bread-oh sooo good....
Italiancupcake at 8:16AM on 10/07/09
For me, it's a kind of comfort thing that brings back a good memory. Didn't really eat egg sandwiches as a kid, but...
One of my brothers came home on break from college. He told me he had a new way of making egg sandwiches, which he demonstrated for me -- one egg, yolk popped, a little bit of chopped onion; placed on Kaiser roll (the really fresh NY ones are best) and just a touch of mayo. It was just a simple moment, but it was something he gave me unlike his regular dose of knuckles.
I still make them, and my kids love them too (although they usually like a slice of cheese too).
GKlose at 8:44AM on 10/07/09
i love egg sandwiches! buttery fried egg with browned edges on buttered and toasted white italian bread. so amazing.
_greenbean at 9:08AM on 10/07/09
I think I'm eatin the perfect fried egg sandwich even as we talk ! Cheapo white bread,toasted,eggs lightly fried in butter,lotsa coarse salt an black pepper,all washed down with some good strong coffee!
onepercent99 at 10:32AM on 10/07/09
Favorite (when living in NYC) from greasy-spoon downstairs from work: Fried egg (slightly runny yolk) on toasted kaiser roll with butter, mustard and sometimes melted american cheese. And good strong black coffee. So good! Think I'll have one, on Italian bread, for lunch today.
duncan1205 at 10:47AM on 10/07/09
poached or runny fried egg, fresh whole wheat toast, slice of heirloom tomato and homemade pesto. lived off these this past summer ... sublime.
NOW, if I'm hungover, that's another story. then it's quick and dirty: fried egg (with butter), white toast and a slice of american. hits the spot!
mookie at 1:44PM on 10/07/09
I'm not wild about fried egg sandwiches, because I like the yolks runny and slurpable, and in a sandwich, they just seem to ooze out onto my plate. Or shirt.
But a nice fried egg on top of a bowl of rice? That's comfort food for me.
shoneyjoe at 2:21PM on 10/07/09
I like hearty multi-grain shmeared with a veggie cream cheese or garlic and herb, or chive, a folded egg (like omelet style) and pan-fried sliced ham. It's yummy-- it works great on bagels too!
kmgagne at 2:23PM on 10/07/09
So, my husband will say to me, "I'ma have a fried egg sandwich!" and he'll promptly schmear white toast with mayo, lay on a fried egg, yolk broken and swirled but not solid, several leaves of lettuce, 2 slices of tomato and 2 slices of crisp bacon topped with another mayo'd slice of toast.
I tell him, "That's not a fried egg sandwich; it's a BeLT..." He scoffs.
A few weeks later, he'll say, "Im'a make a BLT!" and promptly schmear white toast with mayo, lay on a fried egg, yolk broken and swirled but not solid, several leaves of lettuce, 2 slices of tomato and 2 slices of crisp bacon topped with another mayo'd slice of toast.
I tell him, "That's not a fried egg sandwich; just like before, it's a BeLT..." He scoffs, tells me I don't know what I'm talkin' about.
Both times, I slather one slice of white bread, untoasted, with mayo, top it with a fried egg, yolk broken and swirled but not solid, salt and plenty o' pepper and a spiral of ketchup, topped with another slice of white bread, untoasted.
"Now THAT'S a fried egg sandwich!" I smile as I tuck in...
BobbieAnne at 2:37PM on 10/07/09
Fried egg on buttered toast with grape jam. Love the salty/sweet combo.
misterhee at 7:25PM on 10/07/09
When I was a kid the most favorite way to have a fried egg sandwich was with peanut butter and strawberry preserves on toasted white bread. As I got older I prefered it with a slice of american cheese.
danrob54 at 2:32PM on 10/08/09
Egg fried in butter, very low temperature, domed/lidded until the white on top of the yolk is opaque. Open face sandwich with egg on top of toasted sourdough smeared with goat cheese. Little salt and pepper.
schmonsequences at 3:56PM on 10/08/09
After trying these sandwiches a ton of different ways, I think my favorite will always be the version I remember from NYC, when my entry-level job only afforded me about 3 bucks for lunch: Over-medium fried egg, American cheese, and bacon, on a hard roll.
dinnercraft at 4:11PM on 10/08/09
2 slices of buttered sourdough bread, a slice of cheese on each (type may vary), egg over medium (ish - I want the yolk to be just barely set, maybe a wee bit runny). If the bread is uber fresh, then the sandwich is done here. If the bread is day old or not homemade, then apply butter to the outside of the slices and grill the sandwich until golden and the cheese is melty. Eat with hot sauce. Yum!
Amandarama at 4:12PM on 10/08/09
My Dad made these for me when I was little. I still eat them when I get a chance...fortunately for my waistline, it's not often! Toasted wheat, fried egg w/ firm yolk, ketchup, creamy peanut butter. He claimed he got the "recipie" off some cooking award show. I don't know about that, but it's surprisingly delish!
smeeshu at 5:53PM on 10/08/09
My longtime boyfriend somehow managed to perfect his egg sandwich recipe (it's about the only thing he can cook that I'll eat):
2 eggs for a big sandwich, or 1 for a smaller one -- Fried with salt, pepper and chili powder. He breaks the yolk up almost upon impact and makes like a mini omelet.
Mayo on both sides of well toasted bread (this always a challenge for us, since in the last two places we've lived we didnt' own a toaster and using the oven is just so imprecise), along with a dash of chili powder. Two slices of the processed, yellow "american" cheese. Yum. :-)
My mom's egg sandwich growing up was always a pain to eat because she let the yolks run. I usually ended up turning the eggs out of the sandwich, and mopping the yolks up with the sides of the bread -- effectively creating eggs and toast.
ec_washington at 6:00PM on 10/08/09
My mother scrambled the egg and it was served on soft white bread and smothered in ketchup. Now I eat it on whole wheat bread with ketchup, still and now a dash of chili garlic sauce.
janaatwg at 6:31PM on 10/08/09
For a fried egg sandwich I like two eggs, yolk almost, but not completely set, on buttered multigrain bread with lots of salt and pepper.
But my all time favorite egg sandwich is slowly cooked scrambled eggs done with lots of butter on white toast, also buttered well, with a bit of salt. It's probably my ultimate comfort food and rarely eaten since I'm not a kid anymore and have no desire to get fatter than I already am.
chisai at 8:13PM on 10/08/09
I grew up eating Uitsmijters, and adapted it more to my liking:
I use any bread I have on hand, but usually it's plain old sheepherders, toasted with more mayo than most would use, and with LOTS of lemon pepper. Top that with several slices of super thin deli ham and gouda which I melt in the toaster oven, then topped with 2 poached eggs, with the yolks runny, but thickened, salt/pepper and dill and paprika.
I eat that just about every morning.
bananas at 9:23PM on 10/08/09
My favorite egg sandwich for now:
-2 Easy over eggs on toasted seeded bread that's spread with goat cheese.
- top them with either pan roasted tomato or avocado (or both).
- Lots of pepper and a bit of siracha.
charmedbeneath at 10:07PM on 10/08/09
sunday morning
toast some whole wheat bread, fry bacon until really crispy, drain the most of the fat, throw few slices of good tomatoes in the remaining bacon fat add lots of pepper, take tomatoes out when soft and then fry in the same pan the eggs, slightly runny, put all on the toast and you are in heaven!! a BET sandwich..
lisetted at 10:42PM on 10/08/09
Ham, egg and cheese sandwich! We used to get these perfect little sandwiches at the snack bar at Camp Darby, Italy. (US Army base) A fried egg with partially runny yolk, slice of grilled, thin sliced ham, slice of American cheese, all on bread of your choice (soft white, rye or wheat) and then grilled on a buttered grill. I haven't had one of those in ages! It was a heart attack on a plate, but sooo good!
KatherineAnn at 10:12AM on 10/09/09
egg fried in butter with crispy edges and semi-firm yolk, salt and pepper, smear of plain old yellow mustard on any good bread, and melted cheddar cheese if you want. yum!
gmm31313 at 11:34AM on 10/09/09
Mmmm. I dig fried egg sandwiches like nobody's business. I toast whole-wheat bread with a little bit of butter, fry two eggs in olive oil with salt, coarse black pepper and Tabasco, and break the yolk. When I flip the egg to fry the other side, I grate pepper jack cheese on top and let it get all melty.
Wapow. I think I'm gonna have to go make one right now...
sarahbeam at 11:58AM on 10/09/09
First, I saute some thinly sliced onion just until they brown in butter.
Then drop on a fresh egg til just slight set.
Salt and freshly ground pepper to tast.
Flip, then add some ham til brown.
Serve on a buttered hard roll with a slice of cheese of your choice.
Grifola frondosa at 2:36PM on 10/09/09
Condiments like mayo, mustard, and ketchup and on a fried egg sandwich? Gross! I don't think I've ever seen anyone eat one that way. To each their own I guess. Although a well made fried egg sandwich shouldn't be so dry, as to need condiments to hide behind.
The best way, is two eggs, yolks broken, fried with butter in a cast iron skillet. Place between to buttered pieces of toast, sliced cheese, and bacon. Simple and buttery delicious.
Raiders757 at 4:19PM on 10/09/09
Some great ideas to try here! The egg sandwich I had as a kid was on soft white bread. The eggs were cooked in lots of butter, and still a little soft so that the yolk would seep into the bread, a little salt, and lots of ketchup on top. I no longer buy white Wonder Bread, but I still occasionally crave this sandwich and put it on whole wheat, instead.
Perkins10 at 4:41PM on 10/09/09
I'm with Perkins--grew up with fried egg (but the yolk was fully cooked), on soft white bread with lots o' ketchup. These days it's basically the same, but on whole wheat bread, and sometimes with a slice of whatever cheese is on hand. One of my favorite sandwiches!
dana828 at 5:15PM on 10/09/09
I grew up eating fried eggs over garlicky wilted spinach. My mom would yell at me for eating around the yolk and eating all of the egg white first, piercing the yolk and watching it run all over the spinach. Then I would sop uo the yolk with whatever bread we had on hand.
No egg sandwiches in my house. My mom is from Spain and she thought foods like corndogs and mustard were weird. I can imagine her horror if we had ever dared to squirt ketchup on our eggs.
gummybear at 9:57PM on 10/09/09
Oh, egg sandwiches... for me, it's gotta be a toasted bagel or English muffin, an egg cooked til the unbroken yolk is hot but not solid, two strips of bacon, pepper, and a slice of American cheese. If the yolk runs down your chin during consumption, it's perfect.
Nickiter at 10:19PM on 10/09/09
Sliced English Muffin bread (local Bakery), lots of mayo (I used to eat mayonnaise sandwiches as a kid), egg yolk broken and fried until firm, three (3) slices of bacon. If no bacon is available, a thick slice of extra sharp cheddar (preferable Tillamook) melted on the egg. Now I'm hungry.
jerryg at 12:13AM on 10/10/09
misterhee is closest to mine. Never actually had a fried egg "sandwich" when I was a kid. grew up on over easy with buttered toast and jam. Grape jelly or strawberry jam. soak up the yolk with the buttered jammed toast.
lemonfair at 7:08AM on 10/10/09
Growing up it was toasted white, hard-fried egg, cheddar cheese and Miracle Whip. I make them now on toasted wheat with light mayo and also some Black Forest ham. Still one of my favorites for a weekend breakfast.
But, the best one I ever had was in London at a little coffee/breakfast place (one of those that serves the traditional English breakfast). It was two medium-fried eggs, English bacon (wish I could get it here!), good sharp cheddar on ciabata. It was so good, cheap, and kept us going all day.
KarinCooks at 12:34PM on 10/10/09
Sometimes I use quail eggs and make 7 or 8 mini sunny side ups. Put them on a toasted baguette with goat cheese and arugula.
charmedbeneath at 2:16PM on 10/10/09
I've never had a fried egg sandwich, but I love scrambled egg sandwiches!
2 pieces of white bread toasted, miracle whip on both pieces of bread and piled high with scrambled eggs. YUM!
caramel at 2:58PM on 10/10/09
i use thomas english muffins, split and *lightly* toast it. then drop some cheese on top. swiss, american, monterey, is all good. fry egg. if i am using bacon or sausage, i use the fat from that, but otherwise, dab of olive oil. if im in charge, i crack the egg, break the yolk, but not smear it so it stays soft and oozes a little. then i flip the egg for 15 seconds and onto the muffin. i prefer bacon or sausage on the side. canadian bacon can go on it though.
blizcheetah at 4:06PM on 10/10/09
avaryne, you have challah bread and eggs, and arent making french toast? do you not like french toast? a couple weeks ago i made some challah and i stopped because we kept eating french toast and *so* filling. so very yummy, but i felt like we were going to balloon if i made more challah.
blizcheetah at 4:09PM on 10/10/09
My perfect fried egg sandwich:
Egg fried in butter, runny yolk, little salt and pepper. Lightly toasted sourdough bread with mayo. A little cheddar on top. It's a delicious mess.
HawtTortillaSoup at 6:08PM on 10/10/09
cheap + simple + delicious = my go-to meal in college
no matter how you make it, egg sandwiches can sometimes be sublime
sawyerriley at 6:37PM on 10/10/09
When my brother and I were young, my father would make fried egg sandwiches before we went fishing. He would put over easy eggs on broke assed toasted white bread with a slice of American cheese. I plan on making them tonight, and I wouldn't change a thing... Thanks Dad...
Pavlov at 6:43PM on 10/10/09
I don't see the sandwich that my grandma introduced to us as a child. It's pretty close to the others, but has one additional ingredient- sliced dill pickle. It's a comfort food to me too, and my mom can't stand the thought that we put dill pickles on our egg sandwiches.
Basically, it's whatever bread we had around- usually sourdough- toasted, with best foods/hellman's mayo and whatever mustard we grab (usually I use stone ground, but sometimes I use brown or yellow), an egg with a broken yolk fried until it's no longer runny in butter, and a sliced dill pickle.
Now I really want one, but don't have any bread in the house
cmtigger at 2:00AM on 10/11/09
I never had egg sammiches as a kid. I was a fried egg and rice w/parm girl. BUT i have discovered the beauty of the egg sammich.
Mine is toasted wheat bread, 2 fried eggs with semi-runny yolks, 2 slices american cheese and losta mayo!!
Romi04 at 2:07PM on 10/12/09
toasted multigrain bread, slice of cheddar or american cheese, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. i love a dill pickle on the side!
Gweels at 2:35PM on 10/12/09