Shirred Eggs - Maximum Flavor with Minimal Effort

I was taking a break from researching some cooking techniques for eggs to expand on my egg articles. So I put down one of my favorite cookbooks: The Food Lab by J. Kenji López-Alt. Instead, I grabbed Billie Straight by Jonathan Kellerman, left my desk, and flopped into the hammock. 

I was just getting immersed in the story when I read the sentence: “She walked into the dining room and sat down to eat her shirred eggs.” Stop. Wait a minute. Read that again. Shirred eggs. 

Jump to:

• 🤔 What are shirred eggs?
• 🍳 How to make them
• 🌶️ So many add in possibilities!
• 📝 Recipe

🤔 What are shirred eggs?

Shirred eggs? Intriguing to say the least. Google: Shirred eggs. Answer: Eggs baked in a flat-bottomed dish. Named after the dish (shirrer) that it was traditionally baked in.

No worries. We don’t have to start scouring antique stores, trying to find a shirrer to start making these delicious mini meals from now on. We’ll use ramekins. It turns out that shirrer is just another term for porcelain ramekin. 

🍳 How to make them

So get out your ramekin, butter it, add a little bit of heavy cream, crack an egg in it, top with some grated cheese (I used Pecorino Romano) and chopped chives, and add salt and pepper.

Bake in your toaster oven at 350°F until the white just barely sets (about 15 minutes), remove from oven (warning: ramekins will be hot), and serve. Eat with a spoon or dip some toast cut into strips. 

That’s the first one I made after looking it up, and it was absolutely delicious. Viana even said out loud: “Wow, I think that’s the best egg I’ve ever had!” I was happy and at the same time surprised. I thought I’ve been cooking up some really good eggs for a while now 🙂

But she was right, it was an eye-opener. And brain opener. A taste-bud opener. I couldn’t wait to start playing around with this basic but perfect recipe.

🌶️ So many add in possibilities!

Next morning: Buttered ramekins, heavy cream, egg, cheese, chanterelles, bake, salt & pepper, garnish with a few jalapeño slices. Wow!

The morning after that: Buttered ramekins, heavy cream, egg, cheese, bake, salt & pepper, sliced avocado, and (instead of salt & pepper, add a splash of soy sauce). Wow again!

Me: “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

Imagine adding some smoked salmon, or some leftover hanger steak with a couple drops of hot sauce, or some chopped tomatoes and basil, or….

Please let me know what you came up with. This recipe has legs. Let’s see how far we can let it run…

Do you love delicious breakfasts as much as I do? Check out a few more of our recipes now!

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Did you make this Shirred Eggs recipe? Let us know in the comments below!

📝 Recipe

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