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Ilse Cooks the Books: Huevos Rancheros

───   11:41 Tue, 09 Apr 2019

Ilse Cooks the Books: Huevos Rancheros | News Article

After a short hiatus, Cooking The Books is back! It is indeed April and the month we celebrate Easter. Undoubtedly, the one food element that everyone associates with Easter, is eggs. So April will be our month of eggs!


I absolutely love eggs.  I’ll eat eggs every day. Scrambled, boiled, poached, pan-fried, in an omelette, in a frittata – I’ve never met an egg dish I didn’t like.  My favourite egg dish by far is Eggs Benedict (without the ham, but with smoked salmon); buttery toasted English muffin, topped with smoked salmon, a soft poached egg and lemony Hollandaise sauce. If it’s on a menu, I will order it. Every. Single. Time.

According to Wikipedia, several versions of Eggs Benedict exist:

  • If you substitute the ham with streaky bacon and add a tomato slice, it’s Eggs Blackstone.
  • Eggs Blanchard substitutes Béchamel sauce for the Hollandaise.
  • Eggs Florentine substitutes spinach for the ham (also one of my favourites – side note, check your teeth for greenery after eating this dish!)
  • Eggs Mornay substitutes Mornay cheese sauce for the Hollandaise.
  • If you substitute the ham for a small steak, it’s called Eggs Omar.
  • They say my favourite – the smoked salmon instead of the ham – is also called Eggs Atlantic, Eggs Hemingway, Eggs Royale or Eggs Norvégienne.

I might have led you to believe that this blog was my favourite Eggs Benedict recipe, but I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint.  Today I’m actually cooking Huevos Rancheros, another well-known breakfast dish. Trust me, it’s a keeper in your breakfast arsenal.

RACHEL ALLEN EASY MEALS – HUEVOS RANCHEROS

This blonde Irish chef has always been one of my favourite cookbook writers. Her recipes are short and simple and pack a whole lot of flavour. Like this dish.

“Huevos Rancheros is a classic Mexican breakfast dish – eggs surrounded by a sweet-tasting mixture of red peppers and tomato – but you can eat it at any time of the day. It’s great as it is, or served with tortillas and guacamole or sliced avocado.” – Rachel Allen

I served mine on slices of toasted ciabatta bread with a sprinkling of cheese.  Because let’s face it, cheese makes everything better.

Serves 2 - 4

25 g butter

2 red onions, peeled and finely chopped

1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into small dice

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

Good pinch of cayenne pepper

2 tsp ground cumin

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 x 400 g tin of chopped tomatoes

Good pinch of sugar

4 eggs

25 g of cheddar cheese

Melt the butter in a large frying pan on a medium heat and, when foaming, add the onions, red peppers, garlic, cayenne pepper and cumin and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 – 10 minutes or until the onions and pepper are soft and lightly browned.

Stir in the tomatoes and sugar and cook for about 5 minutes or until the liquid has reduced a little. Use a spoon to make four wells in the mixture, then break an egg into each of the four spaces. Season with salt and pepper, cover the pan with a lid and cook for 3 – 4 minutes or until the egg is cooked to your liking.

Grate over the cheese, replace the lid on the pan for a few seconds, then serve. I had some leftover green bell pepper and corn, which I also added to the tomato mixture.

Follow me on Twitter (ilse123) or on Facebook (https://web.facebook.com/IlseCooksTheBooks/) to chat about food and more!


ooOoo


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