57 cracking ways with eggs

Written by Anna Glover, Olive Magazine

57 (yes, 57!) marvelous ways with the most versatile ingredient we know – eggs. Whether it’s shakshuka, muffins, eggs benedict or a chilli cheese omelette, we’ve got a recipe for everyone.

Breakfast eggs

Despite the obvious fried, poached or scrambled eggs, here are a few other ways we like our eggs in the morning. Whatever you choose, cover it in sriracha (we always do).

1. Breakfast quesadillas

Fry spring onion, pepper, mushrooms and tomatoes in a frying pan, then add beaten egg and scramble. Pile into warmed tortillas with grated cheese, fold over, and fry on both sides until golden and the cheese has melted.

2. Breakfast muffins

Add cooked bacon, peas, ham, cheese… whatever you have lurking in your fridge! These are great for a picnic, too.

Watch our ‘how to make muffin tin frittatas’ video here

3. Eggs Benedict

Usually saved for special occasions, but you can easily make it an ‘everyday’ recipe. Start with a toasted muffin and a poached egg, then add buttered, garlicky greens on top; or ham, mustard and melted cheese. Or even marmite hollandaise!

4. 3-ingredient pancakes

Eggs play an important part in these 3-ingredient banana pancakes. They set the pancakes, making them flip-able. They’re flourless, too.

5. Baked avocado with eggs

Breakfast or brunch, our baked avocado with smoked salmon and egg hits the mark. If you’re not a fan of smoked salmon, add a small piece of Parma ham in the baked avocado middles instead. For a vegan option, drizzle the baked avocados with harissa, houmous and some coriander.

6. Eggy bread

AKA French toast for the sweet version. Go down the savoury route and serve stuffed with cheese or baked beans. Or add sugar and cinnamon to the mix, and serve with berries, Nutella, ice cream, chopped nuts, maple syrup, squirty cream… we’re just joking about that last one. Maybe.

10 minute meals with eggs

Eggs are a hero ingredient when it comes to quick dinners. They’re filling and healthy too… so even if you only have 10 minutes to prepare a meal, you can still eat well if you’ve got eggs in the fridge.

7. Avocado egg on toast

This is a go-to 10-minute meal for cookery writer Anna Glover. It’s super quick, there’s minimal washing up, but it still tastes pretty special. Just toast rye bread and mash half a ripe avocado with a fork on top. Add a squeeze of lime or lemon, season, and top with a poached, fried or even boiled egg. Sprinkle with chilli flakes, sriracha or a pinch of sumac.

8. Poached eggs with asparagus

Classic breakfast eggs, but they make a great dinner too. To take this dish to the next level, wrap blanched asparagus with parma ham and grill for a minute to crisp up while your eggs are poaching. Serve with sourdough for a more filling meal.

9. Indian scrambled eggs

Raid your store cupboard and spice up your scramble. Lightly toast ground cumin, coriander and garam masala in a tsp of ghee or butter, then add your beaten eggs and swirl in the pan until scrambled. Stir in some chopped coriander and red chilli just before serving. Serve with roti or paratha if you have some in your cupboard.

10. Baked egg mushrooms

These look super impressive, but it’s very easy. Grill Portobello mushrooms with a drizzle of oil and sprinkle over some thyme. When they’re just turning soft, crack an egg in the middle and grill again until the white is set. Scatter with some more chopped thyme, serve on toast, or with a salad and a dollop of ricotta or crème fraiche.

11. Broccoli, poached egg and chorizo salad

Warm salads are a great way to transition from summer to winter. You could add whatever greens you like here – kale, broccoli, green beans, chard, or just whatever is in season. Just remove any woody stems, blanch the greens then drain well.

Fry chorizo in a little olive oil until golden and crisp, then add in the wilted greens, some sliced spring onions and a few handfuls of watercress or spinach. Toss in the chorizo oil, a dash of sherry vinegar, tip onto a plate and top with a poached egg. Add a pinch of paprika to serve, if you like.

12. Courgette omelette

A quick and easy way to cook courgettes. Fry crushed garlic and grated courgette in some olive oil before scooping out of the frying pan. Add the beaten eggs with some seasoning, a pinch of chopped dill, or mint, and swirl around the pan to make a thin pancake.

Once it’s set around the edges, add the courgette to the middle and fold the omelette over. Add some cheese in there too, if you’re feeling indulgent.

13. Beetroot and egg salad

Thanks to the convenience of pre-cooked vacuum packed beetroot, this classic salad can be ready in 10 minutes. While the eggs are hard boiling, dice cooked beetroot and toss with a drizzle olive oil, sherry vinegar, finely chopped shallot and dill. Peel and chop the eggs and toss through the beetroot with a handful watercress or spinach. Serve with rye bread.

14. Grilled cheese on toast with egg and ham

More like a no-fuss croque madame, but still tastes so good. Spread crusty bread with Dijon mustard, then top with a slice of ham, and a slice of gruyere or ementhal cheese. Grill until the cheese is bubbling then top with a fried egg.

15. Quick egg fried rice

Fry chopped spring onion and frozen peas or sweetcorn in a drizzle of groundnut oil in a hot wok. Add a pinch chili flakes and crushed garlic if you like. Add a pack of cooked rice and stir through, breaking up any clumps of rice with a wooden spoon. Pour in a couple of beaten eggs and stir-fry to scramble the eggs. Season with soy sauce and sesame oil before serving.

16. Easy egg-in-the-hole

Egg in the hole is one of those meals you cook for kids, but adults secretly love it too. Fry buttered sourdough bread on one side, then flip in the pan. Cut out circles in the toast for the egg to fit into. Crack the eggs in, and keep cooking until the whites have set.

Healthy recipes using eggs

17. Baked eggs with spinach

Surprisingly filling, and very low cal. You could make individual ones of these, and bake in mini ramekins. Serve with toasted bagels or rye if you’re not on a health kick.

18. Tuna and egg lunch box

Tinned tuna is always a bit of a plain ingredient, but paired with slices of hard boiled egg, a spinach salad and a wholegrain mustard dressing, your lunchbox salad is healthy and tastes great. Add some cooked barley, freekeh or bulgar wheat for a more filling lunch.

19. Frittata

Another filling meal that’s low cal – great for people on the 5:2 diet. Fill your frittata with spring onion, red pepper and long stemmed broccoli, or sweet potato, green beans and feta. You’ll find some great frittata recipes here.

20. Shakshuka

Stewed, subtly spicedtomatoes and roasted red peppers with eggs gently cooked in sauce. It’s a one-pan and a healthy meal that’s ready in 30 minutes. The perfect midweek and meat-free meal.

21. Boil ‘em

Bit of an obvious one, but so many people get it wrong. Follow our foolproof method to nail the perfect boiled egg, then watch our video of how to peel a hard boiled egg.

Omelettes

22. Chilli cheese omelette

Chilli? Check. Cheese? Check. What could me more warming and comforting? Gooey melty cheese – eggs are just the carrier of all things delicious here.

23. Soufflé omelette

Whisking the egg whites to peaks and then folding in the egg yolks means you get an even lighter, fluffier omelette. What’s not to love about that?

24. Mushroom omelette

A bit of a posh meal for one, where shitake mushrooms, spring onions and ginger are paired with sticky, sweet ketcap manis for an Asian inspired 20 minute eat-straight-from-the-pan-it’s-so-good dinner.

Scrambled

25. Colombian eggs

Chef Dan Doherty shares his favorite way to eat scrambled egg, from his book Duck and Waffle. These are brunch eggs if ever we’ve seen them.

26. California scramble

Packed full of good-for-you ingredients like watercress, chilli, tomatoes and avocado – plus it’s ready in 15 minutes.

Other eggcellent ideas

27. Scotch egg

If in doubt, deep-fry. Always deep-fry. Click here for all our scotch egg recipes

28. Put them in a curry

This is the stuff dreams are made of. Make this Bombay egg and potato curry for friends and everyone will ask for the recipe.

29. Stick them on a crumpet

Egg, bacon, cheese, crumpet. Eat. Then take a nap. Click here for our bacon and egg crumpet melts recipe.

30. Nasi goreng

Similar to fried rice but drizzled with sriracha and packed with veg. This Indonedian recipe comes topped with a runny poached egg for richness.

31. Squash and pancetta squeak with poached eggs

No one will turn their nose up to squash and pancetta squeak – even if you are using up yesterdays leftovers! A poached egg takes this to the next level.

32. Ratatouille with poached eggs

Healthy, but hearty; the way we love good-for-you dishes. Packed with veg and served with crusty bread, it makes the best weekend brunch for friends.

12 meals that are made so much better by adding an egg

33. Gammon and chips

Who wants tinned pineapple when you can have a fried egg? Exactly. That’s what we thought.

34. Pizza

No thin-crust veg pizza is complete without a runny egg. Try our kale fiorentina pizzas for a slice of heaven.

35. Crack them on top of tarts

Nothing will get people to the table quicker than mentioning brunch tarts. We’ve taken smoked bacon, eggs and cheese, and baked them in puff pastry. You’ll be asking where these has been all your life.

36. Soy sauce eggs on ramen

Hard-boiled eggs with their shells lightly cracked and drowned in a soy sauce pickle to give a marble effect when they’re peeled. Popular in ramen, but we can think of lots more ideas for them.. including canapés.

37. Deviled eggs

Nearly as retro as a prawn cocktail, but deviled eggs are making a comeback and it’s all about the toppings. Sweet pepperdew peppers, pate, chorizo, crayfish tails, caviar… these can be as fancy or as straightforward as you like.

38. Spaghetti carbonara

Any Italian would turn their nose up at carbonara with cream in it. The creaminess is simply from the eggs and cheese, plus that delicious pancetta fat… if you’ve got eggs and pancetta in your fridge, you’re half way there to making carbonara.

39. Rosti

‘Loving your leftovers’ means wanting to eat it again, not avoiding it every time you open the fridge! Rostis are the perfect leftover food, especially when served with an egg.

40. Pilaf

Any pilaf, any time. Just #putaneggonit. Try our buttery mushroom and spinach pilaf here.

41. Croque madam

The French are on to a good thing. How to make cheese, ham and bread better? They put an egg on it!

42. Full English

How have we got to number 42 and NOT mentioned the full English breakfast?

43. Egg sandwich

This is a winner, any way you want to serve it. Fried egg with red or brown sauce, egg mayo, boiled egg, cress and celery salt… let the debate commence.

44. Put in a salad

Try our BLT salad with a poached egg, or hard-boiled quails egg salad with sweet and sour dressing – the options are endless.