Now, we
come to the egg. These days, we mostly
think of chicken eggs. In Asian markets,
duck eggs are often more popular. Duck
and goose eggs are more rich in flavor than chicken eggs, but are not much
different. The ancient Romans preferred
peacock eggs. From ostrich to plover and
the egg of every bird in between, this ingredient has provided flavor and
nutrition for mankind. Just a few
generations ago, turkey and guinea fowl eggs were popular. Even today, although not as commonly served
as they once were, quail eggs are considered a gourmet specialty.
Birds are
not the only creatures that provide us with eggs. Fish roe (eggs) are among the finest foods
known to man. Caviar comes from
sturgeon, an ancient fish, the rarity of which demands extremely high prices
for its roe. Even a few generations ago, sturgeon was so common that caviar was
given away free in bars so that its saltiness would encourage drinkers to buy
more drinks! Fortunately, conservation
measures and fish farming are helping the sturgeon make a slow comeback. Just as tasty, although different in flavor,
are salmon and trout roe. These are
preserved with salt, just like caviar and are very nice. The streams are stocked with trout where I
live, so I have the opportunity to preserve my own roe and use it quite
often. Shad roe was commonly sold in
cans when I was a child. Due to
environmental regulations, if you want shad roe now you usually have to catch
the fish yourself. Shad are in the
herring family and run upstream to spawn late winter into early spring. I try to go shad fishing every year, saving
the roe and smoking the fish for later months.
Interestingly, the now hated carp, was encouraged by our government to
be raised as both a meat and roe fish in the early 1900s. Mr. Herter said that carp roe was among the
finest. He also enjoyed the roe of
sunfish such as bass, bluegill and crappie - I agree! Shad roe is often cooked in “sets”, the
membrane in which the eggs are contained is left intact, with the eggs inside,
and fried in butter. Most other fish roe
is removed and salt cured or eaten fresh.
Crab,
lobster and sea urchin roe are considered true delicacies. The roe of most saltwater fish can be eaten
but a few, such as barracuda, are poisonous.
The eggs of both sea and land turtles were loved by our ancestors. It is absolutely illegal to harvest sea
turtles now. The alligator snapping
turtle is also off limits. The common
snapping turtle, which was absolutely beloved in turtle soup until only a few
decades ago, when American tastes turned to processed and fast foods, was
traditionally served with the eggs.
One
interesting egg that few people even know about is that of the snail. When British and western European immigrants
settled the Americas, they often brought with them snails. Depending on the region, these may be the
turban snails served in French restaurants as escargot, or even the common
brown snail. Later, giant African snails
were farm raised and canned as a commercial product. These are snails; they have shells. They are absolutely NOT slugs, which have no
shell. Snails are, essentially, like
clams that adapted to live on land (major simplification, I know). Snails are very clean animals that eat fresh
vegetation. I tried snail farming for a
while and will certainly do it again when opportunity presents. Snails are delicious, very productive and
very sensitive to environmental conditions.
They lay thousands of small, white eggs that are just like fish roe…
except, they taste like mushrooms! There
are a few people raising snails for their eggs and making a caviar from
them. If more people knew how easy it is
to raise snails as a small backyard livestock, and just how good snails taste,
I think more people would become snail farmers - this is livestock you could
raise in a small apartment and feed on your vegetable scraps!
There is a
saying that, “Eggs love eggs.” Combining
bird eggs with fish roe has long been considered a delicacy. An omelet or a soft boiled quail egg, topped
with caviar is a classic presentation.
The favorite breakfast of my childhood was hot, buttered grits, served
with a soft scrambled egg and shad roe.
They also
say that each person only has one favorite way to eat eggs. Unfortunately, in this era of fast food
breakfast sandwiches, too many people grow up eating only rubbery, flavorless
eggs that are anything but fresh. Eggs
should always be fresh. The eggs from a
naturally raised, backyard hen, that can roam about in the sun, eating all sorts
of grass, weeds and bugs will have a richer, orange yolk, a better aroma and
far better flavor than a “factory raised” chicken.
I am not
sure that I have just one favorite, though.
I love soft scrambled eggs cooked in bacon grease and butter. My regular breakfast is an egg cocotte - an
egg in a buttered ramekin, with fresh herbs or maybe some leftover salmon and
asparagus, cheese, or tomato, gently simmered until just firm but still
custardy. I love omelets, especially
with a soft, flavorful cheese like chevre, blue, brie or Camembert and a few
herbs. I enjoy all manner of frittatas
and quiches. Deviled eggs are at least a
weekly staple. My mother and my
grandfather preferred either eggs fried hard or hard boiled. My grandfather liked his hard boiled eggs
either with salt and pepper or pickled My mother prefers hers in egg salad or
as deviled eggs. My aunts vary from eggs
medium fried to “over easy”, which is an egg fried on one side only, with the
yolk still intact and runny.
As you may
have surmised, I like my eggs in ways that many folks would consider to be
under-cooked. These days, the “experts”
demand that eggs be thoroughly cooked, and even pasteurized, to prevent
salmonella poisoning. Again, I will not
contradict the experts. But, it is well
worth noting that salmonella is primarily found in “factory raised” eggs. Technically, that is called a Concentrated
Animal Feeding Operation. These birds
are closely packed together, eat a very unnatural diet and require a great deal
of medication and veterinary care to prevent serious disease. I do not consider this to be sanitary or
humane, but it is what our government and the poultry industry insists on. As of the writing of this book, and after a
ton of research, I have not found evidence that the egg from a naturally farm raised chicken has ever
sickened anyone with salmonella. Again,
you have to do your research and use your own judgment, but I use even raw eggs
in some sauces and dishes… “And I ain’t dead yet!” Obviously, when considering the very young,
the elderly and the immunocompromised, extra precaution must be used.
I think
the biggest mistake many people make when cooking eggs is to cook them at too
high a temperature. For instance, when
cooking scrambled eggs in too hot a pan, the proteins may separate, causing the
eggs to become grainy and watery. In
frying an egg, if the pan is too hot, the fat can burn. Egg cookery takes a bit of practice both to
find your favorite techniques and to get a feel for the time and temp you like.
Most any
culinary herb or spice mix goes well with eggs.
My favorites would be French tarragon (Russian tarragon is much easier
to grow, and is useful medicinally, but not as flavorful), marjoram, thyme,
parsley, sage, dill, celery leaves, basil, chives and all the alliums…even mint
can be nice. Eggs love pepper, chili peppers,
tomatoes, curry powder, chili powders, hot sauce - most anything really.
This article is an excerpt from
Available on in paperback on Amazon:
The Omnivore’s Guide to Home Cooking for Preppers, Homesteaders, Permaculture People and Everyone Else: Carroll, Judson: 9798354856374: Amazon.com: Books
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