Recipes, re-invented from cooking shows
Scrambled Eggs & Roasted Grapes
Prep. Time:
Baking Time:
Total Time:
15 minutes
25 minutes
40 minutes
Serves:
2 servings (or 4 small plates)
Jennifer created this dish for Top Chef ™ Season 23. Slow-cooked custardy soft scrambled eggs are spooned alongside grapes roasted in cabernet sauvignon, verjus, and brown butter, then finished with crisp brown-butter croutons. The wine-soaked fruit and silky eggs were among the most praised pairing...
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Ingredients
FOR THE BROWN BUTTER:
6 tbsp (85 g) unsalted butter
FOR THE CABERNET-VERJUS ROASTED GRAPES:
3 tbsp (45 ml) brown butter, from above
2 cups (300 g) red seedless grapes, left whole, on the stem if you can
1/2 cup (120 ml) cabernet sauvignon
1/4 cup (60 ml) verjus, red or white
1 tsp (4 g) granulated sugar, optional, to balance acidity
1 pinch Flaky Sea Salt
FOR THE BROWN-BUTTER CROUTONS:
2 tbsp (30 ml) brown butter, from above
2 cups (100 g) country bread or brioche, cut into small 1/2-inch cubes
1 pinch fine sea salt
FOR THE SOFT SCRAMBLED EGGS:
6 large eggs, as fresh as possible, room temperature
2 tbsp (30 g) unsalted butter, plain (not browned)
2 tbsp (30 g) creme fraiche, optional, for a custardy finish
1/2 tsp (3 g) fine sea salt, to taste, added at the end
1 tbsp chives, finely sliced, optional garnish
EQUIPMENT:
Small heavy saucepan
Non-stick or well-seasoned skillet
Non-stick saucepan or small heavy pot
Silicone spatula or wooden spoon
Fine-mesh sieve (optional)
Slotted spoon
Method
STEP 1: MAKE THE BROWN BUTTER
Place the butter in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat. Let it melt, foam, and settle, swirling the pan as the milk solids turn from pale to golden to deep hazelnut brown and the butter smells nutty and toasted, about 4-6 minutes. Watch closely at the end, as it goes from brown to burnt quickly. Pour it into a heatproof bowl; straining through a fine-mesh sieve gives a cleaner butter, but the toasted solids carry flavour, so leaving some in is fine. This single batch supplies both the grapes and the croutons.
STEP 2: ROAST THE GRAPES IN CABERNET & VERJUS
Return the saucepan to medium-high heat with 3 tbsp of the brown butter. Add the grapes and let them sizzle and blister for 2-3 minutes, until the skins just begin to wrinkle and split. Pour in the cabernet sauvignon and verjus, add the optional sugar and a pinch of flaky sea salt, and bring to a brisk simmer. Cook, swirling occasionally, for 6-9 minutes, until the liquid reduces to a glossy, syrupy glaze that coats the grapes and the fruit is soft and warm but still holding its shape. Pull from the heat and keep warm, but not hot enough to melt the eggs when plated.
STEP 3: MAKE THE BROWN-BUTTER CROUTONS
Wipe out a skillet and set over medium heat with 2 tbsp of the brown butter. Add the bread cubes and a pinch of fine sea salt and toss to coat. Cook, stirring often, for 4-6 minutes, until evenly golden and crisp on all sides. Drain on paper towel. Make these close to serving so they stay crunchy - they are the textural counterpoint to the soft eggs and yielding fruit.
STEP 4: SOFT-SCRAMBLE THE EGGS
Crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk just until the yolks and whites are uniform; do not over-aerate. Melt the 2 tbsp plain butter in a non-stick saucepan over the lowest heat your stove will hold. Add the eggs and stir constantly and patiently with a silicone spatula, scraping the base and sides so no curd sets too far ahead of the rest. Over 6-10 minutes the eggs should build into small, glossy, custardy curds with no browning whatsoever; if they thicken too fast, lift the pan off the heat and keep stirring. When they are just shy of your target, still loose and softly flowing, pull them off the heat, stir in the creme fraiche to arrest the cooking, and season with the fine sea salt. Carryover heat finishes them to a silky, spoonable set.
STEP 5: PLATE
Spoon the soft scrambled eggs into the centre of warm (not hot) plates. Spoon the roasted grapes and a little of their cabernet-verjus glaze alongside and over. Scatter the brown-butter croutons on top for crunch, finish with a few sliced chives if using, and serve at once - the contrast of warm silky egg, jammy wine-soaked fruit, and crisp crouton is the whole point of the dish.
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Instructions
FOR THE BROWN BUTTER:
6 tbsp (85 g) unsalted butter, good quality, cultured if possible (makes a little extra)
FOR THE CABERNET-VERJUS ROASTED GRAPES:
3 tbsp (45 ml) brown butter, from above
2 cups (300 g) red seedless grapes, left whole, on the stem if you can
1/2 cup (120 ml) cabernet sauvignon
1/4 cup (60 ml) verjus, red or white
1 tsp (4 g) granulated sugar, optional, to balance acidity
1 pinch flaky sea salt
FOR THE BROWN-BUTTER CROUTONS:
2 tbsp (30 ml) brown butter, from above
2 cups (100 g) country bread or brioche, cut into small 1/2-inch cubes
1 pinch fine sea salt
FOR THE SOFT SCRAMBLED EGGS:
6 large eggs, as fresh as possible, room temperature
2 tbsp (30 g) unsalted butter, plain (not browned)
2 tbsp (30 g) creme fraiche, optional, for a custardy finish
1/2 tsp (3 g) fine sea salt, to taste, added at the end
1 tbsp chives, finely sliced, optional garnish
EQUIPMENT:
Small heavy saucepan
Non-stick or well-seasoned skillet
Non-stick saucepan or small heavy pot
Silicone spatula or wooden spoon
Fine-mesh sieve (optional)
Slotted spoon
Heading 5
Ingredients
STEP 1: MAKE THE BROWN BUTTER
Place the butter in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat. Let it melt, foam, and settle, swirling the pan as the milk solids turn from pale to golden to deep hazelnut brown and the butter smells nutty and toasted, about 4-6 minutes. Watch closely at the end, as it goes from brown to burnt quickly. Pour it into a heatproof bowl; straining through a fine-mesh sieve gives a cleaner butter, but the toasted solids carry flavour, so leaving some in is fine. This single batch supplies both the grapes and the croutons.
STEP 2: ROAST THE GRAPES IN CABERNET & VERJUS
Return the saucepan to medium-high heat with 3 tbsp of the brown butter. Add the grapes and let them sizzle and blister for 2-3 minutes, until the skins just begin to wrinkle and split. Pour in the cabernet sauvignon and verjus, add the optional sugar and a pinch of flaky sea salt, and bring to a brisk simmer. Cook, swirling occasionally, for 6-9 minutes, until the liquid reduces to a glossy, syrupy glaze that coats the grapes and the fruit is soft and warm but still holding its shape. Pull from the heat and keep warm, but not hot enough to melt the eggs when plated.
STEP 3: MAKE THE BROWN-BUTTER CROUTONS
Wipe out a skillet and set over medium heat with 2 tbsp of the brown butter. Add the bread cubes and a pinch of fine sea salt and toss to coat. Cook, stirring often, for 4-6 minutes, until evenly golden and crisp on all sides. Drain on paper towel. Make these close to serving so they stay crunchy - they are the textural counterpoint to the soft eggs and yielding fruit.
STEP 4: SOFT-SCRAMBLE THE EGGS
Crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk just until the yolks and whites are uniform; do not over-aerate. Melt the 2 tbsp plain butter in a non-stick saucepan over the lowest heat your stove will hold. Add the eggs and stir constantly and patiently with a silicone spatula, scraping the base and sides so no curd sets too far ahead of the rest. Over 6-10 minutes the eggs should build into small, glossy, custardy curds with no browning whatsoever; if they thicken too fast, lift the pan off the heat and keep stirring. When they are just shy of your target, still loose and softly flowing, pull them off the heat, stir in the creme fraiche to arrest the cooking, and season with the fine sea salt. Carryover heat finishes them to a silky, spoonable set.
STEP 5: PLATE
Spoon the soft scrambled eggs into the centre of warm (not hot) plates. Spoon the roasted grapes and a little of their cabernet-verjus glaze alongside and over. Scatter the brown-butter croutons on top for crunch, finish with a few sliced chives if using, and serve at once - the contrast of warm silky egg, jammy wine-soaked fruit, and crisp crouton is the whole point of the dish.
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