Simple egg sandwich with aromatic chili heat lots of garlic and creamy cheese.

Chili Egg and Cheese

Serves 1

A deli style egg sandwich will always hold a special place in my heart. I endlessly riff on them at home not only to get my egg sandwich “fix” but simply because they are nostalgic. I never however, stray far from what I believe to be the basics, bread, eggs, protein and cheese. In my opinion an egg sandwich should be simple a handful of ingredients that can be simply modified in any way you want, and finished with ketchup (diabolical for some but nostalgic for me). This sandwich modifies the eggs by cooking them in homemade fermented chili garlic paste (recipe here) to add an interesting switch up and citrus brightness to the otherwise simple sandwich.

Ingredients

10ml (2 t) vegetable oil

20 – 26g (3 – 4 t) fermented chili garlic paste (recipe here)

2 large eggs

1 slice American cheese

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste 

Finishing

1 roll, split open

Ketchup to taste - optional

Method

1.      Prepare a piece of aluminum foil large enough to fully wrap the sandwich once completed.

• Lightly toast the roll if desired and drizzle the bottom half with ketchup if using.

• Reserve until needed.

2.      Heat a medium saute pan over medium-high.

If you’d like additional protein (bacon, sausage, Spam) on your sandwich cook this first and place on the bottom half of the sandwich.

• Add the oil and heat for 20 seconds.

• Add the chili paste and saute for 30 – 40 seconds.

• Separate the paste into two piles and place a cracked egg over each pile.

• Break the yolks and season with salt and pepper.

I like to break the yolks but it is not necessary.

• Cook the eggs for 1 minute.

• Flip and cook for 1 minute longer.

The length of time after the second flip depends on how fully cooked you’d like the egg yolk and whether you cracked the yolk or not.

The best way to test yolk doneness is to gently press on the egg yolk after flipping and removing the egg when your desired doneness has been reached.

Jammy yolks will be softer while fully cooked yolks will be firmer.

• Place the cheese on one of the eggs and place the second egg on top.

Be sure the cheese is between the two eggs so that it melts fully and “fuses” the eggs together.

• Place the eggs on the bottom half of the roll.

• Cover with the top and cut in half.

• Wrap and allow to sit somewhere warm for at least 90 seconds.

3.      Serve.