I came across this recipe in a magazine months ago.
It was a mix of beans and peppers and tomatoes topped with a fried egg.
The veggie mix was seasoned with an exotic mix of cumin and coriander and curry powder.
I wrinkled my nose when I read that part of the ingredient list.
Those are some very polarizing spices. They’re in the same category as cilantro. You either take a bite and say oh my god! What is that? This is delicious. Or, you take a bite and say oh my god! What is that? This tastes like soap.
Yes, it’s true. Due to chemical makeups in the body, some people get a soapy taste when they bite into cilantro (for more information check this New York Times article).
So anyway. I was a fan of the concept of the recipe but not all of its parts.
But that’s one of my favorite things about cooking – you can adjust to your tastes.
So I took the basic components of the recipe, sauteed peppers, tomatoes and cannelini beans topped with a fried egg, and replaced the spices and seasonings with those more favorable to my palate.
Since we had chorizo and scallions from out Chipotle salad the other night, I took this dish south of the border.
You will need
- 2 green bell peppers, diced
- 1/2 a pint of cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 can cannelini beans, rinsed and drained (you can use any kind of bean, black beans for a more Mexican flavor, red kidney beans for more of a chili feel, chickpeas for a ratatouille. I just happen to have cannelini beans in the cabinet)
- 2 tablespoons chorizo, diced
- 2 scallions, chopped
- vegetable oil
- salt
- pepper
- eggs
Drizzle a pan with olive oil. You can use a big frying pan or a big pot. I like my aluminum one for this because I have tendency to throw things onto my stove when I use a shallow pan.
(My nickname in college was Calamity Jane. I’m not quite as calamatous. But still a bit)
Toss in the peppers and the chorizo.
This dish is cooked in layers as the cooking times vary on the vegetables.
When the peppers start to soften and the chorizo is starting to brown, add the tomatoes and cook until the tomatoes release their juices.
Add the beans and the salt and pepper and stir.
In a frying pan, crack 2 eggs per person, and fry them so the yolks are still runny.
A runny yolk is absolutely necessary to this dish. You can change the chorizo and scallions out for prosciutto and basil, or you can make it vegetarian with some parsley and oregano, but you cannot do this dish without a runny yolk.
While the eggs cook, the vegetables will simmer together and the juice from the tomatoes and the oil from the chorizo will make a thick stew like sauce. That sauce will mix with the runny yolk… but I’m getting ahead of myself.
Add the chopped scallions and let them warm through. I like to let them stay crisp for a difference in texture.
Scoop out the veggie mixture onto a plate.
Top with the fried eggs.
Run your knife through the yolk and let the deep yellow yolk mix with the red, spicy tomatoey chorizo sauce.
I highly recommend some crusty bread to mop up all those juices.
