what does adding butter to eggs do

Scrambled eggs are one of the little luxuries of everyday life. When I make them, I savor every bite. They’re soft and creamy, rich and flavorful, and they just so happen to cook in under 5 minutes. Seriously, how amazing is that?

If you poke around the internet in search of the best scrambled eggs recipe, you’ll find a million sites claiming to have it. Don’t be fooled – when it comes to scrambled eggs, “best” is a matter of personal taste. You can load them up with butter or sour cream, or just keep them simple like me.

The recipe below is for my “best” scrambled eggs. I don’t add any fancy ingredients, so they’re easy to whip up on regular weekday mornings. Still, they’re fluffy, tender, and all around delicious. I love them, and I think you will too.

As eggs cook, the proteins in the whites form tight, cross-linked bonds that turn their texture dense and rubbery. Adding butter to the mix coats the proteins with fat, inhibiting them from forming bonds so the eggs stay soft and creamy.
what does adding butter to eggs do

There are several ways to make scrambled eggs, including adding milk, cream, cheese, or water. But there is also another ingredient that turns regular scrambled eggs into a delicious dish that is creamy, soft, and velvety smooth with a rich, satisfying taste—and that is butter.

After scrambling the eggs in a bowl, small cubes of cold butter are added. Then the eggs are cooked low and slow so they do not dry out and remain the perfect buttery texture. You can add these scrambled eggs to breakfast burritos or simply serve alongside bacon and toast. Just be sure to have the rest of your breakfast ready so you can serve these eggs the second theyre done.

How to Make Scrambled Eggs

So, you have your ingredients. Now it’s time to cook! Here’s my easy method for how to make scrambled eggs:

First, beat the eggs. Place them in a medium bowl, and whisk until the yolk and whites are thoroughly combined.

Add the milk or water, and whisk again! The beaten eggs should be an even yellow color, with no translucent spots or streaks.

Next, gently preheat the pan. Brush a small nonstick skillet with olive oil, or melt a little butter inside it. Warm the skillet over medium heat.

Finally, cook. Pour in the egg mixture, and let it cook for a few seconds, undisturbed. Then, pull a rubber spatula across the bottom of the pan to form large, soft curds of scrambled eggs.

Continue cooking over medium-low heat, folding and stirring the eggs every few seconds. As you work, make sure to scrape your spatula along the bottom and sides of the pan to continue to form curds and to prevent any part of the eggs from drying out.

For a soft, creamy scramble, stop when the eggs are mostly set, but a little liquid egg remains. Remove the pan from the heat, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

That’s it! The whole process will be over in under 5 minutes.

Why You Should Be Adding Butter To Your Hard-Boiled Eggs

FAQ

What does butter do to eggs?

The best thing about frying eggs in butter is the taste. Because butter is higher in fat than oil, your eggs will naturally take on that rich butter flavor as they crisp in the pan. It’s similar to the way some chefs add a pad of butter to their scrambled eggs as they cook.

What happens if you add butter to scrambled eggs?

Heat the skillet To make scrambled eggs on the stove, melt a teaspoon of butter or olive oil — or a combination of both — in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Butter and oil add rich flavor to the eggs and help prevent sticking, but you can also use cooking spray.

Is it better to put milk or butter in eggs?

Chefs and home cooks agree that butter is the only dairy you need when scrambling eggs. Use medium to low heat and melt a tablespoon or two in the bottom of your pan until it is golden (but not brown). Then add your whisked eggs, and cook without stirring until the mixture begins to set on the bottom.

Is butter on eggs healthy?

Thanks to its high concentration of fat, butter has a unique taste and creamy texture. It’s great for high heat pan-frying and can prevent your eggs from sticking to the pan. But it doesn’t have a ton of health perks. A single tablespoon of salted butter has about 102 kilocalories (kcal) and 11.5 grams (g) of fat.

Can you add butter to boiled eggs?

So adding butter directly to boiled eggs isn’t actually as unusual as it may sound. Though it’s not a new combination, when New York Times food columnist and cookbook author, Melissa Clark, shared her photo of five-minute boiled eggs smeared with butter, Maldon salt, and Urfa chile, it was an instant hit.

What are the healthier substitutes of egg in baking?

Egg is used for binding, leavening and moistness in baked recipes. The few alternatives of eggs are chia seeds which are used for their binding properties. Tofu is used to achieve the look of scrambled egg, a pinch of turmeric and yeast can be added to obtain flavor. Flaxseed gel with little baking powder is used in leavening the dough for moistness, mashed banana, applesauce, pureed avocado and garbanzo beans can be used.

What happens if you Bast an egg in butter?

Basting an egg in butter results in a set white, a runny yolk, and plenty of delicuous brown butter to serve it with. Did you make this? We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.

What to do with Butter-Basted eggs?

Butter-basted eggs is not just a recipe, either. It’s a loose format perfect for riffing on: The relatively slow heat lets you flavor the butter with whatever strikes your mood: Add a couple of smashed capers (or anchovies!) to the butter and finish with a squeeze of lemon, if you like. Thinly sliced garlic is another nice addition.

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