How to Fry an Egg

If you've never fried an egg before, you are in the right place! We'll have you going from beginner to pro in absolutely no time at all. The best part of frying eggs is how easy it is and how few things it requires. All you have to do is learn a little more about the technique and you're ready to go. Read on to learn how to fry an egg.

Selecting a Pan

Keep in mind that to fry an egg you will also a pan to fry it in. Cast iron skillets are popular for many types of baking and they can transform a regular egg into a fried one beautifully. If you have a cast iron pan that you've never used, keep in mind that you'll want to season it before you cook with it.

If you're not tempted by cast iron or simply don't own one, there are other pans you can use. The best option is a nonstick skillet, because of how easily the eggs will slide off. You'll need a spatula that goes with this type of pan to avoid scratching the material.

Another pan that can easily be utilized is a stainless-steel skillet. Many people use this for frying eggs and find that it works great. Regardless of which type of pan you use, you'll have to use fat to make sure that there is a buffer between the egg and the skillet and to assist in the frying process. Keep in mind that you'll need to use a pan that is big enough to accommodate the number of eggs that you are frying.

Selecting a Fat

Once you've got your cookware all sorted, you're going to want to move on to selecting a fat. Butter is the most commonly used fat. It allows an egg to fry up just right and imparts some of that butter taste. It also isn't going to smoke or damage your egg, as using something like avocado oil would (don't use avocado oil and you'll be fine).

Butter gives the perfect fried base, but you can also achieve it with bacon fat or ghee. Ghee is simply clarified butter that has a low smoke point and will work similarly to butter while cooking. Bacon fat will work just as well as butter, helping you fry your eggs while imparting some delicious flavor as well. Therefore, the next time you cook bacon, save the fat! It's perfect for frying eggs.

Other fats you can try are olive oil. If you don't have butter or simply want to try it, it works well for getting eggs crispy and ready to eat. Be aware that there will be an olive oil taste in this case. Avoid using vegetable oil, which should only be used if you have absolutely nothing else on hand to cook your eggs with.

Frying Eggs

There are different ways to cook your fried egg, and you can alter the way that you cook them according to preference. Some like their eggs runny, which means that you can cook them sunny side up or done over-easy. Those that want their yolks firmer fall into the over-medium or over-hard category where the egg is nearly or completely cooked.

To cook your eggs, you're going to heat your butter or fat of choice until it has dissipated. From there, you'll have your eggs ready to crack into the pan for cooking.

For a sunny side up egg, crack the egg and cook roughly three minutes. You're going to want to see that the white has set. From there, simply remove from the pan. For over-easy, you'll do the same thing, but then you're going to turn the egg over and cook for around thirty seconds. That satisfies the soft yolk crowd, but what about the others?

For over-medium, cook for three minutes and then turn over, cooking for another minute. For over-hard, the process is the same, only cook for two to three minutes more.

For all eggs, season to taste with salt and pepper as you wish or garnish with your favorite condiment of choice (hot sauce, pepper flakes, etc.). That's it! You've successfully cooked the perfect fried egg. Eat at any time and enjoy!