Growing up in the home counties, we were spoilt for space which my mum, my Bermondsey Belle, decided to fill with animals. Her favourite by far was a beautifully proud goose, imaginatively called Onky.
I’ve not thought of Onky in about 40 years, until the other weekend, at the socially-distanced farmer’s market, when I saw goose eggs for sale. I’d love to regale you with stories of how lovely Onky was and how productive she was in the egg department. Truth is she was a fiery, wilful beast who, as far as I can remember, only ever produced one egg. In all her days, one egg. Just the one.
When I saw these goose eggs at the market, I snapped them up. If you’ve never had a goose egg, try it with this simple omelette recipe. Goose eggs are rich, fatty, eggier than other eggs and the nuttiness and creaminess of the comté compliments the richness of the egg without smothering it. Serve it with a simple caper and leaf salad dressed with Claudie’s vinaigrette.
Music to listen to while preparing this dish: ‘All Right Now’ by Witch Queen
Ingredients (serves two)
- 4 Goose eggs
- 1 Large onion chopped finely (red or white, your choice)
- 50g Unsalted butter
- 50g Comté cheese finely grated
- Salt and pepper
Method
The key to this recipe is patience. The eggs, like the chef, should be ‘neither hurried nor harried’ (MFK Fisher).
On a very low heat, melt your butter and slowly fry, almost confit, your onions making sure you season them with your salt. Expect this to take at least 20 mins as your eggs shouldn’t be brown, they should be a sweet sticky mess.
While your onions are frying down, grate your cheese ready to sprinkle at the end.
Now’s the time to prepare the eggs. Cracking them is half the fun. You’ll need strong wrist action – there’s a video on our effort below (excuse the mild swearing). Whisk gently – you don’t want a homogenous mix, you want to see a little distinction between yolk and white… it’ll give your omelette texture.
Once your onions are smelling sweet and look translucently beautiful, it’s time to pour your eggs over. Do not turn up the heat, keep it very very low.
Stir the egg mix gently, ensuring the onions are evenly distributed. You’ll see that the gg is starting to cook and as you stir, more of the mix will cook. Keep stirring but stop once the mix becomes firm – you want an omelette not scrambled eggs. At this stage the bottom will be firm and the top slightly runny.
At this point, evenly sprinkle your cheese over and let the heat start to melt it a little. Once it’s a little melted, fold the omelette in half and then slide on a plate.
Add your side salad with vinaigrette and you’ve a perfectly decadent lunch for two. Add a glass of Bianco Maggiore and you’re all set.
Pug's Kitchen 