I Tried the New York Times Scrambled Eggs Recipe and This is What Happened
/
I was munching a keto chocolate peanut butter bar after dinner and scrolling Twitter (to avoid doing the dishes if I'm being honest) when I saw this tweet…
This viral scrambled eggs recipe from @kenjilopezalt might just change how you make this breakfast favorite forever. https://t.co/KtWB8w2v65
— The New York Times (@nytimes) February 27, 2021
The words "viral scrambled eggs recipe" caught my attention. It didn’t hurt that the recipe was from the New York Times whose recipe writers likely don’t microwave hot dogs for a quick lunch.
As a keto eater, I eat scrambled eggs a lot. I usually just plop some butter in a pan and mix eggs with a melted, chili-stained plastic rice paddle until they look done.
To be fair, sometimes I get fancy and make Japanese tornado eggs as I did in this blog post.
It never occurred to me that there was an actual recipe for scrambled eggs, let alone a ... gasp ... viral recipe.
I clicked the link and read the recipe. It’s by J. Kenji López-Alt who writes a monthly column for the New York Times on food and science. You can learn more about him and see some of his recipes here.
It sounded yummy, the photo looked amazing, and I decided to make the New York Times scrambled egg recipe.
In the words of almost every infomercial salesperson in all of history... but wait!!! Before I made this recipe I had to answer one important question (for me, anyway):
Is the New York Times "viral" scrambled eggs recipe keto?
I'm not going to blow my daily carb count over any recipe.
The recipe starts out with what you might expect in scrambled eggs recipe:
butter
eggs
a dash of kosher salt
I know that butter has 0 carbs. A large egg has 0.6g carbs (according to the USDA). Totally keto.
The "secret" ingredient for the NYT scrambled eggs is starch. Either potato starch, cornstarch, or tapioca starch. Let's look at the carb counts...
| Type of Starch | Carb Grams Per Teaspoon (1 serving) |
Carb Grams for Recipe (2 servings) |
|---|---|---|
| Potato Starch | 3 grams | 6 grams |
| Tapioca Starch | 1.5 grams | 3 grams |
| Cornstarch | 2 grams | 4 grams |
If you eat half the scrambled eggs (1 serving) you'll be only adding between 1.5g and 3g carbs to your daily total.
Conclusion: The New York Times "viral" scrambled eggs recipe is keto and let the experiment commence!
What the New York Times readers had to say about the scrambled egg recipe.
I scrolled through a few of the comments on the New York Time's website. There were two types of responses:
people who actually tried the recipe and loved it
people who dismissed it without trying and shared their own scrambled eggs "recipe"
What Twitter had to say about the New York Times scrambled egg recipe.
If you're on Twitter a lot (as I am) you can probably guess at the responses:
almost no one who commented clicked on the article to read the recipe
literally no one who commented actually made the recipe
everyone shared (usually in a very colorful or grammatically incorrect way) either their own trick to making scrambled eggs, or how stupid it is to add starch to eggs, or their outrage over 4 tablespoons of butter
My New York Times viral scrambled eggs recipe experiment.
Going into this scrambled experiment I was really hoping the eggs would be the BEST EGGS I'VE EVER MADE. Taking a few extra seconds to whisk together a little cornstarch and water is no big deal. Neither is the few added carbs.
I wanted to make the recipe EXACTLY as written.
First I read the directions completely. Not just skimmed, as I usually do, but took out my earbuds and actually paid attention to the words on the page.
Mise en-fricking place.
"Mise en place," as you probably know, is a French term that basically means get everything in place BEFORE you start cooking. Kind of opposite Rachael Ray's 30-minute meals cooking technique. And kind of the opposite of my normal cooking procedure too.
For this recipe, mise en place meant a few things...
Grabbing a ruler to make sure I used a 10-inch skillet
Using said ruler to measure my butter cubes
Taking butter out of the fridge so it's cold, instead of using the amazingly soft butter I leave out on my counter
Using measuring spoons to measure the cornstarch and not just eye-balling it
Testing the pan's temperature using a tablespoon of water
Using a real spatula to "push and fold" my eggs instead of the chili-stained rice paddle that came with my Instant Pot
Pulling the recipe up on my iPad so I can actually follow it while cooking
Toasting a piece of my home-baked keto bread to go with!
I felt so organized and bad-ass.
The process.
I am not kidding, I felt SO MUCH PRESSURE making these dang eggs. I wanted to follow the recipe exactly as written instead winging it, as is my normal laid-back style.
I felt like I was auditioning for Master Chef. Or cooking for my mother-in-law.
Remove the self-imposed emotional drama, and it was actually quite simple to make these scrambled eggs.
Chop cold butter into small pieces. I did measure this time, but really no ruler is necessary.
Whisk together the cornstarch and water in a bowl. Add half the butter, then the eggs and whisk again until frothy.
Put a pan over medium-high heat and allow it to actually get hot. Throw in the rest of the butter and it will melt in seconds.
Pour in the egg mixture and scramble.
Take off the heat while still a tiny bit underdone. The eggs will continue cooking.
Transfer to your plate and enjoy!
Despite some of the alarming language in the New York Times recipe (I think the author used the word “immediately” about 27 times), it really is a basic, beginner recipe.
The eggs are almost done!
How long did it take to make the NYT scrambled eggs?
I set a timer on my phone because many of the comments assumed it took a lot longer than "normal." It took me 16 minutes from assembling my ingredients to plating my perfectly scrambled eggs.
So, how did they taste? Were these the best scrambled eggs ever??
The New York Times Scrambled Eggs look appetizing af.
First of all, the eggs looked better than my normal scrambled eggs.
These are NOT the viral NYT scrambled eggs. These are my normal scrambled eggs.
This is a photo of scrambled eggs I made three days ago. (I'm one of those weirdos who always photographs her food.) My normal eggs look drier and more "cottage cheese consistency" if that's a thing. There are flecks of white where the eggs weren't mixed well. No big deal, they tasted decent.
Here is my version of the New York Times scrambled eggs.
Compare the first photo with my NYT scrambled eggs. I "leisurely stirred" the eggs and got the larger, fluffier curds. I kinda dig how they look. You can definitely see from the photo how they are much moister, and dare I say “creamier,” than my normal eggs.
The NYT scrambled eggs were creamy and buttery and delish.
Looks aside, TASTE is what truly matters. If I'm going to measure 1/4-inch cubes of butter and dirty up half a dozen dishes for scrambled eggs, they best taste good.
And they did. They were egg-cellent, pun intended.
The scrambled eggs were super buttery and rich. The eggs were creamy and soft, without being mushy.
They were seasoned well - I just added a sprinkle of fresh cracked black pepper on top and chopped green onions, my go-to garnish.
Maybe because I just spent 16 minutes chopping, whisking, and scrambling, I took the time to savor my meal. I slowed down long enough to really taste the eggs, instead of hurriedly stuffing food in my mouth so I can get on with my day.
Definitely a viral-worthy recipe.
The New York Times scrambled eggs recipe was very good, but was it worthy of going viral??
I'm going with "yes," this is a viral-worthy recipe. I thought my normal scrambled eggs were good, but this recipe elevated a standard breakfast dish about 100%. It felt decadent, like a treat meal, but it was perfectly keto.
And if this recipe hadn’t gone viral I never would have seen it. I’d still be scrambling eggs without cornstarch (or potato starch or tapioca), and I’d still be using my stained rice paddle to scramble them.
Sometimes it’s a good idea to challenge ourselves with new recipes and new techniques, and I think the NYT scrambled eggs recipe was a great example of this.
Happy eating!!!
--The Keto Minimalist
