Sucuklu Yumurta
(soo-jook-loo yoo-moor-tah)
Kahvaltı (The Weekend Before Coffee Spread)
If there is one smell that instantly summons the memory of a lazy Sunday morning in a Turkish-American household, it is the deeply intoxicating, garlic-laced aroma of sucuk hitting hot butter. This is the undisputed king of the breakfast table—a brilliantly simple, rustic skillet of dry-cured beef sausage and runny eggs meant to be mercilessly scooped up with crusty bread. American instincts demand we cook sausages until heavily browned, but sucuk requires only a fleeting kiss of heat to bloom its spices and render its crimson fat. Treat the meat with respect, keep it far away from overcooking, and you are rewarded with pure, unadulterated comfort.
Before you start
Always peel the casing.
Whether it looks natural or synthetic, the skin of the sucuk must come off or it will ruin the texture of the dish. If the casing is stubborn, run the sausage under warm tap water for ten seconds to help it slip right off.
Utilize the grandmother water trick for dry sausage.
If the sucuk you sourced feels overly stiff or dry, add two tablespoons of water to the pan along with the butter. The simmering water gently steams and plumps the meat, keeping it perfectly tender as the fat begins to fry.
Ingredients
- Turkish kangal sucuk4 oz
- unsalted butter1 tbsp
- water2 tbsp
- eggs3 large
- coarse sea salt1/4 tsp
- pul biber1/4 tsp
- crusty bread1 med loaf
Method
- 01
Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-low heat.
A traditional copper sahan, well-seasoned cast iron, or non-stick pan will all work beautifully.
- 02
Arrange the sliced sucuk in the pan in a single layer and cook for just 30 to 45 seconds.
Watch closely as the butter turns a vibrant sunset red from the spices, then immediately flip the slices and cook for just 30 seconds more so the meat does not dry out.
- 03
Nudge the meat to create small gaps and carefully crack the eggs directly into the pan.
Let the whites settle into the red butter, then use the tip of a fork to gently agitate the thickest parts of the whites so they cook evenly without puncturing the yolks.
- 04
Sprinkle the coarse sea salt exclusively over the eggs.
The sucuk is already heavily salted from the curing process, so salting the whole skillet will ruin the balance of the dish.
- 05
Drop the heat to low, cover the skillet with a lid, and let it sit for 1 to 2 minutes.
The trapped steam gently sets the tops of the whites while keeping the yolks perfectly warm and runny.
- 06
Remove the pan from the heat, sprinkle lightly with pul biber, and serve immediately.
Carry the skillet straight to the table and eat directly from the pan with torn pieces of fresh bread.
Notes
Do not overcook the sucuk.
Because it is a dry-cured meat, sucuk only needs to be warmed enough to bloom its spices and render its fat; exposing it to high heat for too long turns it rubbery and unpalatable.
Keep the salt away from the meat.
Always target your seasoning directly on the egg whites, as the fermented sausage provides more than enough salinity for the rest of the pan.
From Cook Turkish in America.