Ep17: Bacon Egg & Cheese
There comes a point in every New Yorker’s life when they venture outside city limits and learn, to their horror, 24-hour access to breakfast sandwiches via bodegas spaced two blocks apart is not the norm in the rest of the world. When Deb and Kenji start breaking down each component, you will realize that it takes a lot of skill and discernment to a) choose the right ingredients b) prepare them all to perfection at the exact same time. You will never take the humble BEC for granted again.
Recipes mentioned:
Bodega-Style Egg and Cheese Sandwich (Smitten Kitchen)
Fried Egg Sandwich with Bacon and Blue Cheese (Smitten Kitchen)
Better-Than-McDonald's Breakfast Sandwiches (And More Work, Too!) (Kenji’s Cooking Show)
Radiotopia’s fall fundraiser is here! Donate today to help us reach our goal of 2,024 donors. Thank you!
-
WEBVTT
00:00:01.480 --> 00:00:11.240
<v SPEAKER_1>Hi, I'm Audrey Mardovich, executive producer of PRX's Radiotopia, and I want to thank everyone who's already donated to the network's fall fundraiser.
00:00:11.240 --> 00:00:13.520
<v SPEAKER_1>Seriously, for real, thank you.
00:00:13.520 --> 00:00:15.440
<v SPEAKER_1>It means so much.
00:00:15.440 --> 00:00:21.340
<v SPEAKER_1>Truth be told, though, just a small percentage of our listeners donate to support The Recipe and the network.
00:00:21.340 --> 00:00:26.740
<v SPEAKER_1>If just 1% of our listeners donated, we would hit our goal today.
00:00:26.740 --> 00:00:38.980
<v SPEAKER_1>We'd be in great shape for next year, which means that Deb and Kenji and the whole Recipe crew over here could focus on making the episodes that you love listening to and not how we're going to make budget.
00:00:38.980 --> 00:00:43.460
<v SPEAKER_1>When you donate, you also become a part of an incredible group of super fans.
00:00:43.460 --> 00:00:50.840
<v SPEAKER_1>These are people who are determined to support a thing that they love to make sure that it continues to exist.
00:00:50.840 --> 00:01:00.380
<v SPEAKER_1>It's a community of listeners who say, yes, independent media is important and the way that Radiotopia does business is important and it's worth supporting.
00:01:00.380 --> 00:01:15.420
<v SPEAKER_1>So if The Recipe with Kenji and Deb means something to you, if we've brightened your day and we've helped you think about food or the world a little bit differently, please make your tax deductible gift at radiotopia.fm slash donate today.
00:01:15.420 --> 00:01:24.200
<v SPEAKER_1>And as a token of our thanks when you donate, you'll get access to a list of all of our show's favorite things curated by our hosts and producers.
00:01:24.200 --> 00:01:25.520
<v SPEAKER_1>And it's really good.
00:01:25.520 --> 00:01:26.880
<v SPEAKER_1>There's some really fun stuff on there.
00:01:27.540 --> 00:01:31.240
<v SPEAKER_1>So that's radiotopia.fm slash donate.
00:01:31.240 --> 00:01:33.520
<v SPEAKER_1>And thank you so much and happy listening.
00:01:35.940 --> 00:01:39.000
<v SPEAKER_2>This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance.
00:01:39.000 --> 00:01:43.900
<v SPEAKER_2>Fiscally responsible, financial geniuses, monetary magicians.
00:01:43.900 --> 00:01:49.320
<v SPEAKER_2>These are things people say about drivers who switch their car insurance to Progressive and save hundreds.
00:01:49.320 --> 00:01:52.080
<v SPEAKER_2>Visit progressive.com to see if you could save.
00:01:52.080 --> 00:01:54.380
<v SPEAKER_2>Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates.
00:01:54.380 --> 00:01:55.820
<v SPEAKER_2>Potential savings will vary.
00:01:55.820 --> 00:01:57.740
<v SPEAKER_2>Not available in all states for situations.
00:02:00.160 --> 00:02:11.720
<v SPEAKER_1>Hi everyone, this is Audrey Mardovich, executive producer of Radiotopia, and I'm here to tell you about one of my very favorite essential pantry staples, Wonderful Seedless Lemons.
00:02:11.720 --> 00:02:16.620
<v SPEAKER_1>Wonderful Seedless Lemons are a 100% naturally seedless lemon variety.
00:02:16.620 --> 00:02:22.000
<v SPEAKER_1>They are juicy, they are zesty, and they're non-GMO project verified.
00:02:22.000 --> 00:02:25.680
<v SPEAKER_1>They're everything you love about lemons, minus the pesky seeds.
00:02:26.220 --> 00:02:37.140
<v SPEAKER_1>So, whether you're enhancing your favorite recipes, or you're enjoying a little lemon slice in your seltzer like I do, Wonderful Seedless Lemons make any occasion more seamless.
00:02:37.140 --> 00:02:45.820
<v SPEAKER_1>They're available nationwide including at Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Walmart, Kroger, as well as select Costco outlets.
00:02:45.820 --> 00:02:52.420
<v SPEAKER_1>Look for Wonderful Seedless Lemons at your local retailer, or visit wonderfulseedlesslemons.com to learn more.
00:02:55.840 --> 00:03:09.980
<v SPEAKER_3>I always feel like it's got to be hard to track the origin of something like a sandwich because as long as people have had a bread and a need to go from place A to B with food, I would assume that some version of a sandwich has existed.
00:03:09.980 --> 00:03:17.900
<v SPEAKER_4>If you say to someone, hey, think of a breakfast sandwich, I would argue that version of the breakfast sandwich was invented by McDonald's.
00:03:18.160 --> 00:03:21.540
<v SPEAKER_1>There's more in the middle of an egg McMuffin than an egg in the middle of a muffin.
00:03:21.620 --> 00:03:25.200
<v SPEAKER_1>There's more in the middle of an egg McMuffin than there is in the middle of a muffin.
00:03:25.200 --> 00:03:31.880
<v SPEAKER_3>Kenji, do you have a particular bias towards McDonald's, like something about your upbringing that you might want to tell us?
00:03:32.540 --> 00:03:34.580
<v SPEAKER_4>We did grow up literally above a McDonald's.
00:03:34.580 --> 00:03:39.380
<v SPEAKER_4>There was a McDonald's on the corner of 125th and Riverside, and Broadway, I grew up on 125th and Riverside.
00:03:39.380 --> 00:03:41.940
<v SPEAKER_4>So the McDonald's was there up until about 10 years ago.
00:03:41.940 --> 00:03:46.420
<v SPEAKER_4>But the egg McMuffin was invented in 1972 by a worker in McDonald's.
00:03:47.160 --> 00:03:49.220
<v SPEAKER_4>It became very popular soon after that.
00:03:49.220 --> 00:03:56.740
<v SPEAKER_4>There's an article in Time Magazine from 1981, talking about the phenomenon of breakfast at fast food restaurants.
00:03:56.740 --> 00:04:02.820
<v SPEAKER_4>By 1981, breakfast accounted for 18 percent of all of McDonald's sales.
00:04:02.820 --> 00:04:07.300
<v SPEAKER_4>After McDonald's introduced that breakfast sandwich, that became the standard form of the breakfast sandwich.
00:04:07.300 --> 00:04:10.300
<v SPEAKER_4>All of the other fast food places started doing breakfast sandwiches that way.
00:04:10.340 --> 00:04:16.200
<v SPEAKER_4>Then from there, it's since evolved into like, we get gourmet breakfast sandwiches from restaurants and all that and stuff.
00:04:16.200 --> 00:04:21.080
<v SPEAKER_4>The concept existed and there are recipes for breakfast sandwiches I think that go back to the 19th century.
00:04:21.080 --> 00:04:24.500
<v SPEAKER_4>In this article, I wrote for Serious Eats about McDonald's breakfast sandwiches.
00:04:24.500 --> 00:04:25.820
<v SPEAKER_4>I quoted Ray Kroc.
00:04:25.820 --> 00:04:27.660
<v SPEAKER_4>There was that movie about him called The Founder.
00:04:27.660 --> 00:04:28.880
<v SPEAKER_4>Michael Keaton played him.
00:04:28.880 --> 00:04:34.040
<v SPEAKER_4>He's the guy who took the McDonald's concept and franchised it and made it into what it is today.
00:04:34.040 --> 00:04:38.940
<v SPEAKER_4>But he had an autobiography called Grinding It Out, and he wrote specifically about breakfast sandwiches in that one.
00:04:38.980 --> 00:04:44.160
<v SPEAKER_4>He says when one of the workers came and told him about this new invention he had, a breakfast sandwich.
00:04:44.160 --> 00:04:51.960
<v SPEAKER_4>It consisted of an egg that had been formed in a Teflon circle with the yolk broken and was dressed with a slice of cheese and a slice of grilled Canadian bacon.
00:04:51.960 --> 00:04:55.200
<v SPEAKER_4>This was served open-faced on a toasted and buttered English muffin.
00:04:55.200 --> 00:04:59.020
<v SPEAKER_4>I boggled a bit at the presentation, but then I tasted it and I was sold.
00:04:59.020 --> 00:05:00.320
<v SPEAKER_4>Wow.
00:05:00.320 --> 00:05:06.840
<v SPEAKER_4>That was the origin of the Egg McMuffin, which I would say was the first breakfast sandwich as we know it today.
00:05:07.740 --> 00:05:09.620
<v SPEAKER_4>In America.
00:05:09.620 --> 00:05:10.920
<v SPEAKER_3>I hadn't heard that before.
00:05:10.920 --> 00:05:13.060
<v SPEAKER_3>I didn't realize it went back that far.
00:05:13.060 --> 00:05:14.320
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, 1972.
00:05:14.320 --> 00:05:15.380
<v SPEAKER_4>It's older than me.
00:05:15.380 --> 00:05:16.580
<v SPEAKER_4>Is it older than you?
00:05:16.760 --> 00:05:18.300
<v SPEAKER_3>Watch it.
00:05:18.300 --> 00:05:20.040
<v SPEAKER_3>But it's definitely older than me.
00:05:20.040 --> 00:05:21.560
<v SPEAKER_3>I am just a baby.
00:05:24.280 --> 00:05:30.780
<v SPEAKER_3>From PRX's Radiotopia, this is The Recipe with Kenji and Deb, where we help you discover your own perfect recipes.
00:05:31.820 --> 00:05:35.600
<v SPEAKER_3>Kenji is the author of The Food Lab and The Walk and a columnist for The New York Times.
00:05:35.960 --> 00:05:40.520
<v SPEAKER_4>Deb is the creator of Smitten Kitchen and the author of three best-selling cookbooks.
00:05:40.520 --> 00:05:48.920
<v SPEAKER_3>We've both been professional recipe developers for nearly two decades, and we've got the same basic goal, to make recipes that work for you and make you excited to get in the kitchen.
00:05:48.920 --> 00:05:56.060
<v SPEAKER_4>But we've got very different approaches, and on this show, we'll cook and talk about each other's recipes, comparing notes to see what we can learn from each other.
00:05:56.060 --> 00:06:01.780
<v SPEAKER_4>This week on The Recipe with Kenji and Deb, we're talking about the bacon, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich.
00:06:01.780 --> 00:06:03.780
<v SPEAKER_3>That's next on The Recipe with Kenji and Deb.
00:06:06.580 --> 00:06:10.440
<v SPEAKER_5>Hi, I'm Nagi Mahashi, author of the new cookbook, Delicious Tonight.
00:06:10.440 --> 00:06:19.300
<v SPEAKER_5>As fans of my website, Recipe Tin Eats, know, my recipes are meticulously tested for delicious results you can trust, and that's exactly what you're going to find in my new cookbook.
00:06:19.300 --> 00:06:21.520
<v SPEAKER_5>Looking for a new side dish for the holiday table?
00:06:21.520 --> 00:06:24.420
<v SPEAKER_5>Try my asparagus with whipped tahini with a mountain of panko.
00:06:24.420 --> 00:06:26.520
<v SPEAKER_5>It's even better than it sounds.
00:06:26.520 --> 00:06:28.320
<v SPEAKER_5>Need a super quick dinner right now?
00:06:28.320 --> 00:06:30.380
<v SPEAKER_5>Try my spicy peanut noodles.
00:06:30.380 --> 00:06:36.600
<v SPEAKER_5>Whatever your dinner dilemma, Delicious Tonight has something for you, and it's available right now wherever good books are sold.
00:06:40.040 --> 00:06:41.880
<v SPEAKER_4>So Deb, you're a New Yorker.
00:06:41.880 --> 00:06:42.940
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm a New Yorker.
00:06:42.940 --> 00:06:49.000
<v SPEAKER_4>Are you aware that the BEC, the bacon, egg and cheese, is like really specifically a New York thing?
00:06:49.000 --> 00:06:59.120
<v SPEAKER_3>I am hyper aware of it because the thing is, the smell of morning in New York City is the smell of bacon coming out of bodegas.
00:06:59.120 --> 00:07:00.020
<v SPEAKER_3>It really is.
00:07:00.020 --> 00:07:04.780
<v SPEAKER_3>I was going for a run yesterday morning, and I passed about six small bodegas on my way.
00:07:04.780 --> 00:07:08.400
<v SPEAKER_3>And every one of them has the smell of bacon coming out of them.
00:07:08.400 --> 00:07:11.600
<v SPEAKER_3>And it's really just, you have to love it or hate it.
00:07:11.600 --> 00:07:14.380
<v SPEAKER_3>Like if you're hungry, it probably smells amazing.
00:07:14.380 --> 00:07:17.740
<v SPEAKER_3>Most of the time, I'm like, wow, that's a lot of bacon to be smelling.
00:07:17.740 --> 00:07:20.280
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm not really interested in thinking about bacon.
00:07:20.280 --> 00:07:35.720
<v SPEAKER_4>This was one of the things that surprised me when I left New York, having grown up there and then leaving, the idea that there wasn't a bodega like every two blocks, and that if you wanted a breakfast sandwich, you couldn't just walk, you had a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich wrapped up in paper every two blocks, right?
00:07:35.720 --> 00:07:36.000
<v SPEAKER_3>Yeah.
00:07:36.000 --> 00:07:36.500
<v SPEAKER_4>But it's not.
00:07:37.040 --> 00:07:38.740
<v SPEAKER_4>It's really a uniquely New York thing.
00:07:38.740 --> 00:07:42.300
<v SPEAKER_4>Can you describe what a bodega breakfast sandwich is like in New York?
00:07:42.300 --> 00:07:42.660
<v SPEAKER_3>All right.
00:07:42.660 --> 00:07:45.820
<v SPEAKER_3>A bodega breakfast bacon, egg and cheese is probably going to be on.
00:07:45.820 --> 00:07:48.660
<v SPEAKER_3>My husband feels strongly that it should be on a Kaiser roll.
00:07:48.660 --> 00:07:52.460
<v SPEAKER_4>It's a German thing, but you don't see Kaiser rolls regularly in other cities.
00:07:52.460 --> 00:07:53.800
<v SPEAKER_3>No, absolutely not.
00:07:53.800 --> 00:07:59.760
<v SPEAKER_3>Apparently, in New York, there's actually, I didn't, I literally learned this yesterday while I was doing research.
00:07:59.840 --> 00:08:00.980
<v SPEAKER_3>It's called a bulky roll.
00:08:00.980 --> 00:08:03.060
<v SPEAKER_3>Have you heard of a bulky roll, Kenji?
00:08:03.060 --> 00:08:03.660
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah.
00:08:03.660 --> 00:08:04.080
<v SPEAKER_3>Okay.
00:08:04.080 --> 00:08:09.980
<v SPEAKER_3>I had never heard the term bulky roll before, but it kind of looks like a Kaiser roll without the seeds on it, without the poppy seeds.
00:08:09.980 --> 00:08:20.220
<v SPEAKER_4>It's also called a hard roll in New York sometimes, but it's like a little pinwheel that's got five petals that go into a central point, and kind of a shiny crust often with poppy seeds.
00:08:20.220 --> 00:08:27.800
<v SPEAKER_3>It's kind of got a very loose, kind of lightweight, almost like a manufactured Italian bread texture inside.
00:08:27.800 --> 00:08:31.140
<v SPEAKER_3>They were originally knotted, but these days they're kind of done with more of a press.
00:08:31.140 --> 00:08:36.040
<v SPEAKER_3>So more like if you're saying it mass produced to create that look that looks woven.
00:08:36.040 --> 00:08:38.120
<v SPEAKER_4>Oh, you mean that shape is kind of stamped onto them now?
00:08:38.280 --> 00:08:39.780
<v SPEAKER_3>Sometimes they're stamped into it.
00:08:39.780 --> 00:08:41.460
<v SPEAKER_3>Yeah, originally they're kind of knotted.
00:08:41.460 --> 00:08:42.380
<v SPEAKER_3>It's not a stamp.
00:08:42.380 --> 00:08:44.800
<v SPEAKER_3>It's like a shaper of some sort.
00:08:44.800 --> 00:08:48.840
<v SPEAKER_3>Some people, such as the person I married, feel very strongly that it should be on a Kaiser roll or no other.
00:08:48.840 --> 00:08:53.120
<v SPEAKER_3>But you can also get it on toast, white bread, or I love how delis have this.
00:08:53.120 --> 00:08:57.040
<v SPEAKER_3>They'll literally have rye bread too, which is like such a New York thing.
00:08:57.040 --> 00:08:57.940
<v SPEAKER_3>And an English muffin.
00:08:58.400 --> 00:09:01.360
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't see it on biscuits at a bodegas, but that's a separate thing.
00:09:01.360 --> 00:09:06.320
<v SPEAKER_3>And it's usually gonna, I think, I wanna say, is it more typical for it to be scrambled or fried?
00:09:06.320 --> 00:09:11.220
<v SPEAKER_4>I would say it's more typical for it to be either very lightly, like scrambled on the griddle.
00:09:11.220 --> 00:09:15.140
<v SPEAKER_4>Like they would break an egg on to the griddle and then maybe like swirl it around with a fork.
00:09:15.140 --> 00:09:18.540
<v SPEAKER_4>But I've never seen them separately scramble it in a bowl and then like pour it on, you know.
00:09:18.540 --> 00:09:20.740
<v SPEAKER_4>I would say it's like somewhere between scrambled and fried, yeah.
00:09:20.740 --> 00:09:22.300
<v SPEAKER_3>It's gonna have American cheese.
00:09:22.300 --> 00:09:24.160
<v SPEAKER_3>We're not messing around with any kind of fancy cheese.
00:09:24.740 --> 00:09:28.200
<v SPEAKER_3>We're using cheese designed for melting, unless you ask for something else.
00:09:28.200 --> 00:09:35.460
<v SPEAKER_3>It's gonna come pre-sliced and it's gonna have bacon on it, usually thin bacon that's pretty crispy and it's been kept warm on the griddle the whole time.
00:09:35.460 --> 00:09:41.200
<v SPEAKER_3>I feel that the over medium egg doesn't get enough respect and this is like its moment to shine.
00:09:41.200 --> 00:09:44.940
<v SPEAKER_3>The over medium egg is the perfect egg for a runny egg sandwich.
00:09:44.940 --> 00:09:46.800
<v SPEAKER_4>So I would say, yes, I agree.
00:09:46.800 --> 00:09:57.040
<v SPEAKER_4>In an egg sandwich, which I think is like a food of convenience, you know, one that you should be able to hold in your hand and drive or walk down the street or whatever, depending on whether you're in New York or a place that is car based.
00:09:57.040 --> 00:10:00.420
<v SPEAKER_4>I don't want eggs squirting out of my sandwich.
00:10:00.920 --> 00:10:04.860
<v SPEAKER_3>You don't want to be eating it one hand and it's like rolling down your hand.
00:10:04.860 --> 00:10:09.380
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, and for those of you who can't watch Deb right now, she's indicating egg dripping down her arms.
00:10:09.380 --> 00:10:11.660
<v SPEAKER_3>We already know my feelings about getting my hands messy with food.
00:10:11.660 --> 00:10:16.220
<v SPEAKER_4>I don't mind getting my hands messy with foods, but there's a time and a place for that and an egg sandwich.
00:10:16.220 --> 00:10:21.080
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, I want my egg to be whatever form it is, I want it to be cohesive.
00:10:21.080 --> 00:10:29.180
<v SPEAKER_4>And so for me, yeah, an over medium egg, in fact, what I would call the McDonald's round egg, which is like an egg cooked in a ring mold, like a round mold.
00:10:29.180 --> 00:10:30.720
<v SPEAKER_4>To me, that form is the best.
00:10:30.800 --> 00:10:33.820
<v SPEAKER_4>And it's the best when the egg is just barely set.
00:10:33.820 --> 00:10:38.960
<v SPEAKER_4>So it's still like, yeah, like jammy or like fudgy or whatever the texture you want to call it.
00:10:38.960 --> 00:10:41.760
<v SPEAKER_4>So not drippy, gooey, sure.
00:10:41.760 --> 00:10:46.800
<v SPEAKER_4>Not drippy, but still like moist and still adding like a, you know, like a nice textural contrast.
00:10:46.800 --> 00:10:51.960
<v SPEAKER_3>I feel like when you cut the sandwich, the yolk can roll out, but it shouldn't go past the crust.
00:10:52.560 --> 00:10:58.480
<v SPEAKER_3>It should keep your hands clean, because it's about portability and efficiency and getting from one place to another without making a mess of yourself.
00:10:58.480 --> 00:11:01.880
<v SPEAKER_4>When you cut the sandwich with the knife that you keep in your purse or in the car.
00:11:01.880 --> 00:11:02.980
<v SPEAKER_3>You don't have them cut it?
00:11:03.300 --> 00:11:04.700
<v SPEAKER_3>I guess they don't always cut it.
00:11:04.700 --> 00:11:09.120
<v SPEAKER_4>They'll do the one layer of like parchment or deli paper, cut it and then wrap it again.
00:11:09.120 --> 00:11:10.180
<v SPEAKER_3>It does get wrapped.
00:11:10.380 --> 00:11:11.420
<v SPEAKER_4>It has to get wrapped.
00:11:11.420 --> 00:11:14.520
<v SPEAKER_4>The wrapping is an essential part of the cooking process.
00:11:14.520 --> 00:11:20.420
<v SPEAKER_4>That even if you were making a breakfast sandwich at home, when I make a breakfast sandwich at home, I wrap it still and let it sit.
00:11:20.660 --> 00:11:21.380
<v SPEAKER_4>Wow.
00:11:21.380 --> 00:11:23.460
<v SPEAKER_3>Do you keep the deli paper right next to your griddle?
00:11:23.560 --> 00:11:28.640
<v SPEAKER_4>I'll do a piece of foil, wrap the sandwich, and then put it right back in the pan to heat it up on both sides through the foil.
00:11:28.640 --> 00:11:42.220
<v SPEAKER_4>But the idea is that when you wrap it, you trap in that steam and the steam from the hot egg kind of gets the cheese to melt, it gets whatever the bread is to soften up and the whole thing gets like a kind of cohesiveness, what Ed Levine calls the cosmic oneness.
00:11:42.460 --> 00:11:47.060
<v SPEAKER_4>It all just comes together into one thing instead of a stack of separate ingredients.
00:11:47.060 --> 00:11:48.040
<v SPEAKER_3>The cosmic oneness.
00:11:48.040 --> 00:11:48.960
<v SPEAKER_3>I love that so much.
00:11:49.640 --> 00:11:58.260
<v SPEAKER_3>One of my pet peeves with the way some bodega, bacon, egg and cheeses are made is that I don't like it when the cheese is an afterthought.
00:11:58.260 --> 00:12:02.020
<v SPEAKER_3>They make the whole sandwich and then they throw the cheese on because it often doesn't melt enough.
00:12:02.020 --> 00:12:04.060
<v SPEAKER_3>It's supposed to, but it doesn't.
00:12:04.060 --> 00:12:27.140
<v SPEAKER_3>I went on this whole thing a bunch of years ago where I have a recipe on my site where I call it my bodega, egg and cheese, and people don't like it because it's not bodega style, but I basically thinly scramble an egg and I fold, almost you pour it into a pan like a crepe and you put the piece of cheese in the middle, fold the sides over into the perfect packets that when you bite into it or cut into it, you get the perfect cheesy melt down the center.
00:12:27.140 --> 00:12:30.320
<v SPEAKER_4>Sometimes when I make a breakfast sandwich, I call them origami breakfast sandwiches for my kids.
00:12:30.320 --> 00:12:38.040
<v SPEAKER_4>But we do that where we make a real thin omelet and then you stack your cheese directly on the egg and your English muffin halves directly on the egg and then you fold it all together.
00:12:38.040 --> 00:12:42.700
<v SPEAKER_4>There's a way you can fold it so that it all ends up as a sandwich and the cheese ends up also wrapped like kind of inside.
00:12:42.700 --> 00:12:44.980
<v SPEAKER_4>Yes, you need something to keep.
00:12:44.980 --> 00:12:48.400
<v SPEAKER_3>The cheese needs to be kept in a little like heating pad of sorts.
00:12:48.400 --> 00:12:53.780
<v SPEAKER_4>Well, this is one of the reasons why the egg McMuffin I think has a basic flaw to it.
00:12:53.780 --> 00:12:56.440
<v SPEAKER_3>Could you describe the egg McMuffin?
00:12:56.440 --> 00:12:59.700
<v SPEAKER_3>Like, pretend I was born on another planet.
00:12:59.700 --> 00:13:00.140
<v SPEAKER_4>All right.
00:13:00.140 --> 00:13:04.760
<v SPEAKER_4>So an egg McMuffin is a English muffin that's been lightly toasted.
00:13:04.760 --> 00:13:10.180
<v SPEAKER_4>And if we're going from the bottom, so you got your English muffin bottom half, then there's a slice of American cheese.
00:13:11.140 --> 00:13:11.540
<v SPEAKER_3>On the bottom.
00:13:11.540 --> 00:13:12.760
<v SPEAKER_4>It's the wrong order to do it.
00:13:12.760 --> 00:13:14.100
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, exactly.
00:13:14.100 --> 00:13:14.480
<v SPEAKER_3>Wow.
00:13:14.480 --> 00:13:16.440
<v SPEAKER_4>A slice of American cheese on the bottom.
00:13:16.440 --> 00:13:24.000
<v SPEAKER_4>And then you have what they call the round egg, which at McDonald's, they crack the egg to order, and they have like a round Teflon mold.
00:13:24.000 --> 00:13:29.260
<v SPEAKER_4>The Teflon mold goes on the burger griddle, or maybe there's some kind of special pan, and the egg goes into it, and then it gets steamed.
00:13:29.260 --> 00:13:37.980
<v SPEAKER_4>So there's no color on it per se, there's no like frying that's going on, it's all kind of steamed, but it's steamed into this round shape that is exactly the size of an English muffin.
00:13:37.980 --> 00:13:46.340
<v SPEAKER_4>And then on top of that, there's a slice of Canadian bacon that's also exactly the size of the English muffin, and then all that gets placed on top of this slice of American cheese, and then you have the top bun.
00:13:46.340 --> 00:13:51.340
<v SPEAKER_4>So it's, I mean, it's just Canadian bacon, round egg, and American cheese on an English muffin.
00:13:51.340 --> 00:13:57.620
<v SPEAKER_4>But the main, the big flaw in it is that the cheese is at the bottom, which does not make any sense to me.
00:13:57.620 --> 00:13:58.860
<v SPEAKER_3>Such a choice.
00:13:58.960 --> 00:14:00.080
<v SPEAKER_4>I don't know that it's a choice.
00:14:00.080 --> 00:14:10.380
<v SPEAKER_4>So I've heard people variously say that, okay, part of it is that it protects the bottom English muffin from getting soggy, although the eggs are kind of cooked pretty hard.
00:14:10.380 --> 00:14:13.140
<v SPEAKER_4>There's not really anything that's going to get the bottom English muffin soggy there.
00:14:13.140 --> 00:14:26.940
<v SPEAKER_4>I think it has more to do with the way the McDonald's line is set up, and it's like there's the English muffins and the cheese on one side, and it gets slid over to the griddle where the egg and the bacon are there, and so that gets just stacked on top rather than having to slide things back and forth.
00:14:27.080 --> 00:14:31.580
<v SPEAKER_4>I think it has more to do with the production operational side of it than anything else.
00:14:31.580 --> 00:14:36.660
<v SPEAKER_3>If the egg is hot, it's going to ensure that the cheese is melted even if it wasn't just from hitting the English muffin.
00:14:36.920 --> 00:14:39.620
<v SPEAKER_4>That's one of the problems, is that it's only sometimes melted.
00:14:39.620 --> 00:14:44.060
<v SPEAKER_4>Very often you get it and the cheese is just like, you know, it's just like a little piece of plastic sitting there.
00:14:44.060 --> 00:14:44.980
<v SPEAKER_3>It's so sad.
00:14:44.980 --> 00:14:45.840
<v SPEAKER_3>It's so frustrating.
00:14:45.880 --> 00:14:47.500
<v SPEAKER_3>So you want that cheese to be easy.
00:14:47.500 --> 00:14:49.980
<v SPEAKER_3>Is there any softness to the egg whatsoever?
00:14:49.980 --> 00:14:58.020
<v SPEAKER_3>Like, is it ever, like if you eat it the second it comes out of the paper, is it ever a runny egg or it's just not even designed to be?
00:14:58.020 --> 00:14:59.900
<v SPEAKER_4>No, it's not designed to be that way.
00:14:59.900 --> 00:15:02.580
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, no, I don't think you're ever going to get a soft egg at McDonald's.
00:15:02.580 --> 00:15:03.520
<v SPEAKER_4>No, they're hard cooked.
00:15:03.520 --> 00:15:04.880
<v SPEAKER_4>You know, it's not like they're not scrambled.
00:15:04.940 --> 00:15:12.120
<v SPEAKER_4>So the whites and the yolks are separate, but the yolk is broken with a fork and then it's just kind of, yeah, kind of hard cooked.
00:15:12.120 --> 00:15:13.300
<v SPEAKER_3>Excuse me, sir, I have a question.
00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:15.080
<v SPEAKER_3>You can tell I've never had an egg McMuffin.
00:15:15.080 --> 00:15:16.600
<v SPEAKER_3>I should have done that in research for this.
00:15:16.600 --> 00:15:20.100
<v SPEAKER_3>I did have a bacon, egg and cheese this morning though, in preparation.
00:15:20.100 --> 00:15:20.520
<v SPEAKER_3>So-
00:15:20.520 --> 00:15:23.680
<v SPEAKER_4>The egg McMuffin is not even the best breakfast sandwich at McDonald's, by the way.
00:15:23.680 --> 00:15:24.160
<v SPEAKER_3>Oh, it isn't?
00:15:24.160 --> 00:15:25.780
<v SPEAKER_3>What's the best breakfast sandwich?
00:15:25.780 --> 00:15:27.980
<v SPEAKER_4>Bacon, egg and cheese on a biscuit.
00:15:27.980 --> 00:15:29.180
<v SPEAKER_4>Some people would say McGriddles.
00:15:29.180 --> 00:15:37.520
<v SPEAKER_4>I don't like the fake maple flavor, but bacon, egg and cheese on a McDonald's biscuit is like my, when I used to drink, it was my go-to hangover breakfast.
00:15:37.520 --> 00:15:41.560
<v SPEAKER_4>And it's still like, if I go to an early morning flight at an airport, like that's what I want.
00:15:41.560 --> 00:15:43.340
<v SPEAKER_4>I want a McDonald's bacon, egg and cheese.
00:15:43.340 --> 00:15:47.780
<v SPEAKER_3>So I wanted to know, is the Canadian bacon crisp or is it just like a slice of Canadian bacon?
00:15:47.900 --> 00:15:49.300
<v SPEAKER_4>No, it is not crisp.
00:15:49.300 --> 00:15:50.420
<v SPEAKER_4>It is not browned at all.
00:15:50.420 --> 00:15:52.820
<v SPEAKER_4>I mean, I don't think Canadian bacon ever gets crisp, right?
00:15:52.820 --> 00:15:54.640
<v SPEAKER_4>Because Canadian bacon is kind of like ham.
00:15:54.640 --> 00:15:57.580
<v SPEAKER_3>No, but you can brown it in a pan and pretend to give a texture.
00:15:57.580 --> 00:15:58.720
<v SPEAKER_4>The Canadian bacon is not crisp.
00:15:58.720 --> 00:16:02.240
<v SPEAKER_4>The Canadian bacon is like straight out of one of those little plastic steam trays.
00:16:02.580 --> 00:16:05.960
<v SPEAKER_3>Now, the English muffin isn't buttered at all before all the stuff goes on, is it?
00:16:05.960 --> 00:16:07.220
<v SPEAKER_4>It might be like fake buttered.
00:16:07.220 --> 00:16:07.740
<v SPEAKER_4>I don't know.
00:16:07.740 --> 00:16:08.660
<v SPEAKER_4>Honestly, I'm not sure.
00:16:08.660 --> 00:16:10.100
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm quizzing you like you're Mr.
00:16:10.100 --> 00:16:11.440
<v SPEAKER_3>Ronald McDonald.
00:16:11.440 --> 00:16:15.780
<v SPEAKER_4>The English muffin is also not like a Thomas's English muffin with nooks and crannies.
00:16:15.780 --> 00:16:22.380
<v SPEAKER_4>It's more like a Arnold or a friend's English muffin, which I think actually works better for breakfast sandwich.
00:16:22.680 --> 00:16:24.460
<v SPEAKER_4>It's got a smoother surface.
00:16:24.460 --> 00:16:27.880
<v SPEAKER_4>It's a little bit sturdier, like a real nook and cranny English muffin.
00:16:27.880 --> 00:16:29.680
<v SPEAKER_4>Sometimes it can just fall apart a little more easily.
00:16:30.360 --> 00:16:33.080
<v SPEAKER_4>Okay, let's get back to our ingredients one at a time.
00:16:33.080 --> 00:16:34.520
<v SPEAKER_3>Do you want to start with the bread?
00:16:34.520 --> 00:16:35.740
<v SPEAKER_3>We talked about Kaiser rolls.
00:16:35.740 --> 00:16:38.360
<v SPEAKER_3>We talked about, what was it called again?
00:16:38.360 --> 00:16:40.260
<v SPEAKER_3>The bulky roll, which I hadn't even heard of.
00:16:40.260 --> 00:16:42.040
<v SPEAKER_4>Bulky rolls, hard rolls, Kaiser rolls.
00:16:42.040 --> 00:16:43.140
<v SPEAKER_4>They're all pretty similar.
00:16:43.140 --> 00:16:43.620
<v SPEAKER_3>They are.
00:16:43.620 --> 00:16:44.100
<v SPEAKER_3>Yeah.
00:16:44.100 --> 00:16:48.820
<v SPEAKER_3>I mean, honestly, I think most bulky rolls I get from bodegas are pretty terrible.
00:16:48.820 --> 00:16:52.740
<v SPEAKER_3>That's why I started getting my nan Bry toast and everyone thinks I'm so weird.
00:16:52.740 --> 00:16:54.340
<v SPEAKER_3>But I like what I like.
00:16:54.340 --> 00:16:57.300
<v SPEAKER_3>I understand it's not New York standard, but I like what I like.
00:16:57.500 --> 00:17:00.560
<v SPEAKER_4>You wouldn't get a breakfast sandwich on a Kaiser roll outside of New York.
00:17:00.560 --> 00:17:03.320
<v SPEAKER_4>I can think of there's one place in Seattle, Volunteer Park Cafe.
00:17:03.320 --> 00:17:07.540
<v SPEAKER_4>They make their own real fancy hard rolls, Kaiser rolls with poppy seeds.
00:17:07.540 --> 00:17:10.620
<v SPEAKER_4>But I've never seen a Kaiser roll as a breakfast sandwich item.
00:17:10.620 --> 00:17:20.440
<v SPEAKER_4>Most places, it's generally going to be biscuit, English muffin or bagel, which at least when I was a kid in New York, bagel was not an option as a breakfast sandwich vehicle.
00:17:20.440 --> 00:17:29.060
<v SPEAKER_3>It can be a real boiled, thick, hearty bagel is very tough to eat an egg sandwich on.
00:17:29.060 --> 00:17:30.880
<v SPEAKER_3>My husband does it all the time, it doesn't bother him.
00:17:30.880 --> 00:17:46.300
<v SPEAKER_3>But I actually prefer the more Canadian Montreal style bagel that they have at Black Seed if I'm going to get a bacon, egg and cheese or breakfast sandwich because it's a little more, I'm going to get in trouble for saying this, but it's a little more bready and a little softer, and it works better for sandwiches.
00:17:46.300 --> 00:17:52.860
<v SPEAKER_4>When we were kids in New York, and you can tell me if your experience was different, but when we were kids in New York, bagel shops were bagel shops and they didn't have any kind of meat in them.
00:17:52.860 --> 00:17:56.400
<v SPEAKER_4>Like a deli and a bagel shop were two different things because of kosher laws, right?
00:17:56.400 --> 00:17:57.020
<v SPEAKER_3>Maybe.
00:17:57.020 --> 00:17:59.560
<v SPEAKER_4>You couldn't mix the fish or the cream cheese and the meat.
00:17:59.560 --> 00:18:07.820
<v SPEAKER_4>So a bagel shop would have fish and cream cheese and eggs, egg salad, but you would never find pastrami or bacon or anything like that at a bagel shop.
00:18:07.820 --> 00:18:12.160
<v SPEAKER_3>I worked for about five minutes in high school, maybe a weekend or two at a bagel shop.
00:18:12.160 --> 00:18:17.040
<v SPEAKER_3>I grew up in New Jersey, so this bagel shop was in the strip mall in my parents' town, but it was my weekend job.
00:18:17.620 --> 00:18:25.720
<v SPEAKER_3>And we did use to make egg sandwiches, but you're gonna be horrified, because I was thinking about this when you mentioned the ring egg from McDonald's.
00:18:25.720 --> 00:18:26.880
<v SPEAKER_3>This is how they would cook the egg.
00:18:26.880 --> 00:18:27.580
<v SPEAKER_3>Are you ready?
00:18:27.580 --> 00:18:29.240
<v SPEAKER_3>Like, don't get upset.
00:18:29.240 --> 00:18:30.720
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm just telling you how we did it.
00:18:30.720 --> 00:18:34.840
<v SPEAKER_3>They would take one of those little glass Pyrex dishes, you know, like every mom has those.
00:18:34.840 --> 00:18:35.700
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm a mom, I have them.
00:18:36.160 --> 00:18:41.660
<v SPEAKER_3>Yeah, so they would spray it with a little Pam, they would put the egg in, and you microwave it for like, I don't know, 20 or 30 seconds.
00:18:42.440 --> 00:18:44.660
<v SPEAKER_3>It bubbles up and gets very puffy.
00:18:44.660 --> 00:18:52.860
<v SPEAKER_3>And if you do it right, the egg can still be runny or you can scramble and it'll be, and I remember sometimes we would put in bacon bits or scallions or whatever people wanted.
00:18:52.860 --> 00:18:56.840
<v SPEAKER_3>And then it was kind of perfect because you would like unmold it right onto the bagel.
00:18:56.840 --> 00:18:58.580
<v SPEAKER_3>Anyway, I got fired after a couple weeks there.
00:18:58.580 --> 00:19:00.460
<v SPEAKER_3>I was really bad on the register.
00:19:01.640 --> 00:19:04.720
<v SPEAKER_3>And I went on to work at a bakery in my town and the rest is history.
00:19:04.720 --> 00:19:05.840
<v SPEAKER_4>I've seen it and I've done it that way.
00:19:05.840 --> 00:19:13.700
<v SPEAKER_4>The other way I've done eggs for breakfast sandwiches that I think works really well is, I put out a video recently, but about how to cook eggs with an espresso steam wand.
00:19:14.220 --> 00:19:14.540
<v SPEAKER_3>What?
00:19:14.600 --> 00:19:14.940
<v SPEAKER_4>Oh.
00:19:14.980 --> 00:19:16.320
<v SPEAKER_4>The steam wand on an espresso machine.
00:19:16.320 --> 00:19:18.940
<v SPEAKER_4>So you put eggs in a mug with a little bit of butter.
00:19:18.940 --> 00:19:23.800
<v SPEAKER_4>You just stick your espresso steam wand directly into the egg and you steam it for about 30 seconds.
00:19:23.800 --> 00:19:30.000
<v SPEAKER_4>It comes out with a real unique texture that you can't replicate in a pan because you can get them like anywhere from medium to hard cooked or whatever.
00:19:30.000 --> 00:19:35.300
<v SPEAKER_4>But even when they're hard cooked, you're adding moisture to them because of the steam, and then you're aerating them.
00:19:35.300 --> 00:19:41.380
<v SPEAKER_4>So they come up with this almost real fluffy, real moist texture that I think actually works really well in a breakfast sandwich.
00:19:41.380 --> 00:19:47.260
<v SPEAKER_4>And you can do that in a mug and then directly unmold it because the soufflés get in there because of all the steam and then it slowly deflates.
00:19:47.260 --> 00:19:51.560
<v SPEAKER_4>And once it deflates, it's like a really nice texture for a breakfast sandwich.
00:19:51.560 --> 00:20:14.680
<v SPEAKER_4>The other way I like to do my eggs when I want a round egg is I take the lid of a mason jar and depending on whether you want some kind of browning or not on your egg, so you can take the ring of the mason jar and just drop it into the bottom of a skillet, like a non-stick skillet, spray it with a little non-stick spray, put a little butter in there, then just break your egg into it and then it kind of contains the egg in that shape, which is almost like a wide-mouth mason jar is just the right size for an English muffin.
00:20:14.680 --> 00:20:32.020
<v SPEAKER_4>But if you want it more sort of McDonald's style, where it's just completely steamed, you can actually just take the entire mason jar with the lid and the ring, put it upside down in the skillet, brush it with bacon fat or spray with non-stick spray, and then put it in a skillet, add a little water to the skillet, break the egg into it, and then just cover it, and then the egg comes out in the side.
00:20:32.020 --> 00:20:36.920
<v SPEAKER_4>I've seen people also do it with tuna cans, whatever, and you just need a ring-shaped thing that you can steam the egg in.
00:20:36.920 --> 00:20:39.220
<v SPEAKER_4>When I find wide-mouth mason jar, lids work real well for that.
00:20:39.340 --> 00:20:47.140
<v SPEAKER_3>Now, I know this isn't specifically an episode about different egg cooking techniques, but my dad would always, when he would fry an egg, he would put a lid on it.
00:20:47.140 --> 00:20:54.080
<v SPEAKER_3>I loved the way it would get that kind of, somehow the white would go over the yolk more, you'd get that over medium effect about it.
00:20:54.960 --> 00:20:58.300
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't know, does that happen when you do the jar thing too?
00:20:58.380 --> 00:20:59.140
<v SPEAKER_4>It does, yeah.
00:20:59.520 --> 00:21:07.820
<v SPEAKER_4>It's just because I think the white that's over the yolk is setting, as opposed to if you do a sunny side up egg, that white remains uncooked.
00:21:07.820 --> 00:21:10.140
<v SPEAKER_4>You're over medium egg process, what do you do?
00:21:10.140 --> 00:21:13.160
<v SPEAKER_3>My over medium egg process is I tend to cook.
00:21:13.160 --> 00:21:17.680
<v SPEAKER_3>I sometimes like a crispy hard fried egg and I'm doing it at high heat and it's really splattery.
00:21:17.680 --> 00:21:23.620
<v SPEAKER_3>But honestly, for an egg sandwich, I don't want those tough, crispy white parts because they're hard to bite into.
00:21:23.740 --> 00:21:28.380
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm probably going to use either just a lower heat or a non-stick pan.
00:21:28.380 --> 00:21:34.920
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm going to use a pat of butter and I'm going to flip it when it just starts to set underneath before it picks up a lot of color.
00:21:34.940 --> 00:21:37.420
<v SPEAKER_4>Do you add any water at all or anything like that?
00:21:37.420 --> 00:21:37.680
<v SPEAKER_3>No.
00:21:37.680 --> 00:21:43.020
<v SPEAKER_3>I sometimes add a teaspoon of water or milk to a scrambled egg, but I don't do it for a fried egg.
00:21:43.020 --> 00:21:43.700
<v SPEAKER_4>Got it.
00:21:43.700 --> 00:21:46.960
<v SPEAKER_3>I have to season both sides of the egg.
00:21:46.960 --> 00:21:52.280
<v SPEAKER_3>The second the egg is cut open and the yolk spills out, that has to be season two.
00:21:52.280 --> 00:21:53.380
<v SPEAKER_3>My kids know I have this thing.
00:21:53.380 --> 00:21:56.480
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm like, we don't eat unseasoned yolks in this family.
00:21:57.600 --> 00:21:58.440
<v SPEAKER_3>I can't even look at it.
00:21:58.580 --> 00:22:01.480
<v SPEAKER_3>There's like that yellow spilling out and nobody's put salt and pepper on it.
00:22:01.480 --> 00:22:03.760
<v SPEAKER_3>Like it needs to have seasoning.
00:22:04.000 --> 00:22:06.300
<v SPEAKER_3>It upsets me, I mean.
00:22:06.300 --> 00:22:08.560
<v SPEAKER_3>But you already know that I have weird issues.
00:22:08.560 --> 00:22:25.520
<v SPEAKER_3>However, I don't like getting a bacon, egg and cheese at a bodega or deli that is over medium because it's too unreliable that it might be completely set by the time I eat it five minutes later or sometimes they cook it a little too long.
00:22:25.980 --> 00:22:30.680
<v SPEAKER_3>I usually will just get this scrambled instead and hope that they don't over scramble it.
00:22:30.680 --> 00:22:34.080
<v SPEAKER_3>Sometimes I'm watching the griddle, I'm like, it's cooked, you can take it off now.
00:22:34.080 --> 00:22:34.960
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't say it.
00:22:34.960 --> 00:22:36.160
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm just thinking it in my head.
00:22:36.160 --> 00:22:38.940
<v SPEAKER_3>I would never tell anybody how to cook on a griddle.
00:22:38.940 --> 00:22:42.880
<v SPEAKER_3>But you can see that it's like, it's done, take it off.
00:22:42.880 --> 00:22:52.860
<v SPEAKER_3>So I tend to get it scrambled if I'm picking it up because I don't like it when it's set completely and then you just have this two-texture, both dry thing on your egg sandwich.
00:22:52.860 --> 00:23:07.720
<v SPEAKER_4>So Deb, when you're making an over-medium egg or a fried egg of any kind, over-easy, over-medium, sunny side up, whatever it is, especially if it's destined for a breakfast sandwich, how do you go about containing the shape of it, like shaping it?
00:23:07.720 --> 00:23:09.960
<v SPEAKER_4>Do you poke around with a spatula?
00:23:09.960 --> 00:23:11.200
<v SPEAKER_4>Do you tilt the pan?
00:23:11.200 --> 00:23:20.540
<v SPEAKER_3>So actually what I do a lot is as I'm pouring the egg out of the shell, I'm doing it slowly and kind of trying to hold it in place a little bit.
00:23:20.540 --> 00:23:23.400
<v SPEAKER_3>Like if I feel it pulling to one side, it's not perfect.
00:23:23.400 --> 00:23:24.340
<v SPEAKER_4>Oh, okay.
00:23:24.360 --> 00:23:28.720
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm sure the hand-wishings I'm doing are very helpful on a podcast to explain this.
00:23:28.720 --> 00:23:32.020
<v SPEAKER_3>But just imagine pouring it slowly and you're like, oh, it's spilling this way.
00:23:32.020 --> 00:23:33.380
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm going to push it a little bit that way.
00:23:33.380 --> 00:23:39.580
<v SPEAKER_3>I even might use the edge of the shell to kind of push the yolk to the center a little bit as much as I can.
00:23:39.580 --> 00:23:44.480
<v SPEAKER_4>Do you try and match it to the shape of your English muffin or whatever it is, or your roll, or do you?
00:23:45.280 --> 00:23:45.840
<v SPEAKER_3>I do.
00:23:45.840 --> 00:23:56.320
<v SPEAKER_3>However, it's easier if you use my bodega egg and cheese on the site, where that's, as I said, it starts with a scramble and you can even do it as a one egg.
00:23:56.320 --> 00:24:04.500
<v SPEAKER_3>That one, I use a very flat, almost like a crepe pan, and you start with a round, and then you put your square of cheese in the middle, and then you fold the sides over.
00:24:04.500 --> 00:24:09.100
<v SPEAKER_3>You have a perfect little packet that fits beautifully.
00:24:09.100 --> 00:24:12.420
<v SPEAKER_3>I mean, you do have corners, but it's really perfect even on a round English muffin.
00:24:13.740 --> 00:24:19.560
<v SPEAKER_3>Are you Team American Cheese, or are you putting like Gouda or like Pepper Jack on yours?
00:24:19.560 --> 00:24:21.480
<v SPEAKER_3>Are you getting fancy?
00:24:21.480 --> 00:24:23.420
<v SPEAKER_4>So generally, I am Team American Cheese.
00:24:23.420 --> 00:24:34.820
<v SPEAKER_4>However, I also don't mind having, like, you know, I've had fancy breakfast sandwiches, or I've made breakfast sandwiches at home that have like a good aged cheddar or something on them like that, and I really don't mind that in a breakfast sandwich context.
00:24:34.820 --> 00:24:50.700
<v SPEAKER_4>I find American Cheese is real necessary for certain types of burgers, where it's like you need that gooey-ness to hold everything together, like a real smashed burger or a burger that's like real, real loose, and you need the cheese to bind it together and add back some fat to it.
00:24:50.700 --> 00:24:56.180
<v SPEAKER_4>But in a breakfast sandwich setting, I think American Cheese is good, but also not completely necessary.
00:24:56.180 --> 00:25:02.140
<v SPEAKER_4>And I've had some real good breakfast sandwiches that were made with like a, yeah, a pepper jack or a cheddar or something like that.
00:25:02.140 --> 00:25:22.780
<v SPEAKER_4>I have a friend who makes a breakfast sandwich with cheddar and honey, and I've had breakfast sandwiches that were, you know, especially if there's like a nice homemade sausage, like if you're at a, like a restaurant, like a breakfast place that does like a good homemade sausage, and maybe you're getting some mayo on there also to add to that, you know, to add some fat, then I don't think you necessarily need the American Cheese.
00:25:22.780 --> 00:25:29.220
<v SPEAKER_4>But I'd say, yeah, in a very basic breakfast sandwich, I think American Cheese is the choice, especially if you're not going to add any kind of sauce to it at all.
00:25:29.220 --> 00:25:32.240
<v SPEAKER_4>You know, because American Cheese is like a cheese that kind of makes its own sauce.
00:25:32.240 --> 00:25:39.000
<v SPEAKER_3>Well, the thing with American Cheese is I think it's more forgiving as the egg sandwich cools down and other cheeses are not.
00:25:39.000 --> 00:25:41.900
<v SPEAKER_4>Wait, so Deb, should we talk about what American Cheese actually is?
00:25:41.900 --> 00:25:43.220
<v SPEAKER_3>We should definitely talk about it.
00:25:43.220 --> 00:25:47.700
<v SPEAKER_3>And by us, I mean you, because I think you're very knowledgeable about these things.
00:25:47.700 --> 00:25:50.480
<v SPEAKER_4>Okay, well, we'll talk about cheese next on The Recipe.
00:26:03.375 --> 00:26:11.655
<v SPEAKER_3>Welcome back to The Recipe with Kenji and Deb, and we are going to talk about cheese and the very best kind for your bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich.
00:26:11.655 --> 00:26:13.155
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm Team American Cheese.
00:26:13.155 --> 00:26:15.635
<v SPEAKER_3>I think it's reliable.
00:26:15.635 --> 00:26:16.715
<v SPEAKER_3>I think it melts well.
00:26:16.715 --> 00:26:18.075
<v SPEAKER_4>It's reliable, it's predictable.
00:26:18.075 --> 00:26:20.955
<v SPEAKER_3>It's forgiving if your sandwich cools down.
00:26:20.955 --> 00:26:25.775
<v SPEAKER_3>It doesn't get that weird, waxy, post-melted texture.
00:26:25.775 --> 00:26:30.035
<v SPEAKER_3>Yeah, I mean, it's a very natural thing that happens with American cheese, right?
00:26:30.035 --> 00:26:31.615
<v SPEAKER_3>It's of the earth.
00:26:34.455 --> 00:26:35.895
<v SPEAKER_4>American cheese is natural.
00:26:35.895 --> 00:26:43.595
<v SPEAKER_4>I mean, people will talk about how American cheese is processed, but all cheeses are processed, right?
00:26:43.595 --> 00:26:46.395
<v SPEAKER_4>There's no cheese that just naturally occurs in nature.
00:26:46.395 --> 00:26:51.635
<v SPEAKER_4>All cheese starts as milk that we've done a whole bunch of things to turn it into whatever cheese it is.
00:26:51.635 --> 00:26:54.695
<v SPEAKER_4>American cheese, it starts out as regular cheese, right?
00:26:54.695 --> 00:26:57.275
<v SPEAKER_4>The original American cheese was made with cheddar and Colby.
00:26:57.755 --> 00:27:02.595
<v SPEAKER_4>These days, it's made with a specific cheese that's made just for American, but it's very similar to a cheddar cheese.
00:27:02.595 --> 00:27:10.035
<v SPEAKER_4>Then all you do is you take the cheese, you add extra milk protein, some extra fat, some extra liquid, and then an emulsifying salt.
00:27:10.655 --> 00:27:17.915
<v SPEAKER_4>The job of the emulsifying salt is to make sure that as the cheese melts, or as the cheese heats up, the proteins in it which form this kind of matrix.
00:27:18.855 --> 00:27:23.415
<v SPEAKER_4>In any cheese, there's a protein matrix that's holding in your fat and your water.
00:27:23.415 --> 00:27:27.555
<v SPEAKER_4>As those proteins tighten up, with most cheeses, they squeeze out.
00:27:27.555 --> 00:27:35.155
<v SPEAKER_4>And so that's why if you leave a hunk of cheddar cheese out in the sun and it warms up, it starts to sweat, it starts to get little fat beads on it.
00:27:35.155 --> 00:27:41.195
<v SPEAKER_4>Or if you heat it up in a bacon, egg and cheese, it'll sweat out the fat and then once it cools down, that fat is no longer in there.
00:27:41.195 --> 00:27:44.955
<v SPEAKER_4>And so your cheese ends up with a kind of tighter, waxier texture.
00:27:44.955 --> 00:27:50.635
<v SPEAKER_4>Whereas American cheese, it's like you can melt it and cool it again and it'll be exactly the same as when you started it.
00:27:50.755 --> 00:27:53.055
<v SPEAKER_4>Maybe a little bit less moisture because of those emulsifying salts.
00:27:53.795 --> 00:27:58.475
<v SPEAKER_4>That's the whole point of American cheese, I guess, in a melting context at least.
00:27:58.475 --> 00:28:01.855
<v SPEAKER_4>I take it that you didn't have American cheese in your household growing up, Deb?
00:28:01.855 --> 00:28:02.955
<v SPEAKER_3>No, we absolutely did.
00:28:02.955 --> 00:28:04.415
<v SPEAKER_3>We used it for grilled cheese.
00:28:04.415 --> 00:28:05.035
<v SPEAKER_3>That was it.
00:28:05.035 --> 00:28:07.035
<v SPEAKER_3>Yeah, we used it for grilled cheese.
00:28:07.035 --> 00:28:08.315
<v SPEAKER_3>Not that often.
00:28:08.315 --> 00:28:11.355
<v SPEAKER_3>I didn't have it when I met my husband.
00:28:11.355 --> 00:28:13.935
<v SPEAKER_3>And whenever I'd make an egg sandwich, he's like, can you get American cheese?
00:28:13.935 --> 00:28:16.795
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm like, no.
00:28:16.795 --> 00:28:17.675
<v SPEAKER_3>I was horrified.
00:28:17.675 --> 00:28:21.435
<v SPEAKER_3>And then I've absolutely come around that it's just better at the job.
00:28:21.595 --> 00:28:23.515
<v SPEAKER_4>How long did it take you to come around?
00:28:23.515 --> 00:28:25.775
<v SPEAKER_3>Probably not very long because he's very convincing.
00:28:25.775 --> 00:28:28.815
<v SPEAKER_3>And I don't tell him I said this, but he's right a lot.
00:28:31.515 --> 00:28:33.295
<v SPEAKER_3>So he's right a lot.
00:28:33.295 --> 00:28:34.695
<v SPEAKER_3>So he was right about this.
00:28:34.695 --> 00:28:44.135
<v SPEAKER_3>But it makes, I think he just, he doesn't want to faff around with oil wicking out now tight, solid cheese and he's not wrong.
00:28:44.135 --> 00:28:48.475
<v SPEAKER_3>Like if you don't want to be disappointed, it's more, it's going to be more reliable.
00:28:48.475 --> 00:29:00.155
<v SPEAKER_4>One option, and we've talked about this in our, we talked about this in our grilled cheese episode, one option you can do is if you do a combination, like a slice of American cheese plus a slice of a much more flavorful cheese.
00:29:00.155 --> 00:29:05.815
<v SPEAKER_4>Right, because the emulsifying salts in the American cheese, like there's enough of it in there that it actually helps other cheeses nearby.
00:29:06.195 --> 00:29:07.875
<v SPEAKER_4>It lends its strength to other cheeses.
00:29:07.875 --> 00:29:11.275
<v SPEAKER_4>It just holds, it holds the cheese's hand and helps it melt a little bit better.
00:29:12.475 --> 00:29:25.335
<v SPEAKER_3>I actually, that's right, I remember now I did that with my grilled cheese sandwiches a lot where that was like the nice halfway where we could have a nice, I would do some grated sharp cheddar and then one slice of American cheese and I kind of break them up together and it was a really nice middle of the road.
00:29:25.335 --> 00:29:28.875
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, I mean American cheese is the glue that binds our sandwiches together.
00:29:28.875 --> 00:29:31.055
<v SPEAKER_3>I feel like so many people hate it so much.
00:29:31.055 --> 00:29:38.375
<v SPEAKER_3>In fact, I remember when I first did my style bodega egg and cheese and I explained that I was using American cheese in the center but you could use whatever you wanted.
00:29:38.375 --> 00:29:40.755
<v SPEAKER_3>There was a lot of pearl clutching in the comments.
00:29:40.755 --> 00:29:51.035
<v SPEAKER_3>There was a lot of horrors where people expected better from me but I have aimed everyone's standards since then and now it's less surprising.
00:29:51.035 --> 00:29:53.615
<v SPEAKER_4>It's totally fine if you want a different cheese on your sandwich.
00:29:53.615 --> 00:29:55.475
<v SPEAKER_4>You put whatever cheese you want.
00:29:55.475 --> 00:30:02.735
<v SPEAKER_3>We've talked about the bread, we've talked about the egg, we've talked about the cheese, but we have not talked about the bacon.
00:30:02.735 --> 00:30:04.215
<v SPEAKER_4>The meats, yeah.
00:30:04.215 --> 00:30:05.255
<v SPEAKER_4>The meat of the matter.
00:30:05.255 --> 00:30:07.275
<v SPEAKER_5>I have thoughts on this.
00:30:07.275 --> 00:30:10.715
<v SPEAKER_3>Where for a long time I thought I preferred thick cut bacon.
00:30:10.715 --> 00:30:17.155
<v SPEAKER_3>I love the idea of thick cut bacon, but it's so often not cooked perfectly.
00:30:17.235 --> 00:30:20.155
<v SPEAKER_3>It's a little trickier to get it right.
00:30:20.155 --> 00:30:28.455
<v SPEAKER_3>And when it's wrong and it's too tough and hard, you try to bite into the bacon, but your teeth can't break it and you rip out the whole piece.
00:30:28.455 --> 00:30:32.235
<v SPEAKER_4>I hate biting into a bacon and cheese sandwich and having the bacon just pull out.
00:30:32.315 --> 00:30:33.175
<v SPEAKER_3>Yes.
00:30:33.175 --> 00:30:35.735
<v SPEAKER_3>And I don't know, like, are my teeth not even enough?
00:30:35.735 --> 00:30:38.315
<v SPEAKER_3>Do I need, like, biting gloves?
00:30:38.315 --> 00:30:41.895
<v SPEAKER_4>The bodegas, they use real thin bacon and they get it real crispy on a flat top.
00:30:41.895 --> 00:30:45.035
<v SPEAKER_3>I love that bacon that gets kind of curly.
00:30:45.035 --> 00:30:54.275
<v SPEAKER_4>When you say you like the bacon that gets kind of curly, do you mean, do you like it when bacon has bits that are crispy, but bits that are also kind of chewy and still a little bit, like, fatty?
00:30:54.275 --> 00:30:56.875
<v SPEAKER_3>I like a little mix, mostly crisp.
00:30:57.315 --> 00:30:57.995
<v SPEAKER_4>Okay.
00:30:57.995 --> 00:30:58.795
<v SPEAKER_3>I think so.
00:30:58.795 --> 00:31:04.515
<v SPEAKER_3>I have a friend who works and he does a lot of, you know, like, hope run, like, the kitchen at, like, a large facility.
00:31:04.515 --> 00:31:09.115
<v SPEAKER_3>And this one place where he was working, the bacon was always very curly and wonderful.
00:31:09.115 --> 00:31:11.555
<v SPEAKER_3>Like, it was so fun to, like, put on a sandwich.
00:31:11.555 --> 00:31:12.475
<v SPEAKER_3>Was it deep-fried?
00:31:12.535 --> 00:31:14.255
<v SPEAKER_5>Yeah.
00:31:14.255 --> 00:31:15.795
<v SPEAKER_3>It's just thin and they just deep-fry.
00:31:15.795 --> 00:31:20.495
<v SPEAKER_3>And honestly, I'm not even sure that it, I don't think that bacon could actually absorb more fat in a fryer.
00:31:20.495 --> 00:31:20.995
<v SPEAKER_4>I suspect it's.
00:31:20.995 --> 00:31:21.815
<v SPEAKER_4>Oh, no.
00:31:21.815 --> 00:31:26.935
<v SPEAKER_4>If anything, it would become less fatty because you're rendering out, you're heating it up more and you're rendering out more.
00:31:26.935 --> 00:31:27.995
<v SPEAKER_3>That's my theory.
00:31:27.995 --> 00:31:30.395
<v SPEAKER_3>So deep-fryer bacon, Kenji and Deb approved.
00:31:30.395 --> 00:31:31.915
<v SPEAKER_3>But I have to say it was wonderful.
00:31:31.915 --> 00:31:40.735
<v SPEAKER_3>If you do it real quick, you get this curly, mostly crispy, like 75% crisp, little pockets that are a little softer and it kind of scrunches up.
00:31:40.835 --> 00:31:43.055
<v SPEAKER_3>And it's so wonderful on the sandwich.
00:31:43.055 --> 00:31:46.015
<v SPEAKER_4>Making a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich at home, it's a commitment, right?
00:31:46.015 --> 00:31:48.675
<v SPEAKER_4>Because the whole point of a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich, I think, is that it's convenient.
00:31:48.675 --> 00:31:50.155
<v SPEAKER_4>You can get it at a fast food restaurant.
00:31:50.155 --> 00:31:51.095
<v SPEAKER_4>You can get it at a bodega.
00:31:51.095 --> 00:31:52.675
<v SPEAKER_4>You can get it at a bagel shop, wherever.
00:31:52.675 --> 00:31:55.255
<v SPEAKER_4>And it'll be done fast and easy and it'll be cheap.
00:31:55.255 --> 00:32:00.855
<v SPEAKER_4>And doing it at home, if you're doing it with maybe sausage or you're doing it with Canadian bacon, it's a little faster.
00:32:00.855 --> 00:32:02.795
<v SPEAKER_4>If you do it with no meat, it's a little bit faster.
00:32:02.795 --> 00:32:03.815
<v SPEAKER_4>But it's a process, right?
00:32:03.815 --> 00:32:06.495
<v SPEAKER_4>You got to toast your English muffin or toast your bread or whatever.
00:32:06.495 --> 00:32:09.055
<v SPEAKER_4>And you got to do the timing on that English muffin, right?
00:32:09.055 --> 00:32:10.175
<v SPEAKER_4>Because muffin lasts forever.
00:32:10.615 --> 00:32:12.215
<v SPEAKER_4>And you got to cook your bacon.
00:32:12.215 --> 00:32:14.795
<v SPEAKER_4>And cooking bacon takes a long time if you're going to do it right.
00:32:14.795 --> 00:32:19.575
<v SPEAKER_4>It's like at least a 20-minute process where you're doing multiple cooking tasks, right?
00:32:19.575 --> 00:32:19.855
<v SPEAKER_4>Exactly.
00:32:19.855 --> 00:32:20.975
<v SPEAKER_4>Before you put it all together.
00:32:20.975 --> 00:32:23.975
<v SPEAKER_4>And it's just to get something that you can get for $1.99 at McDonald's.
00:32:23.975 --> 00:32:28.975
<v SPEAKER_4>It'll be better than McDonald's, but it'll be more expensive and more time-consuming when you do it at home, right?
00:32:28.975 --> 00:32:30.075
<v SPEAKER_4>It's a choice you have to make.
00:32:30.075 --> 00:32:32.935
<v SPEAKER_3>I've done it for like the four of us for a weekend breakfast.
00:32:32.935 --> 00:32:33.995
<v SPEAKER_3>Actually, we've done it once in a while.
00:32:33.995 --> 00:32:35.175
<v SPEAKER_3>It was like a breakfast for dinner.
00:32:35.175 --> 00:32:38.315
<v SPEAKER_4>When you're making a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches for four people, how do you cook your bacon?
00:32:38.835 --> 00:32:40.135
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm probably going to do it in the oven.
00:32:40.135 --> 00:32:45.295
<v SPEAKER_3>It's not my favorite, but I feel like if I put it on a rack and it drips down, I can still get a little of the curliness.
00:32:45.295 --> 00:32:47.175
<v SPEAKER_3>It scrunches up nicely.
00:32:47.175 --> 00:32:49.495
<v SPEAKER_3>I might put that in the oven so it can stay warm.
00:32:49.495 --> 00:32:53.535
<v SPEAKER_3>Then I'm going to toast all the English muffins in a toaster, and then I'll do the eggs on the stove.
00:32:53.535 --> 00:32:55.855
<v SPEAKER_3>I have no discomfort frying four eggs at once.
00:32:55.855 --> 00:32:56.395
<v SPEAKER_3>That's fine.
00:32:56.395 --> 00:32:56.775
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah.
00:32:56.775 --> 00:32:58.655
<v SPEAKER_4>It's the bacon element that's always the trickiest.
00:32:58.655 --> 00:33:05.055
<v SPEAKER_4>I tend to do it in a pan, but I'm usually not cooking for more than a couple of people or maybe two or three sandwiches and we're sharing them.
00:33:05.055 --> 00:33:08.035
<v SPEAKER_4>But yeah, I'll do my bacon in a pan and I like to put a weight on it.
00:33:08.395 --> 00:33:13.395
<v SPEAKER_4>I use a chef's press, those presses that have ventilation.
00:33:13.395 --> 00:33:13.935
<v SPEAKER_4>Oh, they're great.
00:33:13.935 --> 00:33:14.555
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, you should get them.
00:33:14.555 --> 00:33:16.975
<v SPEAKER_4>But I use those because they keep it flat.
00:33:16.975 --> 00:33:21.655
<v SPEAKER_4>It's like my mom, when we were growing up, she would cook her bacon in a real hot non-stick pan.
00:33:21.655 --> 00:33:29.855
<v SPEAKER_4>When you cook bacon real hot, it curls up a lot because it's like a bimetal strip where the fat shrinks faster than the meat does, and so that's why bacon curls.
00:33:29.855 --> 00:33:34.135
<v SPEAKER_4>So it would curl up in a pan and so you'd only get like partial contact with the pan.
00:33:34.135 --> 00:33:41.455
<v SPEAKER_4>The bacon my mom made growing up was real crispy in some spots, but then real chewy and like completely unrendered fat in other spots.
00:33:41.455 --> 00:33:43.935
<v SPEAKER_4>And I kind of like that, but not in a sandwich.
00:33:43.935 --> 00:33:47.155
<v SPEAKER_4>I want it to be completely crispy and I want it to be thin.
00:33:47.155 --> 00:33:54.435
<v SPEAKER_4>In a pan, I will press it down, like with it using a press, or if I'm going to do it in the oven, I will put it between two sheets of parchment paper.
00:33:54.435 --> 00:34:00.675
<v SPEAKER_4>You know, put a sheet tray, sheet of parchment paper, lay the bacon on it, second sheet of parchment paper, and then a second sheet tray on top.
00:34:00.675 --> 00:34:01.915
<v SPEAKER_3>Wait, I did that method of yours.
00:34:01.915 --> 00:34:05.435
<v SPEAKER_3>I think I made your BLT maybe this summer episode where we did that.
00:34:05.435 --> 00:34:06.435
<v SPEAKER_3>And I did your method of that.
00:34:06.435 --> 00:34:06.995
<v SPEAKER_3>It was really cool.
00:34:07.275 --> 00:34:12.555
<v SPEAKER_3>It's interesting, I don't know that I'm looking, I don't know that for an egg sandwich, I need the bacon to be flat.
00:34:12.555 --> 00:34:15.255
<v SPEAKER_3>I like it a little ruffly and bumpy.
00:34:15.255 --> 00:34:17.955
<v SPEAKER_3>You know, the egg is usually on the flat side.
00:34:17.955 --> 00:34:27.835
<v SPEAKER_3>The cheese, there's not like, so you can make the sandwich a little thicker and more dramatic with the bacon without it feeling like, I don't know, like one of those giant burgers that you have to like unhinge or draw like a snake to eat.
00:34:27.835 --> 00:34:30.155
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, I guess it is more dramatic.
00:34:30.155 --> 00:34:32.215
<v SPEAKER_4>I like my English muffin also flat.
00:34:32.215 --> 00:34:38.395
<v SPEAKER_4>Like I cut it, if I'm gonna make a sandwich, so normally if I'm just gonna toast an English muffin, I would split it with a fork so you get more texture.
00:34:38.395 --> 00:34:40.435
<v SPEAKER_3>You're supposed to, those are the directions.
00:34:40.435 --> 00:34:53.895
<v SPEAKER_4>Yes, but if I'm making it for a sandwich, I'll split it with a knife because I like to fry it in the pan, in the bacon fat or butter or whatever, and I want good contact between the cut surface of the bread and the pan.
00:34:53.895 --> 00:35:00.775
<v SPEAKER_4>Also because I wrap my sandwiches at the end, having roughly bacon just smushes it down and it messes up the egg.
00:35:01.195 --> 00:35:08.755
<v SPEAKER_4>I like everything to be flat and stacked and layered so that I can wrap it up tightly and let it steam together, and it gives the sandwich the cosmic oneness.
00:35:11.135 --> 00:35:15.575
<v SPEAKER_4>Okay, so Deb, would you add anything to a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich?
00:35:15.575 --> 00:35:19.275
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't mind at all a thin slice of good tomato.
00:35:19.275 --> 00:35:22.035
<v SPEAKER_3>If the tomato is in season, it's a nice beefsteak tomato.
00:35:22.035 --> 00:35:24.835
<v SPEAKER_3>I actually love tomatoes on almost every sandwich.
00:35:24.835 --> 00:35:26.215
<v SPEAKER_3>I need to be sliced thinly.
00:35:26.215 --> 00:35:30.175
<v SPEAKER_3>It can't take over, but I like that juiciness.
00:35:30.215 --> 00:35:31.175
<v SPEAKER_3>So I like it on eggs.
00:35:31.175 --> 00:35:33.255
<v SPEAKER_3>I actually like it on a grilled cheese too.
00:35:33.255 --> 00:35:42.075
<v SPEAKER_3>I did have a bacon, egg, and cheese this morning that turned out to have a little bit of mayo on it, and it was like a caramelized onion mayo, and I didn't notice it at first.
00:35:42.075 --> 00:35:43.355
<v SPEAKER_3>I liked it though.
00:35:43.355 --> 00:35:43.995
<v SPEAKER_4>I like mayo.
00:35:43.995 --> 00:35:47.055
<v SPEAKER_4>I like a good flavored mayo, like a chipotle mayo on a bacon, egg, and cheese.
00:35:47.055 --> 00:35:48.235
<v SPEAKER_4>I like that.
00:35:48.235 --> 00:35:49.375
<v SPEAKER_4>I like regular mayo.
00:35:49.375 --> 00:35:59.175
<v SPEAKER_4>There was a food truck outside the Home Depot in San Mateo, when I lived there that I used to go to, and it was a taco truck, so they always had a little condiment rack with pickled jalapenos.
00:35:59.915 --> 00:36:01.135
<v SPEAKER_4>Pickled jalapenos.
00:36:01.135 --> 00:36:02.835
<v SPEAKER_4>They called their sandwich the Breakfast Buddy.
00:36:02.935 --> 00:36:07.775
<v SPEAKER_4>It had mayo, and I would put pickled jalapenos on it, and that was real killer.
00:36:07.775 --> 00:36:11.135
<v SPEAKER_4>There's a place in Seattle called the Seattle Biscuit Company.
00:36:11.135 --> 00:36:23.075
<v SPEAKER_4>They make excellent biscuits, but their signature sandwich is a breakfast sandwich with a fried egg, cheddar cheese, thick-cut bacon, and blueberry jelly, like blueberry preserves, and it's real good.
00:36:23.075 --> 00:36:23.675
<v SPEAKER_3>Yeah.
00:36:23.675 --> 00:36:26.795
<v SPEAKER_3>There's a place that does a tomato jam on theirs.
00:36:26.795 --> 00:36:27.515
<v SPEAKER_4>Tomato jam is good, yeah.
00:36:27.675 --> 00:36:29.255
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't need that sweet element, though.
00:36:29.255 --> 00:36:29.835
<v SPEAKER_4>You don't need it.
00:36:29.835 --> 00:36:30.075
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah.
00:36:30.175 --> 00:36:34.015
<v SPEAKER_4>I would find it weird if I went to a New York bodega and they put some smuckers on there.
00:36:34.015 --> 00:36:35.795
<v SPEAKER_2>That would be strange.
00:36:35.795 --> 00:36:40.075
<v SPEAKER_3>The grape that's been passed around through every person because nobody ever uses it.
00:36:40.075 --> 00:36:42.115
<v SPEAKER_3>The welch, you know what I'm talking about?
00:36:42.115 --> 00:36:43.675
<v SPEAKER_3>It's been there forever.
00:36:43.675 --> 00:36:44.655
<v SPEAKER_3>It doesn't go bad.
00:36:44.655 --> 00:36:46.095
<v SPEAKER_3>It doesn't go away.
00:36:46.095 --> 00:36:49.855
<v SPEAKER_3>I feel like avocado is a pretty common addition on egg sandwiches these days.
00:36:49.855 --> 00:36:50.755
<v SPEAKER_3>It's not my favorite.
00:36:50.755 --> 00:36:54.275
<v SPEAKER_3>I love avocado on a sandwich, but for me, it's avocado or egg on the sandwich.
00:36:54.355 --> 00:36:55.715
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't need both.
00:36:55.715 --> 00:36:58.815
<v SPEAKER_3>I actually love an avocado LT.
00:36:58.815 --> 00:37:01.855
<v SPEAKER_4>To me, avocado is like nature's mayonnaise.
00:37:01.855 --> 00:37:05.395
<v SPEAKER_4>It adds a texture element and that can complement everything else without overpowering it.
00:37:05.495 --> 00:37:06.595
<v SPEAKER_4>I don't mind avocado on there.
00:37:06.595 --> 00:37:07.675
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't need it with eggs though.
00:37:07.675 --> 00:37:10.255
<v SPEAKER_3>I feel like it's too rich.
00:37:10.255 --> 00:37:11.855
<v SPEAKER_4>What about fried shallots?
00:37:11.855 --> 00:37:13.355
<v SPEAKER_4>Fried shallots mixed into mayo.
00:37:13.435 --> 00:37:15.115
<v SPEAKER_3>Smash.
00:37:15.115 --> 00:37:15.815
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah.
00:37:15.815 --> 00:37:24.895
<v SPEAKER_4>I actually did an Instagram poll once asking people what they put on their bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches, and I got a bunch of weird responses, and I have it all in a spreadsheet that I should have pulled up before this episode.
00:37:24.895 --> 00:37:27.295
<v SPEAKER_3>Sometimes I ask people and sometimes I wish I hadn't asked.
00:37:27.295 --> 00:37:30.155
<v SPEAKER_3>Sometimes I get really good ideas though.
00:37:30.155 --> 00:37:31.515
<v SPEAKER_3>We haven't mentioned ketchup.
00:37:31.515 --> 00:37:33.975
<v SPEAKER_3>I feel like ketchup must be a thing.
00:37:33.975 --> 00:37:35.975
<v SPEAKER_3>People are really of two minds about ketchup.
00:37:35.975 --> 00:37:39.595
<v SPEAKER_3>I think food writers tend to be pretty snobby about it.
00:37:39.595 --> 00:37:43.415
<v SPEAKER_3>I know people who are just horrified by everything, but I'm not horrified by it.
00:37:43.415 --> 00:37:45.735
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't care for it on my eggs.
00:37:45.735 --> 00:37:55.655
<v SPEAKER_3>But if I'm at a diner and I have a big omelet or plate of scrambled eggs, and there's potatoes, and then there's ketchup, and then the ketchup touches the eggs, I'm not like, oh my god, get it away from them.
00:37:55.655 --> 00:37:59.595
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm not trying to make them touch it, but if it happens, I've accepted it.
00:38:03.635 --> 00:38:07.135
<v SPEAKER_3>All right, Kenji, can you waffle a bacon, egg and cheese?
00:38:07.135 --> 00:38:08.375
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, for sure.
00:38:08.375 --> 00:38:10.315
<v SPEAKER_3>Yeah, I think it would be kind of good.
00:38:10.315 --> 00:38:14.255
<v SPEAKER_4>Any sandwich can be shoved into the waffle iron and come out to reheat.
00:38:14.255 --> 00:38:16.395
<v SPEAKER_3>Wait, have you waffled bacon before?
00:38:16.395 --> 00:38:17.315
<v SPEAKER_4>Yes, we did that.
00:38:17.315 --> 00:38:18.435
<v SPEAKER_4>That was a thing we did at Serious Eats.
00:38:18.735 --> 00:38:19.915
<v SPEAKER_4>We waffled a bacon weave.
00:38:20.595 --> 00:38:21.055
<v SPEAKER_3>Oh, my God.
00:38:21.055 --> 00:38:23.695
<v SPEAKER_3>But I actually think it would be nice for Canadian bacon, maybe?
00:38:23.695 --> 00:38:23.895
<v SPEAKER_3>No.
00:38:23.895 --> 00:38:24.915
<v SPEAKER_4>Works for Canadian bacon.
00:38:24.915 --> 00:38:36.575
<v SPEAKER_4>So when you waffle bacon, it gets that thing where you have the contrasting bits of crispiness and chewiness, because the bits that are in the wells don't crisp up, but the bits that are on the grooves get extra crispy.
00:38:36.575 --> 00:38:36.995
<v SPEAKER_3>All right.
00:38:36.995 --> 00:38:39.335
<v SPEAKER_3>Can you taco a bacon, egg, and cheese?
00:38:39.335 --> 00:38:39.875
<v SPEAKER_4>Absolutely.
00:38:39.875 --> 00:38:40.275
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah.
00:38:40.275 --> 00:38:40.895
<v SPEAKER_3>Absolutely.
00:38:40.895 --> 00:38:41.795
<v SPEAKER_4>Yeah, yeah.
00:38:41.795 --> 00:38:42.535
<v SPEAKER_3>Does it leftover?
00:38:42.535 --> 00:38:45.315
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't want to eat a leftover bacon, egg, and cheese.
00:38:45.315 --> 00:38:50.755
<v SPEAKER_3>If I think I'm not going to finish it right away, though, that's definitely where for me the scramble comes in because I think that holds up better.
00:38:50.755 --> 00:38:52.695
<v SPEAKER_4>Then like an over easy egg or an over medium egg.
00:38:52.695 --> 00:38:53.035
<v SPEAKER_3>Sure.
00:38:53.035 --> 00:38:55.195
<v SPEAKER_3>It often takes me a while to finish my sandwich.
00:38:55.195 --> 00:38:56.655
<v SPEAKER_2>I shouldn't admit this, especially if it's from-
00:38:56.655 --> 00:38:57.815
<v SPEAKER_4>I finish my bacon, egg, and cheese.
00:38:57.815 --> 00:38:59.735
<v SPEAKER_4>I finish my sandwiches in like four bites.
00:38:59.735 --> 00:39:01.275
<v SPEAKER_3>That's like everybody I live with.
00:39:02.475 --> 00:39:09.595
<v SPEAKER_4>I get comments all the time on Instagram that I'm a very aggressive eater which I never noticed until I started posting pictures of myself eating publicly.
00:39:09.595 --> 00:39:11.035
<v SPEAKER_3>Now you have a complex?
00:39:11.035 --> 00:39:16.935
<v SPEAKER_4>No, I don't have a complex, but I noticed when I'm out eating with other people that I'll finish my sandwich before people have taken their first bite.
00:39:17.435 --> 00:39:20.055
<v SPEAKER_3>Did you grow up in one of those eater beating households?
00:39:20.055 --> 00:39:21.015
<v SPEAKER_3>You got to eat faster?
00:39:21.015 --> 00:39:27.855
<v SPEAKER_4>No, we grew up in a household where stuff was put on your plate and you were forced to eat all of it no matter what.
00:39:28.835 --> 00:39:35.755
<v SPEAKER_4>Sometimes my little sister would be, I remember there were dinners we had where she would be at the table by herself for two hours after the meal was over.
00:39:36.235 --> 00:39:38.415
<v SPEAKER_4>Because she didn't want to finish eating what she was given.
00:39:38.415 --> 00:39:39.135
<v SPEAKER_3>Okay.
00:39:39.135 --> 00:39:41.215
<v SPEAKER_3>Can you cook it in a pan with butter?
00:39:41.215 --> 00:39:42.155
<v SPEAKER_3>Obviously.
00:39:42.195 --> 00:39:42.535
<v SPEAKER_4>Yes.
00:39:42.535 --> 00:39:47.235
<v SPEAKER_3>I don't know that you need to butter your bacon but that is between you and your heart gods and not me.
00:39:47.235 --> 00:39:49.075
<v SPEAKER_4>I was at a cafe once in New York.
00:39:49.075 --> 00:39:52.555
<v SPEAKER_4>This was Le Monde which used to be up on the Upper West Side in Morningside Heights.
00:39:52.555 --> 00:39:57.335
<v SPEAKER_4>I was sitting there and the table next to me was this British couple with a little kid, not so little kid.
00:39:57.335 --> 00:40:02.195
<v SPEAKER_4>He had a strip of bacon and he was taking butter from the butter dish and buttering his bacon.
00:40:02.195 --> 00:40:04.715
<v SPEAKER_4>He's like, mother, I'm buttering my bacon.
00:40:04.715 --> 00:40:09.675
<v SPEAKER_4>I just remember him very distinctly spreading butter on it and saying that, and just thinking it was hilarious.
00:40:09.955 --> 00:40:15.155
<v SPEAKER_3>It sounds so cultured when he says it, it's like, wow, what a great idea.
00:40:15.495 --> 00:40:16.535
<v SPEAKER_2>It's all an accident.
00:40:16.535 --> 00:40:20.055
<v SPEAKER_4>Buttered bacon, I don't know if I'm for it or if it's necessary, but you can definitely do it.
00:40:20.055 --> 00:40:23.495
<v SPEAKER_3>I'm not saying in a dark room where nobody can see me, I wouldn't try it.
00:40:25.075 --> 00:40:27.615
<v SPEAKER_3>Can you get a bacon, egg and cheese out of kids clothes?
00:40:27.615 --> 00:40:32.675
<v SPEAKER_4>Ideally it shouldn't get on their clothes in the first place because your egg should be at the very least medium cooked so it doesn't squirt out.
00:40:32.815 --> 00:40:42.075
<v SPEAKER_4>Of all the sandwiches that are designed for convenience, the bacon, egg and cheese should be the neatest one because it's the one you're eating first thing in the day, you don't want to get any mess on your clothes when you're on your way to work.
00:40:42.855 --> 00:40:45.895
<v SPEAKER_4>A bacon, egg and cheese sandwich should be a neat affair.
00:40:45.895 --> 00:40:48.835
<v SPEAKER_3>I mean, you don't want to mess up your sweatshirt on the way to elementary school.
00:40:48.835 --> 00:40:50.935
<v SPEAKER_3>That's definitely something my kids are good at.
00:40:50.935 --> 00:40:52.015
<v SPEAKER_3>My kids are feral.
00:40:52.015 --> 00:40:53.755
<v SPEAKER_3>They'll get anything on anything.
00:40:53.755 --> 00:40:56.295
<v SPEAKER_3>So can I get it out?
00:40:56.295 --> 00:40:56.855
<v SPEAKER_3>Probably.
00:40:56.855 --> 00:41:00.095
<v SPEAKER_3>Grease stains can be tricky, but I think I can.
00:41:03.035 --> 00:41:05.475
<v SPEAKER_4>That's it for today's episode, but we want to hear from you.
00:41:05.875 --> 00:41:08.635
<v SPEAKER_3>Is there another recipe or food you want us to chat about?
00:41:08.635 --> 00:41:11.035
<v SPEAKER_3>Any comments or questions about this week's dish?
00:41:11.035 --> 00:41:17.835
<v SPEAKER_4>Tell us at therecipepodcast.com or at Kenji and Deb, or call us and leave us a message at 202-709-7607.
00:41:20.975 --> 00:41:25.555
<v SPEAKER_3>The recipe is created and co-hosted by Deb Perelman and Kenji López-Alt.
00:41:25.555 --> 00:41:32.195
<v SPEAKER_3>Our producers are Jocelyn Gonzalez, Perry Gregory, and Pedro Rafael Rosado of PRX Productions.
00:41:32.215 --> 00:41:38.335
<v SPEAKER_4>The executive producer for Radiotopia is Audrey Mardovich, and Yuri Losordo is director of network operations.
00:41:38.335 --> 00:41:42.715
<v SPEAKER_3>Apu Goté, Emmanuel Johnson, and Mike Russo handle our social media.
00:41:42.715 --> 00:41:43.495
<v SPEAKER_3>Thanks for listening.
00:41:51.397 --> 00:41:59.297
<v SPEAKER_4>The Recipe with Kenji and Deb is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX, a network of independent, creator-owned, listener-supported podcasts.
00:41:59.297 --> 00:42:01.937
<v SPEAKER_3>Discover audio with vision at radiotopia.fm.
