I Made 5 Famous Scrambled Egg Recipes And Found The Very Best One (2024)

A true culinary showdown. The contenders? Bourdain, Ramsay, Teigen, Blumenthal, and Stewart.

Jesse SzewczykPublished on August 04, 2017
I Made 5 Famous Scrambled Egg Recipes And Found The Very Best One (2)

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Hello world! I'm Jesse from BuzzFeed's food team, and I love to cook.

I Made 5 Famous Scrambled Egg Recipes And Found The Very Best One (3)

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I especially love to cook eggs. They're cheap, easy, and something that everyone cooks at home.

Columbia

Eggs are also one of the first things they teach you how to make in culinary school. Between that and working in restaurants, I've probably made scrambled eggs about a billion times. They never get old. 🍳

Still, I know that pretty much everyone has a scrambled egg method that they swear by — or their trick to getting the fluffiest, most delicious eggs ever.

So I decided to test five of the most popular. A ~scrambled egg showdown~, if you will:

I Made 5 Famous Scrambled Egg Recipes And Found The Very Best One (5)

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This was my lineup:

1. Anthony Bourdain: Because he's very ~opinionated~ about his scrambled eggs.

2. Martha Stewart: Because there is no denying she is the OG queen of cooking.

3. Gordon Ramsay: Because deep down I secretly wanted to call him an idiot sandwich if his eggs turned out bad.

4. Chrissy Teigen: Because I wanted to include someone who wasn't a professional cook to spice things up (a wild card!) — and people swear by her cookbook.

5. Heston Blumenthal: Because he is a chef who owns one of the best restaurants in the world. (So his eggs must be good, right?)

Here are their methods and how they stacked up:

Anthony Bourdain was up first. He says you should cook your eggs over high heat with only butter. Whisk them, but not too much — because you want a "ripple of white and yellow throughout."

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I Made 5 Famous Scrambled Egg Recipes And Found The Very Best One (7)

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Then add salt and pepper.

But TBH? These didn't taste great at all.

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The eggs looked like a cheap scramble from a greasy diner. The ripple of white and yellow looked lazy, and cooking them in a hot pan made them dry and rubbery. Would not recommend.

Rating: 🍳

Get Anthony's recipe here.

Next up: Martha Stewart. She follows a traditional method for making her scramble and believes that if you start with good eggs, you don't need to add anything to them.

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I Made 5 Famous Scrambled Egg Recipes And Found The Very Best One (13)

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Simply whisk them together and don't add anything at all (not even salt).

Then melt a tablespoon of butter in a pan over medium heat and add your eggs.

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As they cook, you're supposed to pull in all of the sides — or push everything toward the center — to create beautiful ripples of egg (kinda like ribbons).

So were they as good as they looked?

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Sadly, no. They were beautiful eggs ― but they weren't that tasty. Because she doesn't season her scramble until the end, the seasoning wasn't incorporated well or evenly, and could have benefited from a pinch of salt in the eggs before they hit the pan.

Rating: 🍳🍳

Get Martha's recipe here.

Then came Gordon Ramsay's internet-famous scramble. He starts by adding cold eggs and butter to a sauce pot.

Cook them over medium heat for 30 seconds, stirring constantly.

Remove the pot from the burner, stir them off the heat for about 20 seconds, and put them back on the heat for another 30 seconds.

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Continue this back-and-forth cooking technique until they firm up and immediately season with salt, pepper, and a teaspoon of cold crème fraîche (to prevent them from overcooking).

So, were they worth the hype?

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Actually, yes. The butter, crème fraîche, and delicate cooking method made these eggs slightly looser than a traditional scramble, but damn good. The eggs were buttery, seasoned throughout, and custardy without being runny.

Rating: 🍳🍳🍳🍳🍳

Get Gordon's recipe here.

Up next: Chrissy Teigen's scramble. She starts by combining eight eggs with a quarter cup of cream.

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Then add salt and pepper.

Melt three tablespoons of butter in a pan over low heat and add your eggs.

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Cook them low and slow until set. She says this can take anywhere between "20 and 30 minutes, depending on your stovetop."

How did they taste? (And what did Chrissy think of my attempt?)

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Unsurprisingly, these eggs were super creamy and custard-like (thanks to a generous amount of cream and butter). They had the classic texture of soft curds without the usual dryness. And in case you were wondering, Chrissy — who just HAPPENED to be walking around the BuzzFeed offices as I was writing this post (no joke, lol) — approved of my attempt. (But wasn't too happy about — spoiler alert! — not coming in first place.)

Rating: 🍳🍳🍳🍳

Get Chrissy's recipe here.

And last but not least came Heston Blumenthal's method. He starts by combining milk, cream, eggs, salt, pepper, and butter in a heatproof bowl using a fork.

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He says you don't want to "incorporate any air" into them.

Put the bowl over a pot of simmering water (aka a bain-marie) and gently cook them, stirring constantly, until small curds form.

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This could take up to 25 minutes.

So was it worth all that hassle?

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Not really. The scramble was a bit too runny for my taste, however, the flavor was spot on. It was buttery, seasoned throughout, and custardy due to the milk and cream. I liked how indulgent they tasted, but I don't think they were worth the effort.

Rating: 🍳🍳🍳

Get Heston's recipe here.

SO WHO WON?

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THE WINNER: Gordon Ramsay

These eggs were incredible. They were custardy, rich, perfectly seasoned — and worth the extra steps of cooking them on and off the flame. Get the recipe here.

SECOND PLACE: Chrissy Teigen

If you prefer a firmer scramble, go with this method ― they're moist and custardy without being runny. Get the recipe here.

THIRD PLACE: Heston Blumenthal

These eggs tasted great but were slightly too loose and certainly not worth the hassle. Get the recipe here.

FOURTH PLACE: Martha Stewart

Although they were pretty, these eggs were nothing special. Bland, a bit dry, and overall unimpressive. Get the recipe here.

LAST PLACE: Anthony Bourdain

These eggs were trash. Dry, rubbery, and lazily executed. Would not recommend.

Get the recipe here.

TL;DR: If you want the creamiest scrambled eggs (that are a tad bit loose but so, so good), go with Gordon Ramsay's method (which were honestly some of the best eggs I have ever had). If you want something a bit firmer but not at all dry, go with Chrissy Teigen's recipe.

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    I Made 5 Famous Scrambled Egg Recipes And Found The Very Best One (2024)

    FAQs

    What makes the best scrambled eggs milk or water? ›

    Adding milk or plain water to scrambled eggs is an optional step that affects the texture of your finished dish. For creamy scrambled eggs, you'll add up to 1 tablespoon of milk for every egg. For fluffy scrambled eggs, you'll add up to 1 tablespoon of water for every egg.

    What does Gordon Ramsay add to scrambled eggs? ›

    Ingredients
    1. 6 cold eggs.
    2. 15g butter.
    3. Salt and pepper.
    4. Crème fraîche.
    5. Chives.

    What seasoning makes scrambled eggs taste better? ›

    Salt and Pepper

    Specifically, salt suppresses bitter tastes to help bring out the eggs' natural taste, while pepper adds a pop of outside spice. You can switch up your eggs' flavor by using different types of pepper. While black and white pepper come from the same plant, they have slightly different tastes.

    What is the secret ingredient to add to scrambled eggs? ›

    Some Southerners swear by adding a little milk, cheese, or even sour cream to their scrambled eggs to give the dish a delicious finish, but there is one secret ingredient that is sure to result in the fluffiest scrambled eggs you've ever tasted or served. It's water. That's right.

    Do chefs add milk to scrambled eggs? ›

    When asked if adding milk to scrambled eggs is a good idea, Robby Melvin, Southern Living Test Kitchen Director, simply and unequivocally said, "Nope." Chefs and home cooks agree that butter is the only dairy you need when scrambling eggs.

    Should I add milk to scrambled eggs? ›

    It's easy to overcook scrambled eggs with milk

    This directly affects the consistency of the final product, ultimately making them that much more rubbery or dry. According to Cook's Illustrated, the only kind of dairy you should be adding to your eggs is butter.

    What are 3 tips for making perfect scrambled eggs? ›

    This Is the Best Way to Make Scrambled Eggs
    1. Crack the eggs on a flat surface.
    2. Don't be afraid to pre-salt eggs.
    3. Add a splash of milk.
    4. Use a fork, not a whisk.
    5. Cook in a nonstick pan.
    6. … and make sure it's cold.
    7. Keep the heat relatively low.
    8. Let them finish cooking off the stove.
    Nov 18, 2022

    How does Dolly Parton make fluffy scrambled eggs? ›

    Parton said she always adds some ice water to her pan of scrambled eggs. "Put a few drops of ice water as you're cooking them and that makes them fluffier," she said.

    How do restaurants make their scrambled eggs so fluffy? ›

    Actually the secret in fine restaurants is to do what the French do - add water. The water will steam during the cooking process and add air. I didn't believe it at first, but was shocked at the results when I tried it. Just a about a tablespoon per egg is enough.

    What is the best liquid to add to scrambled eggs? ›

    Many scrambled egg recipes tell you to add a pour of heavy cream, half-and-half, or whole milk. The idea is that these ingredients improve the flavor (dairy tastes good), tenderness (the fat in the dairy interrupts the proteins in the eggs), and fluffiness (the water in the dairy puffs into steam).

    What does cornstarch do to scrambled eggs? ›

    Adding a small amount of a starchy slurry to scrambled eggs — a technique learned from Mandy Lee of the food blog Lady & Pups — prevents them from setting up too firmly, resulting in eggs that stay tender and moist, whether you like them soft-, medium- or hard-scrambled.

    What makes fluffier scrambled eggs water or milk? ›

    Adding water to eggs essentially steams them, as the water evaporates during cooking, and this yields a fluffier scramble. If you add too much water you can dilute the eggs, and that will result in a bland mess, so stick to a tablespoon per egg and no more.

    What do restaurants put in their scrambled eggs? ›

    Then, make sure you've used enough salt and enough butter/oil in the pan. Large scale restaurants often buy egg for scrambling as a pre-mixed goop in cartons, rather than as actual eggs. They'll probably add milk or cream to the mix too, and a bit of salt and pepper depending on the chef.

    What makes IHOP scrambled eggs so good? ›

    The aeration in the pancake batter makes the eggs light, tender, and fluffy without adding any obvious flavor, so the egg dish is both hefty and light at the same time. Pancake batter also gives the eggs enough body and structure to hold together over the meaty, cheesy fillings.

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