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Seasoned AdviceHow to eat sunny-side-up eggs on a sandwich?
[+13] [2] Tim N
[2011-05-02 07:17:17]
[ eggs sandwich ]
[ http://cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/14476]

Whenever I try to eat an egg sunny side up on a sandwich, I end up with egg all over my sandwich hand as soon as I get to the yolk. Is there a technique that prevents this, or are sunny-side-up sandwiches just not compatible with clean hands?

If the -1 was for being off-topic: should I rephrase the question to "Is it plausible to make sunny-side-up eggs on a sandwich?"? - Tim N
(6) No, because anyone with British ancestry has, I guarantee, eaten a fried egg sandwich; we know it's not only plausible but desirable. My usual method is to put the egg yolk down, so the bread absorbs most of it. Beyond that, it's just gonna be a messy sandwich, so enjoy it as is. - community_owned
I hadn't thought of putting the yolk down! - Tim N
(6) Although that's arguably the sunny side down. - Tim N
...well played. - community_owned
(2) As much as a shame as it is to close a question that's generated so much interest, this simply isn't on topic. Questions here should be about cooking (or food preparation); questions about eating food, such as this one, don't require any cooking expertise to answer and have never been on topic here. Apologies, Tim - it was a fun question while it lasted. :) - Aaronut
(1) I must say that I though of this question as being about how to serve the sandwich, which is certainly related to cooking and food preparation. I'll concede that it could have been worded better for that purpose, though. I think I'll take it up on meta. - Carmi
[+15] [2011-05-02 09:41:54] Sam Holder [ACCEPTED]

My technique, which whilst not always perfect, has quite a good success rate (and I usually have HP Sauce [1] on my sandwich, which mean the leakage possibilities are increased), is this.

First you need to hold the sandwich delicately, and vertically, at the bottom of the sandwich pressing the bottom edge of the crust together. This ensures that when the yolk breach occurs gravity will ensure the the golden goodness flows down into the sandwich. The next most important thing is to own the breach. Don't allow this to happen when you are biting the sandwich, as by then you won't have any control over the flooding out. I tend to force the breach before I take the first bite. This has 2 advantages as I see it:

  • There is more surface area of the bread to take the spreading yolk/sauce
  • It means that the yolk/sauce is more evenly distributed through the sandwich.

I clasp the bottom edge, closet to the floor firmly with my thumbs and little fingers, so the leakage possibilities from this end are minimal. Then allow the sandwich to open slightly to form a narrow 'V'. Next force the breach. As soon as you breach the egg be prepared. You need to direct the flow to one side by tilting the sandwich. As the flow approaches the lower side of the sandwich start to close it up on that side, forcing the flow toward the top edge. As the flow gets towards the top, tilt the sandwich the other way and repeat the process, distributing the flow throughout the sandwich.

This should be good enough to avoid any large spillage, but if the amount of flow is still significant then I tend to force it up to a top corner and 'attack' the overflow with a single large bite.

The final stage is to hold the sandwich vertically so that the bottom and side edges are not parallel with the ground, but form a 'V' and eat from the top '^' corner. This allows you to seal both the bottom edges with your hands and minimises the chances of a leak.

As I said it's not always perfect but works quite well.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP_Sauce

(5) +1 I've read battle strategies that are less detailed. "Attack the overflow with a single large bite". Not only did I learn something, but it was a hilarious read. - Todd Chaffee
(1) I wish we had a flag option for Best. Answer. EVER. - community_owned
Delicacy? There is no answer but attack the yolk whole. nom. - mfg
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[+2] [2011-05-02 17:02:06] Carmi

In my house, there are two options for this problem, both quite similar:

  • Eat this as an open-faced sandwich, and have a second slice for soaking up the yolk. This can be either before starting, a manual breach of the yolk, or after starting, with the second slice on the plate below the egg, so that the yolk drip on to that slice. Generally, on my plate, there are baked beans involved, and they don't mind being dripped on either.
  • With the bottom slice and egg on the plate, breach the yolk with a fork. You then quickly place the top slice on to soak up as much as possible. If this fails you can always revert to dripping some yolk on the beans and soaking it up later.

Eventually, it needs ot be said that getting a little less sterile is part of the fun of these sandwiches. Just don't wear any expensive trousers while you're doing it, that's all.


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