Need to shake up your morning eggs and potato routine? This combination of softly coddled eggs layered atop fluffy, buttery potato puree, all packaged in a handy mason jar, is so deliciously satisfying that you may never go back to fried eggs and hash browns again. Not ideal for insane weekday mornings but quite lovely for leisurely weekends.Angie Zoobkoff

Person with a spoon digging into a glass jar of coddle eggs with potato puree underneath, slice of bread nearby

Coddled Eggs with Potato Puree

5 from 1 vote
These coddled eggs with potato puree are a mindboggling breakfast. Cooked potatoes are passed through a food mill, blended with butter, then piped into Mason jars. An egg is cracked into each, and the whole shebang is covered and set into simmering water. A creamier, more buttery, luscious-er breakfast cannot be had.
David Leite
CourseBreakfast
CuisineAmerican
Servings4 servings
Calories425 kcal
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Total Time50 minutes

Equipment

  • 4 half-pint (250 ml) mason jars with sealable lids

Ingredients 

  • 1/4 cup fine sea salt, plus more for garnish
  • 1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch (18-mm) dice
  • 10 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • Kosher salt
  • 4 large eggs
  • 2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh chives
  • Eight 1/4-inch (6-mm) thick slices baguette, cut on a diagonal, toasted

Instructions 

  • In a large stockpot set over high heat, bring 7 quarts water to a rolling boil. [Editor’s Note: Yep. That’s a lot of water. But you need the mason jars to be completely submerged in water. So just humor us and make sure you use ample water.] Stir in the sea salt then add the diced potatoes and cook until fork-tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
  • Use a slotted spoon to remove the potatoes, leaving the water in the pot at a gentle simmer. Run the potatoes through a food mill or ricer or gently mash until smooth with a potato masher or the back of a wooden spoon. Stir in the butter and season with kosher salt to taste.
  • Transfer the potato puree to a piping bag or resealable plastic bag with the corner snipped off. Divide the puree evenly among 4 half-pint mason jars, filling each about 1/3 full. Crack an egg into each jar on top of the puree, and seal the lids. Place the jars in the simmering water and cook until the egg whites are set, 15 to 20 minutes. Carefully lift the jars out of the water and remove the lids.
  • Garnish each jar with a sprinkle of chives and sea salt. Serve immediately with the toasted baguette alongside for scooping.
The Grand Central Market Cookbook

Adapted From

The Grand Central Market Cookbook

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Nutrition

Serving: 1 portionCalories: 425 kcalCarbohydrates: 21 gProtein: 9 gFat: 35 gSaturated Fat: 20 gMonounsaturated Fat: 10 gTrans Fat: 1 gCholesterol: 265 mgSodium: 7154 mgFiber: 2 gSugar: 1 g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Recipe © 2017 Adele Yellin | Kevin West. Photo © 2017 Johnny Autry. All rights reserved.

Recipe Testers’ Reviews

I was happy to be tempted by this recipe because it really is delicious. Great way to serve eggs and potatoes in a creative way. The creaminess of the puree potatoes complements the runny yolk of the coddled eggs and the freshness of the chopped chives. This would be a hit with roasted tomatoes.

Coddled eggs and potatoes for breakfast? Yes, please! Creamy, buttery potato puree, silky egg yolks all in a portable container. What more could a girl ask for?

For my first batch, I put them back in for another 10 minutes. The whites were set and the yolks were not runny but still soft. Very nice, though.

For the second batch I simmered for 20 minutes and the yolks were slightly runnier and the whites had set. Perfect! I did experiment with the second batch a little. In addition to the chives, which were lovely and fresh, I added cheese and diced green onion to the potatoes in two and topped the last two with cooked and crumbled bacon. Yum! For those following a Keto or Paleo diet, mashed cauliflower could be used instead of the potatoes. I think this is a recipe I will gleefully be playing around with for a while.

Confession: Until I encountered this recipe I had never coddled an egg. Beaten them, whipped them, hard-boiled them, cracked them, and in my gentler moods, made them over-easy, but coddled them? Never. Eggs were not something I would eat as a child; their appropriate use was to make cakes rise. But as I age and develop health problems, eggs become a good source of protein. This made an attractive little dish which would be nice to serve at a small brunch.

Eggs and potatoes are a staple in our house. When I do not feel like cooking dinner or want to spend too much time in the kitchen, tortilla Española (Spanish omelet) is my go-to dish—an easy and simple recipe of potatoes, onions, and eggs. When I saw the recipe for coddled eggs and potato puree, it caught my eye but when I studied the recipe, it really made it clear this will be the recipe to make.

I’d never cooked in mason jars before. Some of the hurdles I found are for this reason only. I used a food ricer to smooth my potatoes and once I added the softened butter it turned into this beautiful, silken, fluffy cream. It took exactly the amount of potatoes to fill 1/3 of the jars. Once I added the eggs I noticed the jars were almost full. The cooking time was not accurate, but here is where it could be, for me, because I was not sure how to cook it.

Ready with the toasted bread and our coffees, my husband and I sat to enjoy this beautiful dish. The garnish made it look so appetizing, so we dove right in. We also added some freshly ground pepper, as we do we all eggs. It was, without a doubt, delicious. I have not eaten anything so fast in a long time. My husband was very impressed with the flavor and loved the idea of having it all in the jar. I will be making this again and over again. It will go on my brunch recipes files and I do brunch a lot.

A few things I would make differently though. The size of the jar, I thought was too small. There was almost no room for the egg to cook faster, little steam to circle around. If the mixture is on a bigger jar, the egg will spread a little more and therefore, will need less time cooking. I will still use the same amount of potatoes per jar. It made four good size servings. Also, for a small twist I would add some Parmigiano-Reggiano or Gruyere cheese to the potatoes for an even more complex flavor. Also, to save time, I would prepare the potatoes in the jar and save overnight in the refrigerator. In the morning boil the water and drop the eggs. This may need playing around with the cooking time in order to warm up the potatoes but it is worth trying.




About David Leite

I count myself lucky to have received three James Beard Awards for my writing as well as for Leite’s Culinaria. My work has also appeared in The New York Times, Martha Stewart Living, Saveur, Bon Appétit, Gourmet, Food & Wine, Yankee, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post, and more.


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5 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    WOW! So excited to see this recipe today! I just recently took out my Egg Coddlers to show them to someone. I’m out of town now, but can’t wait to try this out later this week. The idea to use mason jars is a good one because most people don’t have real egg coddlers, I only have two at the moment but could be in the market for more -Yvonne Lott – if you are selling your collection, do you have any with the Bunnies on them?

    I will share my comments after I make this for sure!

    1. Yes, I just sold my bunnies at Easter. But do go to eBay and type in egg coddler bunnies or rabbit….Skippety Tale has a rabbit and comes in a king and a maxim size. Royal Worcester made them. My handle is 13kep. Have fun!
      Good luck! ymlott@aol.com

  2. To enlighten you on “egg coddler”. I have some that I coddled eggs and about 400 patterns that I have collected. Different sizes. Some are absolutely lovely. Go to eBay and type it in to peruse! I love your idea!! Why haven’t I thought to do this!!! Ladies, there is nothing that tastes better than an egg coddled that has not touched the water. I am old so selling my collection but will keep enough to coddle eggs and Add mason jars to have room for potatoes. What a wonderful idea!!! Thx

    Add a little chopped ham or cheese, etc. Salt & pepper and toast…I do mine about 7 minutes in gently boiling water, etc.

    1. Lovely, Yvonne! Thank you SO much for sharing your information and inspiration! We SO appreciate it!