chava thomas — crumbs…
For many, a diner that serves breakfast all day and night is an oasis in the desert of conventional restaurants. Sometimes it feels good to eat eggs and toast for dinner, or have pancakes after a night of partying.
The downside of this is that getting to these places can be difficult — there are two places in Moscow that serve breakfast at night. One is Shari’s, which is a good half-hour walk from the downtown bars, and Moscow Bagel & Deli, which is conveniently located but often busy. Without a designated driver, it might be better to make hangover prevention food at home. It’s not hard to make most breakfast food at home, and much fun can be had preparing it, especially if slightly inebriated.
Eggs Benedict is a classic breakfast food, but it can look daunting. Hollandaise sauce is a source of trouble for many cooks, and it can be difficult to poach the eggs exactly right. One good trick for easy hollandaise is to use the microwave. This technique is faster and easier than using a traditional double boiler, and reduces the amount of burners used to make the dish. Many great recipes for microwave hollandaise can be found online.
Poached eggs taste great, but can be complicated. An egg poacher, or metal or ceramic ramekins can be of great help to making an attractive poached egg, as they allow the egg to cook evenly and hold its shape. They can be found almost anywhere cooking implements are sold, and range in price. A nonstick coating helps, but is not necessary.
Country fried steak is a Southern breakfast classic, and can be prepared with little effort. It’s made with cheap cube steak, so it is inexpensive and still filling. Country fried steak is usually accompanied by white gravy, two eggs, toast and hash browns, but is also great as a dinner dish with mashed potatoes. In either case, the gravy is a must to provide moisture and extra fat and make this greasy dish even better.
If one knows they will be in the mood for hash browns later, it can be helpful to bake a potato in advance and chill it for at least two hours. Cold cooked potatoes make better homemade hash browns, and while it is easy to dump frozen hash browns out of a bag, the homemade stuff tastes and looks better.
Deluxe Southern Breakfast with Country Fried Steak
1 cup oil
1 pound cube steak in four pieces
1 1/2 cups plus 3 tablespoons flour
Salt and pepper
3 cups plus 3 tablespoons milk
1 egg
2 baked potatoes, chilled
8 eggs
8 pieces of bread
Salt and pepper the cube steak, then heat the oil in a heavy cast-iron skillet to 360 degrees. Season the 1 1/2 cups flour, and beat the egg with 3 tablespoons milk. Dip each piece of meat into the egg, then dredge in flour and fry until crispy and brown on both sides.
Using the large holes of a box grater, grate the potatoes. Heat 1/4 cup oil in a separate skillet until hot, then add potatoes in a single layer. Cook until golden brown on one side, then flip and brown the other side.
While hash browns are cooking, pour off all but 1/4 cup of oil from the steak skillet. Add three tablespoons flour and cook over medium heat for three to four minutes. Slowly add the remaining milk and whisk. Simmer for eight to 10 minutes until thick.
Prepare eggs to taste and toast bread. Butter toast and put on separate small plates. Put hash browns on four large plates, then eggs and country fried steak. Top the steak with 1/4 cup of gravy. Serve immediately.
First published March 2, 2009 in The Argonaut