There is a bit of a benefit to being an early riser married to a late sleeper. And that benefit is breakfast. You can eat exactly what you want, without taking into consideration your partner's likes and dislikes. This riff on Eggs Benedict takes into account the fact that I don't like Hollandaise sauce and I don't eat bacon. Instead of bacon, I used crab meat and in place of Hollandaise sauce, I used Thai Chili Butter. I love hot, spicy food, even in the morning. Michael is working on his Scoville unit tolerance, but mostly just at lunch and dinner. Even though he now loads his fish tacos with Sriracha spiced Mexican crema, this dish would never fly. On the other hand, I loved it because it was spicy hot.
I have become somewhat of a poached egg master so, as usual, the poached egg was perfect. I made the chili butter by slicing a couple of Thai chilies and cooking them in butter with a little red chili paste. It had amazing flavor as well as heat. You could substitute chilies with less heat if you prefer. You could even leave the chilies out and rely solely on the chili paste. But when my mate sleeps through breakfast, I bring on the heat!
Ingredients
- 1 to asted English muffin
- 2 poached eggs
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 small Thai chilies (sliced and seeds removed)
- 1 teaspoon red chile paste or crushed red pepper flakes to taste
- 3 ounces flaked crab meat
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a small skillet. Add the chilies and chili paste. Cook for 2-3 minutes over low heat until the chilies just start to darken and shrivel. Do not allow the butter to brown.
- Toast an English muffin and top it with the poached egg and cooked crab. Pour the hot chili butter over the top. You can put it under the broiler to heat the crab, but it can also be eaten at room temperature. I am not a high fan of re-heating cooked crab. If the other components of the dish are hot, that is perfect.